August 17, 2017 8:00 pm

Preview “The Great American Eclipse” with Neil Tyson, Chuck Nice, and Meteorologist Joe Rao

Isn’t it great when the general public catches some of that space fever? I wasn’t alive during the first lunar landing, or any of them for that matter, but one thing I’ve always yearned for is to witness the general public go crazy over space-related operations, events, and happenings.

Maybe when we land humans on Mars it might match that initial lunar fever, but for now we have to take what we can get, and a big event that is happening this upcoming Monday is the subject of this week’s episode of StarTalk Radio. On August 21st, 2017, the United States will “host” a total solar eclipse, deemed “The Great American Eclipse”, with its zone of totality stretching 75 miles wide and 2500 miles across the United States.

Map showing the path of totality of the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse, created by the Credit_NASA Scientific Visualization Studio.

The path of totality for “The Great American Eclipse” on August 21, 2017. Credit: NASA Scientific Visualization Studio.

In this episode, Neil deGrasse Tyson and comic co-host Chuck Nice chat with broadcast meteorologist Joe Rao, a viewer of many total solar eclipses over his career, about the upcoming eclipse and more. Joe gives some insight on what it’s like viewing a total solar eclipse and explains the vast difference between viewing a partial eclipse and a total eclipse. You’ll hear about Neil’s viewing experience and the logistics of “hosting” an eclipse, plus our trio answers some fan-submitted Cosmic Queries about eclipses.

My favorite part about the eclipse fever that’s developing is the fact that this is all for a natural occurrence in the universe. Yes, there’s excitement when we launch a rocket, or when a spacecraft like Cassini makes its first orbit around a planet or a moon, but there’s a special kind of excitement when you’re witnessing something in nature.

The downside for me, however, is that where I’m based – Dayton, OH –  is not in the zone of totality. But I’ll still be looking up for as much as I can. If you’re close to a place that’s in the zone of totality, make the trip! As you’ll hear on this episode, if you haven’t seen a total eclipse, it’s like nothing you’ve seen before!

Please join us tomorrow night for Cosmic Queries: The Great American Eclipse at 7pm EDT right here on our website, as well as on Apple Podcasts, Google Play Music, SoundCloud, Stitcher, and TuneIn. And if you’re an All-Access subscriber, you can listen to this episode ad-free at 7pm, too.

That’s it for now. On Monday, don’t forget to “Keep Looking Up!”
–Ian Mullen

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