Scientific Colloquium
May 17, 2023,  3:00 P.M.
Building 3, Goett Auditorium



"The Great North American Total Eclipse of 2024" 

On April 8, 2024, a total eclipse of the Sun will be visible from North America for the first time since 2017. The track of the Moon's shadow will cross Mexico, the central and northeastern United States, and eastern Canada. Compared to 2017, the path of totality is 70% wider, and the duration is nearly twice as long (4.5 minutes). With portions of 15 states and 6 Canadian provinces in the path, the 2024 eclipse promises to be the most widely viewed eclipse of all time. A preview of this highly anticipated event will feature maps, photos and weather prospects along the eclipse path based on the speaker's recent book on the subject. Espenak will also share some of his eclipse experiences with us through photos and video.

About the Speaker:

Fred Espenak is a retired astrophysicist from the Planetary Systems Laboratory of the Solar Systems Exploration Division at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. His work at Goddard involved infrared spectrometers and the development of radiative transfer models to probe the atmospheres of the planets.

In parallel to this work, he also created the NASA Eclipse Web Site where he posted predictions on every solar and lunar eclipse from 2000 BCE to 3000 CE. He published more than a dozen NASA reference publications, each one focusing on a specific upcoming eclipse.

First captivated by a total eclipse in 1970, he has participated in 30 total eclipse expeditions taking him to every continent. During this time he has perfected high dynamic range imaging techniques to capture both the fine structure detail and the beauty of the solar corona. One of these images was featured on a U.S. postage stamp to commemorate the 2017 total eclipse.

Known popularly as "Mr. Eclipse", he was honored by the IAU in 2003 when asteroid 14120 was named "Espenak."

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