The United States will experience a total solar eclipse on August 21, its first in 99 years. The eclipse path of totality – total darkness – will cut across the U.S. from Newport, Oregon to McClellanville, South Carolina. One of the closest cities to Cincinnati to experience the total eclipse is Hopkinsville, Kentucky, about a four-hour drive south.
Joining us to discuss the eclipse, the best places and ways to view it, and to answer your questions about the event, are Sky & Telescope Senior Editor J. Kelly Beatty; Dr. Wes Ryle, who manages the BB&T Observatory at Thomas More College; Brooke Jung, Solar Eclipse Marketing & Events consultant for the city of Hopkinsville, Kentucky, and Cincinnati Observatory Assistant Director and Outreach Astronomer and co-host of the PBS series Star Gazers, Dean Regas.
For more information on how to view the eclipse in the Tri-state, visit the Cincinnati Observatory solar eclipse website. Thomas More College and BB&T Observatory will be hosting the public for the solar eclipse on August 21 from 1-4PM. Guests can go to The BB&T Observatory or the Thomas More College softball field - telescopes with solar filters and eclipse viewing glasses will be available at both locations. The event is free and open to the public, no reservations required.
Dean Regas is also co-host of the Cincinnati Public Radio podcast, "Looking Up," available on wvxu.org and iTunes, and author of the book "Facts from Space."