A Tour of the April 8, 2024 Total Solar Eclipse

Join eclipse-chasing geographer and cartographer Michael Zeiler on a multimedia tour of the path of totality on April 8, 2024. This includes an animated flyover as simulated from the view of a spacecraft 100 miles high and detailed maps of the eclipse path. Special attention will be given to the midwest and Texas, an eclipse destination for many amateur astronomers. One obsession of all eclipse chasers is to maximize the odds of clear skies during totality. Mr. Zeiler will discuss how to weigh many factors such as proximity to the longest duration, ease of mobility on the local road network, climatological records for April, and how weather systems respond to local topography. He’ll also explore the wide variety of eclipse viewing venues, everything from a stadium to a mountain peak, major cities or national parks, and museums or zoos. Mr. Zeiler will also present his research on how many people will travel to totality’s path on Eclipse Day and discuss the economic impacts for regions in the U.S. He’ll also preview what comes after the 2024 eclipse, both in North America and around the world.

About the Speaker:
Michael Zeiler is a geographer who recently retired from the leading provider of geographic information systems (GIS) software. He has witnessed total solar eclipses since 1991. In 2009, while writing his book, Modeling Our World, he realized how advanced GIS technology could be applied to publish new eclipse maps of high precision and good cartographic quality. After creating his first eclipse map for the total solar eclipse of July 22, 2009, he launched eclipse-maps.com in 2010 to showcase new and historic eclipse maps. Recognizing the widespread public interest in the August 21, 2017 total solar eclipse, he launched GreatAmericanEclipse.com on August 21, 2014. He is a member of the International Astronomical Union Working Group on Solar Eclipses and is honored to have an asteroid (53253 Zeiler) named after him.