Things are going to get a little wacky on April 8th, when a total solar eclipse will darken skies over North America. The Moon will line up perfectly to block the face of the Sun. Temperatures will drop around 10 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius). Birdsong will change<\/a> from daytime to nighttime tunes. And millions of people<\/a> are expected to hit the road to catch a glimpse of the spectacle.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The Verge<\/em> has your guide for how to partake in the fun. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n What exactly is happening? And what will I see?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThe disk of the Moon is in just the right location, just the right distance to completely cover the disk of the Sun. And when that happens, magic happens,\u201d NASA heliophysics research and analysis lead Patrick Koehn told\u00a0The Verge <\/em>in an interview<\/a> last October about what has shaped up to be a big year<\/a> for heliophysics, or the study of the Sun and its influence on Earth and the solar system.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWhen that happens, magic happens.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Within the path of totality, aka the locations where the total eclipse will be visible on Earth, daytime will briefly look like early dawn or dusk, with light levels getting nearly as dark as night. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Just as neat, this also happens to be the only time the Sun\u2019s outer atmosphere is visible to the unaided eye for us mere mortals on Earth. Koehn describes it as a wispy layer of high-speed gas that\u2019s coming off the Sun. At all other times, the Sun\u2019s own brightness obscures this corona from our vision. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThis is one of those \u2014 I won\u2019t call it once in a lifetime, but maybe twice in a lifetime opportunities to see something like this,\u201d Koehn says. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n An even rarer type of eclipse occurred in October \u2014 a so-called \u201cring of fire<\/a>.\u201d That\u2019s what happens when the Moon passes in front of the Sun while it\u2019s at or close to its farthest point in orbit from Earth. The distance makes the Moon look smaller so that it partially blocks the face of the Sun and leaves behind what looks like a ring of fire.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n On April 8th, the Moon will be close enough to Earth to completely blot out the Sun. After next week, there won\u2019t be another total solar eclipse visible from the contiguous US for another two decades until August 23rd, 2044. The last time something like this happened here was on August 21st, 2017. But the path of totality was much narrower then<\/a>, meaning many more people should be able to see the upcoming total eclipse. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n This time around, the Moon will be closer to the Earth than it was last time \u2014 creating a wider path of totality that encompasses more densely populated areas. That path will reach between 108 and 122 miles wide next week, giving some 31.6 million people a view from where they live. That\u2019s compared to around 12 million people who lived within the 62 to 71-mile-wide path of totality in 2017.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Where and when can I see the eclipse? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n This particular eclipse will begin over the South Pacific Ocean before reaching land at Mazatl\u00e1n on Mexico\u2019s Pacific coast around 11:07AM PT<\/a>. From there, it will continue its path over the country before crossing into the US and slicing a diagonal path across 15 states from Texas to Maine. It\u2019ll pass over Canada east of the Great Lakes, with its last stop on the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland before leaving the continent behind at 5:16PM NT. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n NASA has a helpful \u201cEclipse Explorer<\/a>\u201d map tool and more information<\/a> on its website about when the total eclipse will be visible from location to location. People in some regions outside the path of totality will still be able to see a partial eclipse, which the Eclipse Explorer also explains. Weather will also come into play, and clouds could unfortunately rob some places of good view even if they\u2019re in the path of totality. The New York Times<\/em> has a forecast tool<\/a> to see how much cloud cover there could be in your area during the eclipse.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Wherever you are while viewing it, you\u2019ll see it happen in phases<\/a>, from a partial eclipse to totality when the Moon completely blocks the Sun. Totality lasts 4 minutes and 28 seconds at most, enduring the longest around Torre\u00f3n, Mexico, and ranging between 3.5 and 4 minutes in other locations. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n What safety precautions should I take? <\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Be warned, you can burn your retina \u201cpretty badly and almost instantaneously\u201d by looking directly at the Sun,\u00a0Koehn tells us. Totality, those few minutes when the Sun is completely blocked by the Moon, is the only time that risk disappears. During this brief reprieve, NASA says viewers can look at the eclipse without any special eye protection. BUT \u2014 and this is a big but \u2014 protection is necessary immediately before and after the eclipse reaches totality because looking at a partial eclipse can still damage your eyes. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Heed these wise words from NASA<\/a>:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Even when 99% of the Sun\u2019s surface (the photosphere) is obscured during the partial phases of a solar eclipse, the remaining crescent Sun is still intense enough to cause a retinal burn. Note, there are no pain receptors in the retina so your retina can be damaged even before you realize it, and by then it can be too late to save your vision!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n Another important warning: sunglasses are no help. They can even put you at more risk because they allow your pupils to get bigger, letting in more damaging solar radiation. You\u2019ll need specially designed solar eclipse glasses for a partial eclipse. The\u00a0American Astronomical Society has a list of reliable suppliers<\/a>. Notably, it does NOT recommend buying the cheapest glasses from online marketplaces like Amazon. It\u2019s best to make sure the seller is listed on its list of reliable suppliers before making a purchase online, the American Astronomical Society says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n As an alternative, you can also craft a makeshift pinhole camera at home using paper or cardstock, tape, and aluminum foil (NASA has instructions online<\/a>).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Where can I watch the solar eclipse online?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n NASA will livestream the event starting at 1PM ET. You can watch on the agency\u2019s\u00a0website<\/a> or the NASA Plus<\/a> streaming service. It\u2019ll also have Spanish-language coverage on YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n