2017 Solar Eclipse Press Conference

  • Released Wednesday, June 21, 2017
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For the first time in 99 years, a total solar eclipse will cross the entire nation Aug. 21. Representatives from NASA, other federal agencies, and science organizations, will provide important viewing safety, travel and science information during two briefings at the Newseum in Washington starting at 1 p.m. EDT Wednesday, June 21.

The event will air live on NASA Television and stream on the agency’s website.

Over the course of 100 minutes, 14 states across the United States will experience more than two minutes of darkness in the middle of the day. Additionally, a partial eclipse will be viewable across all of North America. The eclipse will provide a unique opportunity to study the sun, Earth, moon and their interaction because of the eclipse’s long path over land coast to coast. Scientists will be able to take ground-based and airborne observations over a period of an hour and a half to complement the wealth of data and images provided by space assets.

The June 21 briefings are:

Logistics Briefing: 1 to 2 p.m.


  • Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate at the agency’s headquarters in Washington

  • Vanessa Griffin, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Satellite and Product Operations in Suitland, Maryland

  • Brian Carlstrom, deputy associate director of Natural Resource Stewardship and Science at the National Park Service in Washington

  • Martin Knopp, associate administrator of the Office of Operations in the Federal Highway Administration at the U.S. Department of Transportation in Washington


Science Briefing: 2:30 to 3:30 p.m.

  • Thomas Zurbuchen

  • Angela Des Jardins, principal investigator of the Eclipse Ballooning Project at Montana State University, Bozeman

  • Angela Speck, professor of astrophysics and director of astronomy at the University of Missouri, Columbia

  • Dave Boboltz, program director of solar physics in the Division of Astronomical Sciences at the National Science Foundation in Arlington, Virginia

  • Linda Shore, executive director of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific in San Francisco

  • Matt Penn, astronomer at the National Solar Observatory in Tucson, Arizona

The Total Eclipse of the Sun Forever Stamp, which commemorates the Aug. 21, 2017, eclipse, transforms into an image of the moon from the heat of a finger. For more information visit The United States Postal Service.

The Total Eclipse of the Sun Forever Stamp, which commemorates the Aug. 21, 2017, eclipse, transforms into an image of the moon from the heat of a finger. For more information visit The United States Postal Service.

The 2017 total solar eclipse through the eyes of NASA with a list of NASA broadcasts. Credit: NASA

The 2017 total solar eclipse through the eyes of NASA with a list of NASA broadcasts. Credit: NASA

The 2017 total solar eclipse through the eyes of NASA. Credit: NASA

The 2017 total solar eclipse through the eyes of NASA. Credit: NASA

An infographic showing NOAA-related satellites. Credit: NOAA. For more information visit NOAA's Satellite and Information Service.

An infographic showing NOAA-related satellites. Credit: NOAA. For more information visit NOAA's Satellite and Information Service.

The average historic cloudiness for Aug. 21. Credit: NOAA. For more information visit NOAA's Centers for Environmental Information.

The average historic cloudiness for Aug. 21. Credit: NOAA. For more information visit NOAA's Centers for Environmental Information.

Wearing eclipse glasses is vital when looking directly at the sun. Credit: National Park Service. For more information visit the National Park Service.

Wearing eclipse glasses is vital when looking directly at the sun. Credit: National Park Service. For more information visit the National Park Service.

A partial eclipse. Credit: National Park Service. For more information visit the National Park Service.

A partial eclipse. Credit: National Park Service. For more information visit the National Park Service.

A crowd watches a solar eclipse. Credit: National Park Service. For more information visit the National Park Service.

A crowd watches a solar eclipse. Credit: National Park Service. For more information visit the National Park Service.

Interstates along the path of the 2017 total solar eclipse. Credit: DOT. For more information visit FHWA's Total Solar Eclipse Website.

Interstates along the path of the 2017 total solar eclipse. Credit: DOT. For more information visit FHWA's Total Solar Eclipse Website.

Eclipse ballooning project. Credit: Montana State University. For more information visit Montana State's Eclipse Ballooning project.

A balloon 'float' demonstration at 84,000 feet on April 19, 2014. Credit: Montana State University. For more information visit Montana State's Eclipse Ballooning project.

Animals can react to eclipses -- such as this bird during an annular eclipse --as if it's nighttime. Credit: AAS

Animals can react to eclipses -- such as this bird during an annular eclipse --as if it's nighttime. Credit: AAS

Multiple eclipse shadows cast on the ground due to sunlight from an eclipse filtering through tree leaves. Credit: AAS

Multiple eclipse shadows cast on the ground due to sunlight from an eclipse filtering through tree leaves. Credit: AAS

Sunspots. Credit: NSF

Sunspots. Credit: NSF

A total solar eclipse. Credit: NSF

A total solar eclipse. Credit: NSF

A combined image from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (center) and ESA/NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (outer) shows solar radiation streaming off the sun out into space. Credit: NASA/ESA/SDO/SOHO

A combined image from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (center) and ESA/NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (outer) shows solar radiation streaming off the sun out into space. Credit: NASA/ESA/SDO/SOHO

For More Information

See https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov

Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

This page was originally published on Wednesday, June 21, 2017.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:47 PM EDT.