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Where to Watch the Eclipse

The total eclipse will be visible across a narrow path that stretches from Oregon to South Carolina. (See our Resources page for special events and eclipse-watching venues.)

The Moon’s dark shadow first touches American soil a few miles west of Salem, Oregon, which is a few miles south of Portland, at 10:16 a.m. PDT. It then races eastward into Wyoming, curves southeastward across Nebraska, skirts Kansas City and St. Louis, reaches its maximum duration over southern Illinois, enfolds Nashville, and finally exits the continental United States at Charleston, South Carolina, at about 2:49 p.m. EDT.

The best view is along the centerline of the path, where totality will last for up to 2 minutes, 41 seconds.

Here are some times for the eclipse at cities along the path (times are local):

City Totality Begins Totality Ends
Salem, Oregon 10:17 10:19
Casper, Wyoming 11:42 11:45
Grand Island, Nebraska 12:58 1:01
St. Joseph, Missouri 1:06 1:09
Columbia, Missouri 1:12 1:14
Carbondale, Illinois 1:20 1:22
Nashville, Tennessee 2:27 2:29
Columbia, South Carolina 2:42 2:44
Charleston, South Carolina 2:46 2:48
SOURCE: Fred Espenak/NASA    

NASA has created a Google map that provides specific eclipse times for every location along the eclipse path, as well as partial-eclipse details for those outside the path of totality.

Many parks, museums, libraries, and other venues have scheduled eclipse-watching events.

See our Resources page for specific events and venues.