Book Review: Road Atlas for the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024
By Fred Espenak – Astropixels Publishing – 40 pages – $19.95 (Color Edition)
On Monday, April 8, 2024, those in North America will have the opportunity to experience a total solar eclipse. Having enjoyed the eclipse of 2017, I am starting to plan for our next opportunity.
The heart of this book is three overview maps and 26 detail maps of the path of totality in Mexico, the United States, and Canada. The base map is the familiar Google Maps rendition of the towns, major roads, major parks, and bodies of water. This base is overlaid with northern and southern limits of totality, the center line, and lines indicating duration of totality. For every 5-minute interval, the location of mid-eclipse is marked on the center line, with a notation of the duration of totality and the elevation of the Sun.
This is the basic information needed to begin to select a place to view the eclipse.
When I was planning for the August 2017 total eclipse, I didn’t buy the 2017 edition of this atlas. Since of the information in the atlas was available elsewhere, I didn’t see the need to buy the book. I learned (the hard way) that planning is more efficient when all the basic information is on the same sheet of paper.
The print clarity of the maps was a disappointment. The major roads are easy to identify, but the secondary roads are almost invisible, especially in the path of totality, which is shaded light gray. To get to a location, better maps or navigation software would be needed.
In 2017, I had a good look at the eclipsed Sun, and enjoyed watching peoples’ reactions to the whole experience. In 2024, I would like to watch the Moon’s shadow as it appears to move across the ground. My “dream location” would include a high point overlooking a valley. I will be able to do the initial screening for possible sites with Espenak’s atlas, combined with other resources.
I bought my 2024 atlas early, so I can combine site exploration with my other travels. My home is only a 3 ½ hour drive from Indianapolis, Indiana, which is near the center line. In the next four years, I hope to have a chance to visit some sites in this area. I would also like to identify some alternate locations further away; in case cloudy skies are predicted.
As eclipse day approaches, weather patterns may change suddenly, necessitating last-minute changes of plans. In this case, the eclipse road atlas could be worth its weight in gold.
This is a link to a vendor for this book, along with a lot of information about eclipses. An image of the book cover is included. This image includes a good sample of the detail maps.
Real Simple Astronomy 
Leave a comment