A Stellar Solar Event: Total Solar Eclipse!
The BIG event is the Total Solar Eclipse on April 8, 2024 and Dripping Springs will be right in its path!
A total solar eclipse happens when the moon is closest to the Earth and is directly between the earth and the sun. A total solar eclipse happens somewhere in the world every 18-months, but it only happens in the same place approximately every 375 years. The last time our area experienced a total solar eclipse was in the 1800s.
The total solar eclipse will be a one-in-a-lifetime event and Dripping Springs will experience the event beginning at approximately 12:16pm on Monday, April 8, 2024. The full eclipse begins at 1:34pm and Dripping Springs will be in total darkness for 3 minutes, when the moon’s disk completely blocks the sun.
Experts and those who have been through a total solar eclipse say it is like nothing you've ever experienced. Suddenly, in the middle of the day, a shadow races toward you at 1,500 miles an hour, and the day is gone. Planets, stars, and the corona are visible as the temperature drops and everyone around is awestruck. You'll never forget it!
In the US, totality will begin in Texas at 1:27 pm CDT and will end in Maine at 3:35 pm EDT on April 8, 2024. Totality begins in Dripping Springs at 1:34pm and lasts for 3 minutes.
We experienced a partial Annular Solar Eclipse on October 14, 2023!
This eclipse was an appetizer for the spectacle of a total solar eclipse crossing the United States just 177 days later on April 8, 2024. While we were not in the direct path, we are in the outskirts and experienced a partial annular eclipse. The partial began at 10:23am and ended at 1:32pm, with maximum coverage at 11:53am. While not as dramatic as a total solar eclipse, it was a good "pre-event" for us!
