About half of Americans (51%) have plans to watch the eclipse of the sun happening across the United States tomorrow.
For complete coverage of the Eclipse of the Century go to cnn.com/eclipse . Watch live, in virtual reality, as the eclipse moves coast to coast on August 21.
WASHINGTON (CNN) About half of Americans (51%) have plans to watch the eclipse of the sun happening across the United States on August 21, according to a CNN poll conducted by SSRS . That figure climbs to 60% among those who live in states touched by the "zone of totality," where the moon will completely block the sun's light in the middle of Monday's solar spectacle.
The survey was conducted in early August, and among those who already had plans in place, most said they were not going to travel for a better view. About four in 10 said their eclipse plans were to stay put, while 8% said they had made travel plans to view the "Eclipse of the Century." More who live in totality states plan to make a pilgrimage than in the rest of the country (15% vs. 6%), perhaps because a shorter distance will bring them a much better payoff.
Although Laurie Doherty and her husband live in Bend, Oregon, only about 30 miles from the zone of totality, they are among those who plan to do some traveling that day to stake out a good spot. They've booked a hotel in nearby Redmond -- closer to totality -- and are aiming to leave there at 6 a.m. to beat the traffic and claim a prime location from which to experience the view.
Doherty is a native of Oregon and remembers vividly the total eclipse that passed over the state in February 1979. She recalled the corona along the edges of the moon, the "black wavy lines" known as shadow bands that appeared in mid-air, and noted that "once the sun began to come back up, the birds began to tweet like it was first thing in the morning, and the roosters crowed."
She says she expects this eclipse to be a very spiritual moment, and is looking forward to sharing it with her husband, who has never seen one before. "There are many, many people coming into town, and this area is not very heavily populated, so we're looking forward to sharing the experience with all of the visitors."
Excitement for the first eclipse to cross the United States in nearly a century is about the same whether Americans live in or out of the zone of totality: 48% describe themselves as excited for the event, while about three in 10 say they are uninterested. A scant 4% describe themselves as scared of the eclipse.
Excitement is most prominent among the young. Almost six in 10 under age 35 say they're excited for it; that dips to 50% among those age 35-50, 44% among the 50- to 64-year-old block and just 38% among seniors.
Crystal Wooten lives in Aiken County, South Carolina, near the border with Georgia, where they're expecting a near-total eclipse. She and her husband are among those planning to watch, but they're a maybe on travel. With two toddlers, she's afraid the little ones "may not have the discipline not to look at the sun."
If they stay home, she says, "it'll be our own little science day." They'll set up chairs near a sliding door so her children, ages 2 and 1, can watch the shadows change shapes. Wooten, whose husband is retired, said "gratefully it's pretty accessible to us, and since we're home with the kids, we don't have to take off of work or anything."
Some who do have to go to the office or to school may be experiencing a once-in-a-lifetime lunch break.
Eric Meadows will be watching at his office in Indianapolis, where his employer has planned an event for those interested in watching. In their area, about 90% of the sun will be blocked, and his employer will be providing glasses. Meadows's children will also be able to watch at their school. "I was going to take the kids out of school and drive to the zone of totality," he said. "But the kids' school system has a whole program planned around it for them."
News about the eclipse seems more prominent in the states where the spectacle will be most spectacular. Those living in zone of totality states were far more apt than those in the rest of the country to say they'd heard a lot about the upcoming eclipse -- 61% in the 12 states where a substantial chunk of the state will pass under the moon's full shadow vs. just 28% outside of that range. Overall, 35% have heard a lot about the upcoming event, 41% a little and about a quarter (24%) said they'd heard nothing at all at the time the survey was conducted.
Those who've heard a lot about the eclipse are more apt to have made plans to watch it; 62% in that group planned to watch versus 45% of those who had heard less about it.
And because nothing in this country is safe from political divisions, this celestial event too sparks a divide. Democrats are more apt than independents or Republicans to have made plans to watch the event (57% among Democrats vs. 48% each among Republicans and independents), and liberals are nearly twice as likely as conservatives to say they're excited about it (63% among liberals vs. 34% among conservatives).
This CNN Poll was conducted by SSRS by telephone August 3 through 6 among a random national sample of 1,018 adults. The margin of sampling error for results among the full sample is plus or minus 3.6 percentage points; it is larger for subgroups.
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Well I hear you went up to Saratoga
And your horse, naturally, won
Then you flew your Learjet up to Nova Scotia
To see the total eclipse of the sun
Well, you're where you should be all the time
You're So Vain
I wouldn't mind seeing the eclipse, but I don't think it's going to be impressive here in Dallas.
There was a total eclipse when I was in elementary school. We spent days making these little view boxes that allowed us to view it safely. I remember absolutely nothing about witnessing the actual eclipse, but those view boxes were totally cool. I still have my somewhere. I think.
PS: Great Carly Simon song.
Whenever I read or hear the name Carly Simon that song runs through my head.
First total eclipse since social media.
This is a huge 'event'.
First total eclipse since social media.
This is a huge 'event'.
The correct spelling is "YUGE", not 'huge".
(Because "huge" is a tiny spelling, not a YUGE one!)
Kinda like Trump's hands actually....
It takes large hands to write Yuge. Not everybody is so well endowed.
It will probably cause a field day for eye doctors and eye surgeons.
People complain all the time that there is too much politics on Newstalkers. Here is an article about an event that 150 million Americans say they are planning on seeing tomorrow, and it gets no comments.
Here is an article about an event that 150 million Americans say they are planning on seeing tomorrow, and it gets no comments.
Correct!
"People complain all the time that there is too much politics on Newstalkers. Here is an article about an event that 150 million Americans say they are planning on seeing tomorrow, and it gets no comments."
Well, the article DID include a bit of politics in order to suck in those whose feet are stuck in political concrete:
"And because nothing in this country is safe from political divisions, this celestial event too sparks a divide. Democrats are more apt than independents or Republicans to have made plans to watch the event (57% among Democrats vs. 48% each among Republicans and independents), and liberals are nearly twice as likely as conservatives to say they're excited about it (63% among liberals vs. 34% among conservatives)."
And unless you are within the 70 wide line that it travels, it will not be the event you were thinking it was going to be. If you are in the center of the line about 35 miles from either edge, you will experience near to a full eclipse and it will be exponentially less exciting the farther away you are from the center of the line it travels.
But if anyone intends to purchase tickets to this event-- beware! There are many sellers of counterfeit tickets who will rip you off.
Its a jungle out there!
Officials Warn Consumers Of Counterfeit Tickets Ahead Of Solar Eclipse
Ive got one live stream cam in Kentucky. Hopkinsville is in the center or the 75 mi. wide path of totality. Here's that cam.
Thanks John Galt.
United States Total Solar Eclipse 21 Aug 2017
Here's another in Driggs Idaho. There are a couple in the Tetons, but not up now.
You might want to check this site out for more info on when and where.
clips of eclipses in major motion pictures
apocalypto - solar eclipse
That was a really good movie. Saved his life, didn't it?
Great movie. Mel Gibson may have personal problems, but he knows how to make movies exciting.
NASA CAM
The eclipse evokes primitive emotions - day becomes night. Night is scary .
I plan to watch it. I'm in a good spot to see it and have nothing else to do tomorrow either. Win win.
Regarding the topic though, I would almost say that more people than the polls percentage will watch. There are a ton of businesses that are literally closing to watch the eclipse.
08/21/17 01:28:46AM @Peter-Asks-For-No-More-Cheetolini-Would-Like-A-Revote :
There are a ton of businesses that are literally closing to watch the eclipse.
But on the other hand, there are a ton of businesses that have made and are making money today because of this eclipse.
I'm not sure how that is relevant to what I posted, but it's all good.
08/21/17 03:49:35PM @Peter-Asks-For-No-More-Cheetolini-Would-Like-A-Revote :
I'm not sure how that is relevant to what I posted, but it's all good.
I thought you were referring to the possibility that business's might be losing money by closing. Sorry, and hope you enjoyed the eclipse.
Ah, that makes sense. I wasn't, but I can see how that might be inferred from my comment.
The eclipse passed over us at 1:14 covering 97/98% of the sun...
Amazing
08/21/17 04:39:31PM @Peter-Asks-For-No-More-Cheetolini-Would-Like-A-Revote :
Ah, that makes sense. I wasn't, but I can see how that might be inferred from my comment.
Thanks Peter, Glad to see we both understand each other now. One of the places I was following in Hopkinsville Ky. planned on making moonshine whiskey and many t-shirts and other memorabilia to celebrate this eclipse.
Hope all that traveled for this unique experience, now will arrive home safe and sound.