Real Time Solar System.

total solar eclipse

Total solar eclipse of 8 April 2024

Greatest eclipse
UTC
Moon distance
359,793km
Ecliptic latitude
0.346deg
Obscuration
100.0%

At greatest eclipse the Moon's disc spans 0.5533° against the Sun's 0.5326° — a ratio of 1.0390. Because the Moon appears larger, it covers the Sun completely and totality is possible.

Where you can see it

The shadow crosses the Pacific, North America and the North Atlantic. Only along the central line does the Moon cover the Sun completely; a few hundred kilometres either side and it is a partial eclipse, which looks nothing like the same event.

-120°-60°0°60°120°60°30°0°-30°-60°Brussels: not visibleAntwerp: not visibleGhent: not visibleBruges: not visibleLiège: not visibleLeuven: not visibleCharleroi: not visibleAmsterdam: not visibleRotterdam: not visibleThe Hague: not visibleUtrecht: not visibleEindhoven: not visibleLuxembourg: not visibleLondon: not visibleBirmingham: not visibleParis: not visibleLyon: not visibleMarseille: not visibleBerlin: not visibleMunich: not visibleHamburg: not visibleCologne: not visibleZurich: not visibleVienna: not visiblePrague: not visibleWarsaw: not visibleCopenhagen: not visibleStockholm: not visibleOslo: not visibleHelsinki: not visibleMadrid: not visibleBarcelona: not visibleRome: not visibleMilan: not visibleAthens: not visibleIstanbul: not visibleSão Paulo: not visibleBuenos Aires: not visibleSantiago: not visibleCape Town: not visibleJohannesburg: not visibleNairobi: not visibleCairo: not visibleLuxor: not visibleCádiz: not visibleMálaga: not visibleTangier: not visibleBenghazi: not visibleJeddah: not visibleDubai: not visibleMumbai: not visibleDelhi: not visibleSingapore: not visibleHong Kong: not visibleTokyo: not visibleSeoul: not visibleSydney: not visibleMelbourne: not visibleBrisbane: not visiblePerth: not visibleAuckland: not visibleVancouver: partial, 17% coveredSeattle: partial, 20% coveredSan Francisco: partial, 34% coveredMiami: partial, 46% coveredReykjavík: partial, 47% coveredLos Angeles: partial, 49% coveredPhoenix: partial, 64% coveredEdinburgh: partial, 64% coveredDenver: partial, 65% coveredGlasgow: partial, 65% coveredBelfast: partial, 70% coveredManchester: partial, 72% coveredMexico City: partial, 75% coveredDublin: partial, 75% coveredLisbon: partial, 76% coveredCardiff: partial, 79% coveredAtlanta: partial, 82% coveredWashington, D.C.: partial, 87% coveredNew York: partial, 90% coveredBoston: partial, 93% coveredChicago: partial, 94% coveredHouston: partial, 94% coveredToronto: partial, 100% coveredDallas: total, 100% coveredMontreal: total, 100% covered
The brass line is the central track — where the Moon covers the Sun completely. Dots are the 86 cities on the tonight pages, shaded by how much of the Sun is covered there. Hollow dots see nothing. Coastlines are Natural Earth 1:110m.

Cities in the path

CityMaximum (UTC)Sun altitudeDuration
Dallas18:4265°3m 56s
Montreal19:2740°1m 33s

Partial elsewhere

Sorted by how much of the Sun disappears. Below about 40% nothing looks wrong to the naked eye — the Sun is so bright that losing a third of it changes very little. Never look without a proper solar filter regardless.

CityCoveredMaximum (UTC)Sun altitude
Toronto100%19:1945°
Houston94%18:4067°
Chicago94%19:0752°
Boston93%19:2940°
New York90%19:2543°
Washington, D.C.87%19:2047°
Atlanta82%19:0457°
Cardiff79%19:47below horizon
Lisbon76%19:57below horizon
Dublin75%19:47below horizon
Mexico City75%18:1477°
Manchester72%19:46below horizon
Belfast70%19:46below horizon
Glasgow65%19:45below horizon
Denver65%18:4058°
Edinburgh64%19:44below horizon
Phoenix64%18:1960°
Los Angeles49%18:1255°
Reykjavík47%19:396°
Miami46%19:0160°
San Francisco34%18:1350°
Seattle20%18:2945°
Vancouver17%18:3043°

Not visible at all from Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, Bruges, Liège, Leuven, Charleroi, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht, Eindhoven, Luxembourg, London, Birmingham, Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Berlin, Munich, Hamburg, Cologne, Zurich, Vienna, Prague, Warsaw, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, Helsinki, Madrid, Barcelona, Rome, Milan, Athens, Istanbul, São Paulo, Buenos Aires, Santiago, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Nairobi, Cairo, Luxor, Cádiz, Málaga, Tangier, Benghazi, Jeddah, Dubai, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Auckland.

Greatest eclipse falls at 25.29°, -104.14° — the point where the axis passes closest to Earth's centre. The central line is computed from the Sun–Moon axis intersected with the geoid, and agrees with the reference coordinates to within a tenth of a kilometre.

Why eclipses come in seasons

The Moon's orbit is tilted about 5° to the ecliptic, so at most new and full moons it passes above or below the alignment. An eclipse needs the syzygy to coincide with the Moon being near one of the two nodes where the orbits cross. At this eclipse the Moon's ecliptic latitude was 0.346° — close enough to zero for the shadow to connect.

Times computed from VSOP87 and an ELP-derived lunar theory, validated against NOVAS and JPL Horizons to within one arcminute. See the alignment for yourself in the live simulation.