OHIO, USA — The moon passed over the sun on Monday, leaving many states, including Ohio, to experience a brief time in totality.
Those in the densely populated path of totality saw up to four minutes of midday darkness.
It had been nearly seven years since the U.S. was touched by a total solar eclipse that spanned coast to coast. More than 215 million U.S. adults watched the celestial show, either virtually or in person, in 2017.
The last total solar eclipse visible in Ohio was in 1806, according to the Ohio Emergency Management Agency.
It will be another 75 years before Ohio sees a total solar eclipse on this scale again.
When is the next total solar eclipse in Ohio?
Ohioans will have to wait until Sept. 14, 2099, before the next total solar eclipse crosses through the Buckeye State. Columbus is one of the many cities in the Midwest projected to be in the path of totality.
However, Ohioans have an opportunity to view the eclipse much earlier.
North America won’t experience totality in a solar eclipse again until 2033, with Alaska getting sole dibs. Then that’s it until 2044, when totality will be confined to Western Canada, Montana and North Dakota.
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.
How often does a solar eclipse occur?
Solar eclipses of all kinds happen more frequently than one might think.
NASA breaks down the math to about 2,380 solar eclipses of all kinds every 1,000 years — or roughly 2-3 solar eclipses each year. For total solar eclipses, where the moon completely covers the sun, it works out to two eclipses every three years.
Why don’t eclipses occur every new moon?
Due to the moon's "tilted" orbit, its shadow is constantly changing placement. Sometimes it's too low and other times it's too high above Earth.
Eclipses occur when its placement is just right.