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August 1, 2017

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Solar Eclipse Charted for the Next 1,000 Years

Opportunities abound to watch the sun disappear if you live long and travel

By Mark Fischetti

Jan Willem Tulp; Source: Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA GSFC Emeritus; consultation by Michael Zeiler

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Editor’s Note (2/5/24): On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will be visible from parts of the U.S., Mexico and Canada. This will be the last opportunity to see the phenomenon in the contiguous U.S. and Canada until 2044.

Excitement about the August 21, 2017, eclipse is as hot as a star, but solar eclipses happen at least twice a year, when the orbits of the moon and Earth align with the sun. What is unusual this time is that the moon will totally block the sun, instead of doing so partially, and that the strip of darkness cast on Earth will fall on millions of people rather than plankton out at sea or polar bears or penguins at the poles. Forty-six solar eclipses of various types will occur over the next 30 years. Grab a friend and go.

Credit: Jen Christiansen

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Credit: Jan Willem Tulp; Source: Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA GSFC Emeritus; consultation by Michael Zeiler

Eclipses to the Year 3000

Creatures on Earth will witness 2,354 solar eclipses between 2017 and 3000. They will occur at regular intervals of slightly less than six months, which means that each year, eclipse season shifts on the calendar. Eclipses also occur in cycles; each successive eclipse in a cycle casts a similar shadow band on Earth. During a total eclipse, complete darkness at any given spot lasts less than seven minutes, so if you want to see one, plan ahead. 

Credit: Jen Christiansen

Credit: Jan Willem Tulp; Source: Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA GSFC Emeritus; consultation by Michael Zeiler

Credit: Jan Willem Tulp; Source: Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA GSFC Emeritus; consultation by Michael Zeiler

Rights & Permissions

Mark Fischetti was a senior editor at Scientific American for nearly 20 years and covered sustainability issues, including climate, environment, energy, and more. He assigned and edited feature articles and news by journalists and scientists and also wrote in those formats. He was founding managing editor of two spin-off magazines: Scientific American Mind and Scientific American Earth 3.0. His 2001 article “Drowning New Orleans” predicted the widespread disaster that a storm like Hurricane Katrina would impose on the city. Fischetti has written as a freelancer for the New York Times, Sports Illustrated, Smithsonian and many other outlets. He co-authored the book Weaving the Web with Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, which tells the real story of how the Web was created. He also co-authored The New Killer Diseases with microbiologist Elinor Levy. Fischetti has a physics degree and has twice served as Attaway Fellow in Civic Culture at Centenary College of Louisiana, which awarded him an honorary doctorate. In 2021 he received the American Geophysical Union’s Robert C. Cowen Award for Sustained Achievement in Science Journalism. He has appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press, CNN, the History Channel, NPR News and many radio stations.

More by Mark Fischetti
Scientific American Magazine Vol 317 Issue 2This article was published with the title “1,000 Years of Solar Eclipses” in Scientific American Magazine Vol. 317 No. 2 (), p. 62
doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0817-62
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