A total solar eclipse will occur at the Moon's descending node of orbit on Saturday, August 12, 2045, with a magnitude of 1.0774. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. A total solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is larger than the Sun's, blocking all direct sunlight, turning day into darkness. Totality occurs in a narrow path across Earth's surface, with the partial solar eclipse visible over a surrounding region thousands of kilometres wide. Occurring about 7 minutes after perigee (on August 12, 2045, at 17:35 UTC), the Moon's apparent diameter will be near its maximum. It will be the fourth longest eclipse of the 21st century with a magnitude of 1.0774. It will be visible throughout much of the continental United States, with a path of totality running through northern California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, northeastern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florida. The total eclipse will be greatest over the Bahamas, before continuing over the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, northeastern Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and northeastern Brazil. A partial solar eclipse will also be visible for parts of the Russian Far East, Hawaii, North America, Central America, the Caribbean, northern and central South America, and West Africa. The path of totality of this eclipse will be seen over many major cities, including Reno, Salt Lake City, Colorado Springs, Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Jackson, Montgomery, Tallahassee, Tampa, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Nassau, Santo Domingo, Porlamar, Port of Spain, Georgetown, Paramaribo, Belém, São Luís, Joāo Pessoa and Recife. It will also be the second total eclipse visible from Little Rock in 21.3 years. Totality will last for at least 6 minutes along the part of the path that starts at Camden, Alabama, crossing Florida and ending near the southernmost Bahama Islands. The longest duration of totality will be 6 minutes 5.5 seconds at 25.9099°N, -78.5365°W, which is over the Atlantic Ocean east of Fort Lauderdale and south of Freeport, Bahamas. The solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 had a very similar path of totality over the U.S., about 250 miles to the northeast, also crossing the Pacific coast and Atlantic coast of the country. This is because when a solar eclipse crosses the U.S. in mid-August at an ascending node (i.e. moves from south to north during odd-numbered saros), the path of the eclipse tracks from coast to coast. When a solar eclipse crosses the U.S. in mid-August at descending node (even numbered saros), the path tracks a large distance southward.

Details of the totality in some places or cities

Images

Animated path: Small dark circle represents umbra, much larger grey circle represents penumbra.

Eclipse details

Shown below are two tables displaying details about this particular solar eclipse. The first table outlines times at which the moon's penumbra or umbra attains the specific parameter, and the second table describes various other parameters pertaining to this eclipse.

Eclipse season

This eclipse is part of an eclipse season, a period, roughly every six months, when eclipses occur. Only two (or occasionally three) eclipse seasons occur each year, and each season lasts about 35 days and repeats just short of six months (173 days) later; thus two full eclipse seasons always occur each year. Either two or three eclipses happen each eclipse season. In the sequence below, each eclipse is separated by a fortnight.

Related eclipses

Eclipses in 2045

Metonic

Tzolkinex

Half-Saros

Tritos

Solar Saros 136

Inex

Triad

Solar eclipses of 2044–2047

Saros 136

Metonic series

Tritos series

Inex series