Total solar eclipse in Illinois: How to prepare for April's cosmic spectacle
CHICAGO - We are just under one month away from an out-of-this-world experience - a total solar eclipse. The best viewing will be to the south and downstate Illinois is ready.
If it’s in your heart to see the total solar eclipse, here's what you need to know.
"This area is loaded with beauty. Just look at Giant City Park, Shawny Park. All the things that we have. Come down here enjoy it. Let us all be gracious hosts and let our guests be gracious also," said Rep. Paul Jacobs, 118th District.
Illinois state agencies and southern Illinois officials gathered at Giant City Lodge in Makanda, the place to be.
"I think that we're going to be just as much in awe then this time around as we were last time," Jacobs said.
The April solar eclipse is one month away: What to know now
The next solar eclipse should be visible from most of the U.S. Many people have started preparing already, but many more have not. Here’s what you need to know.
They're all here to tell us how to have a safe and successful look at the total solar eclipse on April 8.
"I just couldn't imagine what our ancestors saw when they would see these things over hundreds and hundreds of thousands of years. They had to be scared to death," Jacobs said.
But in 2024, these officials are welcoming visitors to the small towns in southern Illinois that will star in this event.
NASA will provide coverage of the eclipse on all its platforms.
"It’s exciting to think about all of the things we can learn from the sun right here in Illinois," said Blair Allen, executive producer at NASA.
"This is a huge privilege. It’s very interesting and very exciting to partner with Southern Illinois University because they've been key in helping us learn how to capture these pictures effectively."
Hotel rooms are still available in the viewing areas so don't space out, plan ahead.
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Eclipse watchers can help NASA study how the April total solar eclipse impacts wildlife and insects. The abrupt darkness can fool animals into thinking its dusk.
"This is not something that you decide on the day of," said Daniel Thomas, Deputy Director of the Illinois Office of Tourism.
He said more than 31 of Illinois’ state parks will have line of sight to totality.
"We are planning for an absolutely astronomical - pun intended - tourism experience in the region," Thomas.
Without a shadow of a doubt.