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On August 21, 2017, the Earth will cross
the shadow of the Moon, creating a total solar eclipse.
Eclipses happen about every 6 months, but this one is special.
For the first time in almost 40 years,
the path of the Moon's shadow passes through the continental United States.
Everyone there will see the Moon at least partially block the sun.
People within the path of totality, shown here
in red, will witness a total solar eclipse.
For them, the Moon will cover the sun entirely.
The sky will become twilight, the air will cool, the stars will appear,
and the black disk of the Moon will be surrounded
by the pale, streaming halo of the sun's corona.
Totality will last for 2 minutes or a little more, and it will be
visible along a swath that crosses the continent from Oregon to South Carolina.
For some, it will be the spectacle of a lifetime.
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