On April 8, 2024, the highly anticipated total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. Is this a big deal? Yes, it is. This event will be the last total solar eclipse visible from the North American continent until 2045, making it a must-see celestial phenomenon.
However, not every person or place in North America is lucky enough to be in the Path of Totality, where the moon completely blocks the sun's light. In the US, this will stretch across 13 U.S. states from Texas to Maine. Within this path of totality, is where you witness the sun's outer atmosphere, the corona, become visible as the sky darkens to near-twilight conditions.
The eclipse will last the longest, for over 4 minutes, near Torreón, Mexico. This is also where the eclipse will be first visible.
Moving northward, the path of totality will cross into the United States, passing over Texas (Brownsville, San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, and Fort Worth). Further northeast, the eclipse will be visible in Indianapolis, Indiana, as well as several cities in Ohio and New York, including Cleveland, Buffalo, and Rochester. In total, an estimated 32 million people live within the U.S. portion of the path of totality, making this a rare opportunity for many to witness a total solar eclipse without having to travel far.
The eclipse will then extend into Canada, with towns like Niagara, Montreal, Fredericton and St. John's falling within the area of total eclipse.
Here's a detailed list of every major North American town and the exact time at which it will witness the solar eclipse:
Pacific Time Zone (UTC-7)
Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico
- Eclipse begins: 12:07 PM PDT
- Peak eclipse: 12:09 PM PDT
- Eclipse ends: 1:11 PM PDT
Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico
- Eclipse begins: 12:59 PM PDT
- Peak eclipse: 1:01 PM PDT
- Eclipse ends: 2:03 PM PDT
Mountain Time Zone (UTC-6)
El Paso, Texas, USA
- Eclipse begins: 12:27 PM MDT
- Peak eclipse: 1:29 PM MDT
- Eclipse ends: 2:31 PM MDT
Denver, Colorado, USA
- Eclipse begins: 12:37 PM MDT
- Peak eclipse: 1:39 PM MDT
- Eclipse ends: 2:41 PM MDT
Central Time Zone (UTC-5)
San Antonio, Texas, USA
- Eclipse begins: 1:27 PM CDT
- Peak eclipse: 2:29 PM CDT
- Eclipse ends: 3:31 PM CDT
Dallas, Texas, USA
- Eclipse begins: 1:30 PM CDT
- Peak eclipse: 2:32 PM CDT
- Eclipse ends: 3:34 PM CDT
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
- Eclipse begins: 1:35 PM CDT
- Peak eclipse: 2:37 PM CDT
- Eclipse ends: 3:39 PM CDT
Little Rock, Arkansas, USA
- Eclipse begins: 1:41 PM CDT
- Peak eclipse: 2:43 PM CDT
- Eclipse ends: 3:45 PM CDT
St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Eclipse begins: 1:48 PM CDT
- Peak eclipse: 2:50 PM CDT
- Eclipse ends: 3:52 PM CDT
Carbondale, Illinois, USA
- Eclipse begins: 1:53 PM CDT
- Peak eclipse: 2:55 PM CDT
- Eclipse ends: 3:57 PM CDT
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
- Eclipse begins: 2:05 PM EDT
- Peak eclipse: 3:02 PM EDT
- Eclipse ends: 4:04 PM EDT
Eastern Time Zone (UTC-4)
Cleveland, Ohio, USA
- Eclipse begins: 2:06 PM EDT
- Peak eclipse: 3:08 PM EDT
- Eclipse ends: 4:10 PM EDT
Buffalo, New York, USA
- Eclipse begins: 2:13 PM EDT
- Peak eclipse: 3:15 PM EDT
- Eclipse ends: 4:17 PM EDT
Rochester, New York, USA
- Eclipse begins: 2:15 PM EDT
- Peak eclipse: 3:17 PM EDT
- Eclipse ends: 4:19 PM EDT
Syracuse, New York, USA
- Eclipse begins: 2:17 PM EDT
- Peak eclipse: 3:19 PM EDT
- Eclipse ends: 4:21 PM EDT
Niagara, Ontario, Canada
- Eclipse begins: 2:18 PM EDT
- Peak eclipse: 3:19 PM EDT
- Eclipse ends: 4:22 PM EDT
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Eclipse begins: 2:24 PM EDT
- Peak eclipse: 3:26 PM EDT
- Eclipse ends: 4:28 PM EDT
Atlantic Time Zone (UTC-3)
Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
- Eclipse begins: 3:30 PM ADT
- Peak eclipse: 4:32 PM ADT
- Eclipse ends: 5:34 PM ADT
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada
- Eclipse begins: 3:35 PM ADT
- Peak eclipse: 4:37 PM ADT
- Eclipse ends: 5:39 PM ADT
Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
- Eclipse begins: 3:40 PM ADT
- Peak eclipse: 4:42 PM ADT
- Eclipse ends: 5:44 PM ADT
St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
- Eclipse begins: 4:09 PM NDT
- Peak eclipse: 5:15 PM NDT
- Eclipse ends: 6:17 PM NDT
While you enjoy the eclipse, keep in mind that it is extremely dangerous to look directly at the eclipse without specialized protective equipment. Follow all the required safety guidelines while you witness this epic phenomenon.
You must use certified solar eclipse glasses or a handheld solar viewer to safely observe the sun during the partial eclipse phases before and after the total eclipse.
Regular sunglasses are not safe to watch the eclipse no matter how dark they are.
The only time it is safe to view the eclipse directly without proper eye protection is during the brief period of totality, when the moon completely obscures the sun's bright face. You'll know it's safe to look without glasses or a viewer when you can no longer see any part of the sun.
As soon as you see even a small portion of the sun's bright surface reappear after totality, you must immediately put your eclipse glasses back on or use a handheld solar viewer to continue observing the eclipse safely.