Celestial Event: Total Solar Eclipse

Total Eclipse Timetable
Eclipse Begins 1:52 PM ET	Totality Begins 3:07 PM ET	Duration of Totality 3 min 48 sec (in Muncie)	Totality Ends 3:11 PM ET	Eclipse Ends 4:24 PM ET

On Monday, April 8, 2024, Muncie, Indiana, will be given a once in a lifetime opportunity when the path of the Total Solar Eclipse passes over our community. This will be the first Total Solar Eclipse to be seen from Muncie since 957 CE! For 3 minutes and 48 seconds, we will be plunged into deep twilight as the Moon hides the Sun from our sky.

Enveloped in this darkness, all of our residents will experience together a solar phenomenon that our community will collectively remember for generations to come. Once those mere minutes have passed, we will wait another 75 years to witness a similar experience again without traveling far. Even then, the totality of the 2099 eclipse will only come as close to us as Fort Wayne.

Although much different, there will be a partial eclipse before the total eclipse here in Muncie. An annular solar eclipse will occur during the day on Saturday, October 14, 2023—and will be visible by only some of the world (weather permitting, with proper eye protection). In Muncie, IN, you will not be able to see the full annular event but rather a partial solar eclipse.

TimeandDate.com

VisitMuncie.org

How to Watch From Muncie

You need proper eye protection to safely watch solar eclipses. NEVER look directly at the uneclipsed or partially eclipsed Sun without appropriate eye wear. The planetarium will have a limited supply of eclipse glasses prior to the day of the upcoming eclipse in October to planetarium show guests available for free with a suggested cash donation of $1.

Annular Solar Eclipse - Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023

An annular solar eclipse will occur during the day on October 14, 2023—and will be visible by only some of the world (weather permitting, with proper eye protection). Ball State will be hosting a Partial Solar Eclipse Community Block Party on the Quad that day from 11:30am - 2:30pm. It will be a partial eclipse party because in Muncie, IN, you will not be able to see the full annular event but rather a partial solar eclipse (weather permitting, given proper eye protection). The partial eclipse will begin on Saturday, October 14, 2023 at 11:41 a.m. when the Moon starts to block out the northwest side of the Sun (at the 2 o'clock mark). The Moon will continue to block out more of the Sun until maximum occurs at 1:03 p.m. The partial solar eclipse will then end at 2:28 p.m. Visit the Time & Date page for more information and visuals for the partial eclipse in October from Muncie, IN.

Total Solar Eclipse - Monday, April 8, 2024

A total solar eclipse will occur during the day on April 8, 2024 and will only be visible by only some of the world, including Muncie, IN (weather permitting, with proper eye protection)! The solar eclipse will begin on Monday, April 8, 2024 at 1:52 p.m., when the Moon starts to block out the southwest side of the Sun (at the 5 o'clock mark).

The Moon will continue to block out more of the Sun until totality, when the Sun is fully blocked by the Moon. Totality in Muncie begins soon after 3:07 p.m. (exact times will depend on your location in Muncie). You can safely view this portion of the eclipse, and this short portion alone, without any eye protection because the entire face of the Sun will be completely blocked by the Moon. Here in Muncie, IN, totality will last 3 minutes and 48 seconds, with it ending around 3:11 p.m. The partial solar eclipse will continue until the entire event ends at 4:24 p.m. Visit the Time & Date page for more information and visuals for the total eclipse in April 2024 from Muncie, IN.

What is a Solar Eclipse?

Eclipses happen when one object in space passes through the shadow of another object in space. During a solar eclipse, the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth in just the right way that it blocks all or part of the Sun for select viewers on the Earth. Solar eclipses can be broken up into different types. Read more about them below.

Total Solar Eclipse

A total solar eclipse happens when the Moon covers the entire disk of the Sun in the sky. People can see a total solar eclipse in the center of the Moon’s shadow when it hits Earth. A total solar eclipse is the only type of solar eclipse where viewers can watch without eclipse glasses when the Moon is completely blocking the Sun (what is known as totality). Weather permitting, people in the path of a total solar eclipse can see the Sun’s corona, the outer atmosphere of the Sun, during totality.

Annular Solar Eclipse

An annular solar eclipse happens when the Moon is lined up between the Sun and Earth, but it is farther away from Earth than usual, making it appear smaller than the Sun in the sky. Therefore, it does not block the entire disk of the Sun, but creates what looks like a ring around the Moon.

Partial Solar Eclipse

A partial solar eclipse happens when only part of the Sun appears to be covered by the Moon. For a given time and place, during a total or annular solar eclipse, people outside the Moon's inner shadow see a partial solar eclipse.

All the types of solar eclipses defined above are dependent on the viewers location on Earth. Viewers in the Moon's shadow have the chance to see partial phases during all solar eclipse types, making all eclipses dynamic and evolving.

Learn more about the science behind eclipses from the American Astronomical Society's 2024 Eclipse website.

Timeline of Eclipses In & Around Muncie

June 3, 2505: Muncie’s next total solar eclipse after the 2024 total eclipse.
September 14, 2099: Next nearby total solar eclipse after 2024 occurs in Fort Wayne and other nearby cities.
July 23, 2093: Muncie’s next annular eclipse.
April 8, 2024: Muncie’s first total solar eclipse in over a thousand years.
October 14, 2023: The second annular solar eclipse worldwide of the 2020s and the only one of the decade where the path of annularity goes through the United States. For Muncie, about 42% of the Sun will be covered.
August 21, 2017: The “Great American Eclipse”. It was the first solar eclipse visible across the entire United States since 1918 and the first total solar eclipse seen anywhere in the mainland United States since 1979. For Muncie, about 91% of the Sun was covered.
August 7, 1869: The last total solar eclipse to touch the soil of Indiana. The Hoosier college towns of Bloomington, Greencastle, Terre Haute, and Evansville all enjoyed totality, but Muncie only saw about 98% of the Sun covered.
September 14, 1205: The last total solar eclipse seen from parts of Indianapolis. The path of totality also cut through seven other state capitals to varying degrees: St. Paul, Madison, Springfield, Nashville, Frankfort, Atlanta, and Columbia. For Muncie, however, only about 98.5% of the Sun was covered.
December 26, 1125: The third annular eclipse seen from Muncie in the second millennium.
July 29, 957: The last total solar eclipse seen from Muncie. For the United States, it was a coast-to-coast eclipse that placed much of northern Indiana in the path of totality, including Muncie. For Muncie, totality lasted for 2 minutes and 44 seconds.

Calendar Information

Calendars: Charles W. Brown Planetarium, Physics and Astronomy, College of Sciences and Humanities, Teachers College, Spring Semester 2024, Student Life

Start: April 8, 2024 1:52 p.m.
End: April 8, 2024 4:25 p.m.

The Moon will continue to block out more of the Sun until totality, when the Sun is fully blocked by the Moon. Totality in Muncie begins at 3:07 p.m. You can safely view this portion of the eclipse, and this short portion alone, without any eye protection because the entire face of the Sun will be completely blocked by the Moon. Here in Muncie, IN, totality will last 3 minutes and 48 seconds, with it ending at 3:11 p.m. The partial solar eclipse will continue until the entire event ends at 4:24 p.m.

To learn more about this solar eclipse and others, keep watching our website and social media pages, or visit the links below: