Memes

The next total solar eclipse in North America will happen in 20 or so years, and will mostly be over the wilds of western Canada. This eclipse goes right over my house. Yes Eclipses are not rare they happen roughly every 18 months, but total (not annular) solar Eclipses that are easy and convenient to view in totality are rare. This will probably be the only total solar eclipse I see in my entire life.

Sure, some form of solar eclipse happens a few times a year, but most of those aren't full eclipses, and even when they are (every 18 months or so), totality isn't visible from populated land (so they are mostly visible from the poles or somewhere in the middle of an ocean).

The excitement isn't about the rarity of the eclipse, but of how rare it is for totality to be directly visible to so many people.

Maybe you should take a minute to consider why you feel the need to shit on something cool most people might only get to see with their own eyes once, maybe twice in a lifetime, and which couldn't possibly be causing you any harm.

There are different types of eclipses and they are over oceans most of the time. Only about half of eclipses are total, the other half are annular where part of the sun is still showing around the moon since the mon's orbit isn't a perfect circle.

The big news about this one is that since it is through the middle of North America it covers all 48 of the continental states in the US which is pretty rare.

So yeah, they aren't uncommon, but there are uncommon in specific locations.