What makes the Aug. 21, 2017, total solar eclipse so special? For one thing, it may be the only one you ever get to see. The numbers below tell the story of what makes this eclipse unique.
- 2:36 p.m.: Time totality begins in South Carolina
- 11: The number of minutes it will take for the shadow of totality to pass through South Carolina
- 13: Number of S.C. counties entirely within the path of totality
- 2052: Next year that a total solar eclipse can be seen in South Carolina (just the lower tip of the state)
- 2078: Next year that a total solar eclipse will be visible to most of South Carolina
- 1918: The last year the United States had a total solar eclipse with a transcontinental path
- 12: Number of states the 2017 total eclipse will pass through, beginning in Oregon and ending in South Carolina
- 1,000,000: Number of eclipse tourists expected in South Carolina on Aug. 21
- 90: Number of minutes it will take for the shadow of totality to pass across the U.S. from Oregon to South Carolina
- 5: Number of U.S. capital cities, including Columbia, that fall within the national path of totality
- 2:41: Time, in minutes and seconds, of the 2017 eclipse’s longest totality duration in the U.S., in Carbondale, Illinois
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