The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Countdown begins for April’s total solar eclipse
Practically all of North America can catch at least a partial eclipse.
The sun is about to pull another disappearing act across North America, turning day into night during a total solar eclipse.
The peak spectacle on April 8 will last up to 4 minutes, 28 seconds in the path of total darkness — twice as long as the total solar eclipse that dimmed U.S. skies in 2017.
This eclipse will take a different and more populated route, entering over Mexico’s Pacific coast, going through Texas and Oklahoma, then crossing the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and New England before exiting over eastern Canada into the Atlantic.
An estimated 44 million people live inside the 115-mile-wide path of totality stretching from Mazatlán, Mexico, to Newfoundland; about 32 million of them are in the U.S. The eclipse will allow many to share in the “wonder of the universe without going very far,” said Kelly Korreck, NASA’s eclipse program manager.
Here’s what to know about April’s extravaganza and how to prepare.
What happens during the total solar eclipse?
The moon will line up perfectly between the Earth and the sun, blotting out the sunlight. It will take less than 2½ hours for the moon’s shadow to slice a diagonal line from the southwest to the northeast across North America, briefly plunging communities along the track into darkness.
Fifteen U.S. states will get a piece of the action, albeit two of them — Tennessee and Michigan — just barely.
Among the cities in the middle of the action: Dallas; Little Rock, Arkansas; Indianapolis, Cleveland; Buffalo; and Montreal. But practically everyone on the continent can catch at least a partial eclipse. The farther from the path of totality, the smaller the moon’s bite will be out of the sun.
Why is totality longer?
By a cosmic stroke of luck, the moon will make the month’s closest approach to Earth the day before the total solar eclipse. That puts the moon “only” 223,000 miles away on eclipse day. The moon will appear slightly bigger in the sky thanks to that proximity, resulting in an especially long period of sun-blocked darkness.
The Earth and moon will be 93 million miles from the sun that day, the average distance.
When a closer moon pairs up with a more distant sun, totality can last as long as 7½ minutes. The last time the world saw more than seven minutes of totality was in 1973 over Africa. That won’t happen again until 2150 over the Pacific.
How do I safely watch the eclipse?
Sunglasses won’t cut it. Special eclipse glasses are crucial for safely observing the sun as the moon moves across the late morning and afternoon sky, covering more and more and then less and less of our star.
During totality when the sun is completely shrouded, it’s fine to remove your glasses and look with your naked eyes. But before and after, certified eclipse glasses are essential to avoid eye damage. Just make sure they’re not scratched or torn.
Cameras, binoculars and telescopes must be outfitted with special solar filters for safe viewing. Bottom line: Never look at an exposed sun without proper protection any day of the year.
When is the next total solar eclipse?
Full solar eclipses occur every year or two or three, often in the middle of nowhere like the South Pacific or Antarctic. The next total solar eclipse, in 2026, will grace the northern fringes of Greenland, Iceland and Spain.
There won’t be another U.S. eclipse, spanning coast to coast, until 2045. That one will stretch from northern California to Cape Canaveral, Florida — coincidentally where NASA launches its rockets.
Living in Savannah, near
Union Camp, in sixth grade inspired me to create a science project to explore papermaking.
I created sheets of paper by hand from wood pulp and other recycled paper to show different variations and also quality of print and color. I was proud to represent my school and southern region in Atlanta, taking 3rd place at the statewide competition.
When Georgia Appleseed’s legal team met James, he was 14, in foster care and facing a one-year school suspension. Years before, the state removed James from his family because his parents could not find suitable housing. Our lawyers worked with the school to keep him in class and get him needed behavioral health supports. Our legal team will help James graduate from high school, but he will likely require ongoing, intensive supports to overcome the education delays and behavior challenges caused by homelessness and isolation from loved ones that occurred years before we met him.
James travels down a wellworn path in Georgia. Tens of thousands of Georgia children experience homelessness or unsafe housing that leads to foster care, school suspension or expulsion, and ultimately, the juvenile or criminal justice systems. Along the way, these experiences and instability cause physical, mental and behavioral challenges that can be lifelong.
The path from desperate housing conditions to the juvenile justice system is widely recognized and understood among legal and social services workers and the low-income families we serve. Georgia Appleseed’s work with James highlights a systemic housing crisis that threatens Georgia’s future workforce and the overall strength of our communities.
This spring, Georgia’s Legislature has a chance to protect thousands of children from dangerous housing and eviction by passing the bipartisan House Bill 404. The bill will create minimum safety standards for rental housing and provide tenants a modest three-day window to make up late rent payments.
Severe housing problems (like lack of plumbing or kitchen facilities) impact at least 582,000 Georgia households, according to our estimate and the United Health Care Foundation and U.S. Census data. That’s 15.2% of Georgia homes (and 21% for Black families) — a higher percentage than Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina and Mississippi.
In addition, eviction regularly threatens these families. Pre-COVID-19 pandemic, 18.8% of renting families in Georgia faced eviction each year. After a dip during the pandemic due to a federally mandated moratorium, eviction rates in Atlanta are rising above pre-pandemic numbers, hitting the city’s Black and brown communities hardest. In Clayton County, landlords filed enough evictions to potentially affect more than 35% of renting households in the past year.
Across the state, dangerous housing conditions and evictions lead to homelessness for tens of thousands of children— over 31,000 public school kids were homeless or in unstable housing during the 20202021 school year. Poor housing conditions cause widespread health problems — 9.6% of Georgia’s children suffer from asthma, nearly 50% higher than the national average, costing tens of millions in hospital costs each year. And they break up families—one fifth of children in Georgia’s foster care system were removed from their families because of “inadequate housing.”
HB 404 is a potential turning point for Georgia. Most Georgia landlords are responsible business owners and already provide safe housing to their tenants. HB 404 would level the playing field for these landlords and require Georgia’s slumlords to clean up their properties. As currently written, the legislation is a decisive step toward keeping families together and giving our children the stability they need to succeed.
The evidence is irrefutable — safe and stable housing is a crucial determinant of a child’s well-being and prospects. Join Georgia Appleseed and partner organizations fighting to keep Georgia’s children safe. Let’s take a stand for James and the tens of thousands of children like him.
Call your state legislators. Tell them that you support HB 404. Tell that them that Georgia should lead the way in ensuring that every child has a safe place to live, learn and grow.
Georgia is a great state to do business and raise a family. From the beauty of its landscapes to the richness of its natural resources, we are blessed to call Georgia home.
However, there is an issue that continues to endanger the quality of the life we enjoy — an issue that comes with doubts that our legal system protects us all. A barrier to attracting and keeping businesses that provide jobs to our citizens and revenue to our economy. A danger to being able to afford to live the American dream. That issue is out-of-control lawsuits and their impact on our way of life.
According to its website, the American Tort Reform Association Foundation annually publishes a report “focusing on jurisdictions where courts have been radically out of balance.” In the most recent report for 2023, ATRA has listed Georgia as the No. 1 Judicial Hellhole in America, surpassing even California.
In a 2023 article from R Street Institute, a conservative and libertarian think tank, state policy director Marc Hyden points out that if lawsuit abuse in Georgia is not fixed, it amounts to another tax on consumers — referring to the financial toll frivolous lawsuits have on businesses and how that hurts consumers who then face higher costs as a result. Yet, despite these alarming facts, Hyden states, “Even the most common-sense reforms have gone down in dramatic flames in the Georgia General Assembly.”
The purpose of our judicial system is to balance the scales of justice — to solve legitimate grievances and hold those who are guilty responsible. There are wonderful attorneys who represent real victims who deserve their day in court. The passion that most of us feel on this issue centers around the fact that there are legitimate cases out there, and every time a frivolous lawsuit is brought forward, it clogs the court system, forcing delays for those cases that should be heard in a timely manner.
People are suffering because it can take years to get their case to court, and damages awarded could be considerably less that what they are worth because juries have been hardened by the large number of senseless cases they have to hear.
There does seem to be hope on the horizon for 2024. The General Assembly appears to be taking up legislation dealing with landowners’ liability. There has been an alarming trend in lawsuits punishing landowners when criminals commit crimes on their property. When Georgia’s homeowners and businesses exercise reasonable care to keep their properties safe, they should not be held responsible for the actions of trespassers and criminals. The General Assembly can fix this. For Georgia businesses, especially small businesses, as well as homeowners, this is very good news.