Watch live: Solar eclipse now visible in parts of US
(NEXSTAR) – After months of anticipation, the solar eclipse has started to darken skies over parts of the United States on Monday, April 8, and the awe-inspiring phenomenon is streaming live in the player above.
Whether you only have a partial view or clouds are in the forecast, you can still enjoy a live look from the path of totality, as captured by Nexstar’s stations.
As the eclipse moves first over Mexico, then the United States and Canada, the moon will pass squarely between Earth and the sun, leaving a roughly 115-mile path of shadow. For those in the path, the sky will darken as it would normally during dawn or dusk.
When will it be visible?
The total solar eclipse will enter the U.S. in Texas, with the partial eclipse beginning just after noon local time. Next up will be Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.
A sliver of both Tennessee and Michigan is also projected to be in the path of totality.
Here are the partial and total eclipse timings for several cities in the path:
| Place | Partial Begins | Totality Begins | Maximum | Duration |
| Austin, Texas | 12:17:14 PM CDT | 1:36:12 PM CDT | 1:37:02 PM CDT | 1 min, 40.3 secs |
| Idabel, Oklahoma | 12:28:14 PM CDT | 1:45:23 PM CDT | 1:47:33 PM CDT | 4 mins, 18.4 secs |
| Little Rock, Arkansas | 12:33:33 PM CDT | 1:51:38 PM CDT | 1:52:51 PM CDT | 2 mins, 26.6 secs |
| Poplar Bluff, Missouri | 12:39:44 PM CDT | 1:56:21 PM CDT | 1:58:25 PM CDT | 4 mins, 7.8 secs |
| Carbondale, Illinois | 12:43:01 PM CDT | 1:59:17 PM CDT | 2:01:21 PM CDT | 4 mins, 8.3 secs |
| Paducah, Kentucky | 12:43:00 PM CDT | 2:00:50 PM CDT | 2:01:36 PM CDT | 1 mins, 31.1 secs |
| Indianapolis, Indiana | 1:50:34 PM EDT | 3:06:04 PM EDT | 3:07:59 PM EDT | 3 mins, 49.4 secs |
| Cleveland, Ohio | 1:59:22 PM EDT | 3:13:46 PM EDT | 3:15:40 PM EDT | 3 mins, 48.9 secs |
| Erie, Pennsylvania | 2:02:26 PM EDT | 3:16:23 PM EDT | 3:18:14 PM EDT | 3 mins, 41.8 secs |
| Syracuse, New York | 2:09:02 PM EDT | 3:23:05 PM EDT | 3:23:47 PM EDT | 1 mins, 24.5 secs |
| Montpelier, Vermont | 2:15:00 PM EDT | 3:27:39 PM EDT | 3:28:27 PM EDT | 1 mins, 35.4 secs |
An extra special eclipse
All total solar eclipses aren’t the same, and this year’s is setting up to be especially phenomenal, NASA says.
“The eclipse in 2024 could be even more exciting due to differences in the path, timing, and scientific research,” NASA wrote on its website.
During this year’s solar eclipse, the moon will be closer to Earth than it was during the 2017 event, further obscuring the sun’s rays and creating a wider path of totality.
Thanks to the larger path across the U.S. and the route the eclipse will take over more densely populated areas, roughly 31.6 million people are in the path of totality this year, compared to 12 million during the last total solar eclipse.
According to NASA, 99% of people living in the U.S. will get the chance to see at least a partial view of the eclipse. For those in the path, totality will also last longer this year, with some locations seeing over four minutes of darkness.
Finally, there’s the sun’s activity, which is coming at a perfect time.
In 2017, solar activity was at a minimum, but this year, eclipse viewers will get an additional treat as the sun becomes more active with possible “streamers flowing in to the solar atmosphere” from behind the moon’s shadow, according to NASA.
“In addition to that, viewers will have a better chance to see prominences – which appear as bright, pink curls or loops coming off the Sun,” NASA stated. “With lucky timing, there could even be a chance to see a coronal mass ejection – a large eruption of solar material – during the eclipse.”
As the eclipse progresses across the United States on Monday, you can find live updates, videos and images below.
