This three-hour, real-time telescope feed of the April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse over North America—”through Mexico, across the United States from Texas to Maine, and exiting North America along Canada’s coast”—is a collection of live-streamed views from locations along the path of totality—the 100% sun-blocked path of the moon’s shadow across Earth’s surface.
The NASA footage, a wordless alternative to their official live-stream broadcast, also shares the partially eclipsed Sun in different wavelengths of light. Quiet music accompanies the visuals. From the caption:
“A total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth and briefly covers the full disk of the Sun. This reveals the Sun’s wispy, white outer atmosphere, called the corona. Weather permitting, people throughout most of North and Central America, including all of the contiguous United States, will be able to view at least a partial solar eclipse.”
Camera locations include Mazatlán and Torreón in Mexico, Kerrville and Junction in Texas, Dallas, Texas, Russellville in Arkansas, Carbondale in Illinois, Indianapolis in Indiana, Cleveland in Ohio, Niagara Falls and Tupper Lake in New York, and Houlton in Maine. From NASA:
“Every 11 years or so, the Sun’s magnetic field flips, causing a cycle of increasing then decreasing solar activity. During solar minimum, there are fewer giant eruptions from the Sun, such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections. But during solar maximum, the Sun becomes more active.”
“In 2017, the Sun was nearing solar minimum. Viewers of the total eclipse could see the breathtaking corona – but since the Sun was quiet, streamers flowing into the solar atmosphere were restricted to just the equatorial regions of the star. The Sun is more magnetically symmetrical during solar minimum, causing this simpler appearance. During the 2024 eclipse, the Sun will be in or near solar maximum, when the magnetic field is more like a tangled hairball. Streamers will likely be visible throughout the corona. In addition to that, viewers will have a better chance to see prominences – which appear as bright, pink curls or loops coming off the Sun.”
TKSST.com featured this footage on its homepage during the livestream on April 8, 2024. Learn more about solar eclipses and the sun with these videos:
• What are the different types of eclipses?
• The 2017 Solar Eclipse from the shores of Palisades Reservoir, Idaho
• The Eclipse That Made Einstein Famous
• The sun, our closest star, in a stunning 4K time lapse animation
• Understanding the Magnetic Sun – NASA Goddard
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