The "Great American Total Solar Eclipse" to take place within a year.
Enthusiasts who have been waiting to witness the greatest astronomical phenomena will have to wait till Aug. 21, 2017 as this is the day when the sun will be eclipsed. It will be covering an immense area, which includes parts of eastern Pacific Ocean, all of North Atlantic Ocean, parts of North America and South America, and also a small part of Western Europe.
The event will have almost 80 percent of the sun eclipsed, Seeker reported. Along with the partial eclipse, a narrow belt from northwest to southeast will also witness a total solar eclipse.
The coast to coast eclipse in the U.S that will take place the coming year is a first since 1918 and also the first since February 1979, when this part of the world will witness the astronomical phenomena.
Statistics suggest that on an average of every 17.6 months, a total solar eclipse occurs. So, many such eclipses have so far taken place, but only a few have witnessed it. Moreover, Americans who are under the age of 40 years and who have never been out of the country have never viewed this phenomenon.
The U.S mainland has so far advocated three solar eclipses in the years 1963, 1970 and 1979. The total solar eclipse that is scheduled to take place in 2017 will end the long wait. It is also estimated that a majority of people will be able to catch a glimpse of the eclipsed sun and the number of people who are expected to witness the phenomena is around 12 million, Space reported.
Moreover, around 220 million people who live within a distance of 500 miles of the total solar eclipse zone will also be able to view the eclipse with just a day's drive.
