Of all the things one can see in the sky, the Total Eclipse of the Sun has the reputation of being the most spectacular. In this event, day turns into night as the Moon covers the bright part of the Sun. During this time, the outer region of the Sun, called the Corona, is visible. Unfortunately, a Total Solar Eclipses is visible only to people on a narrow strip of land. For the rest of the world, the Sun is covered only partially, or not at all.
Fortunately, residents of the continental United States will soon have a chance to see a Total Eclipse of the Sun without making a long journey. On Monday, August 21, 2017, a Total Eclipse will be visible in 14 states.
Back in 1963, a Total Eclipse was visible in Canada and upper New England. At my home in New Jersey, the Sun was partially covered (called a Partial Eclipse). This photo shows how we used our home-built telescope to project the image of the eclipsed Sun onto a piece of paper. This is one of the safe ways to view an eclipse.
Now – 54 years later – I am starting to make plans to see “the big one”. There is so much to say, so I have included links to some very good sources of information.
One closing thought: “Eclipse Glasses” are a good tool for safe observing. They are inexpensive, and will be useful all over the country. So, they would make good Christmas presents!
John
http://eclipses.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEmono/TSE2017/TSE2017.html
http://www.greatamericaneclipse.com/eclipse-2017/
Real Simple Astronomy 
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