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NOVA: Eclipse Over America

This photo from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory on March 11, 2013, at 8 a.m. EDT, shows the moon crossing in front of the sun.
Courtesy of NASA/SDO
This photo from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory on March 11, 2013, at 8 a.m. EDT, shows the moon crossing in front of the sun.

Airs Monday, Aug. 21, 2017 at 10 p.m. & repeats Wednesday, Aug. 23 at 8 p.m. on KPBS TV

NOVA Shares the Great American Eclipse with Audiences across the U.S. in Special Day-of-Event Presentation

On Monday Aug. 21, 2017, America’s eyes will be glued to the skies as the mainland United States experiences the first total solar eclipse since 1979, and the first to cross the USA since 1918.

NOVA will capture the spectacular event in a special presentation to air hours after it takes place.

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This extraordinary cosmic spectacle will pass through 14 states, and everyone in the continental U.S. will have the opportunity to see at least a partial eclipse, possibly making it the most widely viewed American eclipse of all time.

Commencing at 10:15 a.m. PDT (1:15 p.m. EDT), a lunar shadow 73 miles wide will take one hour and 33 minutes to travel from Oregon on the west coast to South Carolina on the east, allowing continuous observation for 90 minutes.

NOVA’s most extensive fast-turnaround film to date, “Eclipse Over America” will be the ultimate companion to this spectacular celestial event.

Nova: Eclipse Over America

Nova: Eclipse Over America

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NOVA will follow teams working on the forefront of solar science and solar storm detection, incorporating immersive CGI animation to reveal the sun’s secret mechanisms, stunning sequences of the eclipse itself, NASA footage, and more.

NOVA will also collaborate with several local public television stations along the path of totality, who will provide footage shot in their own back yards, illustrating the excitement the eclipse generates across the nation.

“NOVA is thrilled to provide our audiences across the U.S. with an up close, in-depth look at this extraordinary event,” said Paula S. Apsell, Senior Executive Producer of NOVA. “We are excited to share the experience with viewers and provide a scientific perspective on the celestial mechanism behind this total solar eclipse and what it can tell us about the inner workings of our sun.”

JOIN THE CONVERSATION ON FACEBOOK LIVE:

Also during the eclipse, NOVA will present a Facebook LIVE event in partnership with PBS NEWSHOUR.

Hosted by PBS Science Correspondent Miles O’Brien, the event will feature commentary by Jason Kalirai from the Space Telescope Science Institute and other experts gathered to watch the eclipse from a location about 40 miles east of Irwin, Idaho.

Additional details will be released via NOVA social media channels closer to Aug. 21:

NOVA is on Facebook, and you can follow @novapbs on Twitter. #NOVAnext #eclipse2017

PBS NEWSHOUR is on Facebook, Instagram, and you can follow @NewsHour on Twitter.

You can follow Miles O'Brien @milesobrien, and Jason Kalirai @JasonKalirai on Twitter.

Composite image of totality showing the corona during the 2015 eclipse in Svalbard with the magnetic field of the sun outlined in the coronal loops.
Courtesy of Jay Pasachoff and Ron Dantowitz
Composite image of totality showing the corona during the 2015 eclipse in Svalbard with the magnetic field of the sun outlined in the coronal loops.

WATCH ON DEMAND:

NOVA “Eclipse Over America” will be available to stream the morning after broadcast on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and PBS apps for iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Chromecast.

Diamond ring during total solar eclipse of 2006.
Courtesy of Jay Pasachoff & Ron Dantowitz
Diamond ring during total solar eclipse of 2006.

CREDITS:

Produced for PBS by WGBH Boston. Senior Executive Producer for NOVA is Paula S. Apsell.