Sky and Telescope - January 2016 - 27

BRAGGING RIGHTS: Low hills and open ﬁelds dominate the
scenery in Illinois at the site of greatest eclipse. The owner of
this ﬁeld noted that visitors arrived to view the location "every
day" - even in 2013, when this photo was taken.
JAY ANDERSON

17:15 UT

0 .6

0.9
m

agn
itud

00
U

18 : 4
5U

0 se

19 :

c
2m

in 3

0 se

in 4

NATIONWIDE EVENT Weather permitting, everyone in North America gets
to see at least a partial solar eclipse on August 21, 2017. Eclipse magnitude is the
fraction of the Sun's diameter covered by the Moon.

Sk yandTelescope.com Januar y 2016

MICHAEL ZEILER / GREATAMERICANECLIPSE.COM

0.5
m
0.4
mag
nitu
de

0.6
ma
gni
tud
e

itu
de

0P
ME

0.7
ma
gn

ma
gni
tu

0.9
m

18:3

1:15

0 .8

0 UT

Pat
ho
f th
e to
tal
in 4
sol
0 se
ar e
c
clip
se

3:0

0 se

AM M
DT

in 3

agn
itu

5P
ME

PM
E

2 :4

0 se

ma
gni
tud
e

5 UT

in 2

2 :3 0

18:1

0.8
ma
gni
tud
e

PM C
DT

0 se

18:00
UT

in 1

1:00
PM C
DT

17:45 UT

17:30 UT

inut
es

0.7
ma
gni
tu

11:45

In the ﬁnal 14 minutes of its transcontinental journey,
the lunar shadow races across North and South Carolina.
The downward trend of the terrain's elevation accelerates
as the path approaches the Atlantic Ocean. Along the
way, some sizable cities become immersed in the lunar
shadow, including Anderson (2m 34s), Greenville (2m
11s), and Columbia (2m 30s). Historic Charleston lies just
inside the southern limit, experiencing 1m 32s of totality
centered on 2:47 p.m. EDT. Head to the centerline, 30
miles to the northeast, to get a duration of 2m 34s - still
within 6 seconds of the event's maximum.
Weather prospects are most daunting at the eastern
end of the eclipse track. Unlike in the western moun-

Total Solar Eclipse of August 21, 2017

10:30 AM
P

The Carolinas

tains, there is no strong pattern of windward cloudiness
and leeward clearing here. Instead, ever-present humidity, supplied by the tropical Atlantic waters, fuels a patchwork quilt of convective clouds that blossom nearly every
afternoon. Fortunately, the cooling that comes with
the gradual blocking of the Sun should help to erode
the small- and medium-size cloud buildups that might
occur on eclipse day.
Average cloud cover in the Carolinas ranges between
60% and 70%, and the likelihood of sunshine at eclipse
time hovers around 65%. Prospects are a bit better along
the South Carolina coast, courtesy of the afternoon sea
breezes that subdue the cloudiness for a few miles inland.
Similar beneﬁts might be had along the margins of Lake

10:15 AM PDT

with a clear sky on August 21, 2017, is a winner.
Kentucky is a landscape of small, rolling hills, treelined roads, and numerous farms. As the eclipse track
enters Tennessee, the terrain begins to rise, crossing the
low hills of the Highland Rim before dropping into the
Nashville Basin. The average cloud cover in this stretch
ranges between 60% and 70% in satellite data and about
10% lower than that based on airport observations.
Nashville itself lies within the umbral track about 25
miles south of its centerline. At 1:28 p.m. CDT, eclipse
watchers in "Music City" will be treated to 1m 55s of
totality, though they'll gain 45 seconds more by traveling
to the centerline. The eclipse-day percentage of possible
sunshine at Nashville is a decent 63% - a promising
value for August, though about 20% lower than the best
sites in Oregon and Idaho.
East of Nashville, the countryside becomes more
heavily forested as it transforms into the ridge-and-valley
Appalachians. Unfortunately, Knoxville and Chattanooga
both lie outside the path and get 99% partial eclipses. The
path of totality also clips the mountainous northeastern
corner of Georgia; Atlantans will see a 97% partial eclipse.

http://www.GREATAMERICANECLIPSE.COM http://www.SkyandTelescope.com

Sky and Telescope - January 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky and Telescope - January 2016