Google Doodle Today: Monday Eclipse Facts, Animation

By 9 a.m. PDT on the West Coast of the United States the moon was making its way across the sun for the total solar eclipse of 2017. Buzz around the event has been building for months and agencies like NASA have been preparing and planning experiments for just as long. Google is getting in on Monday's eclipse action for the much-anticipated Aug. 21 event as well.

The homepage of Google on Monday featured an animation of two extraterrestrials bouncing the moon between the two of them high above Earth, as the moon bounces from one to the other it passes the sun and eclipses the light it gives of.

The animation is a cute imitation of what will actually happen on Monday across the 14 states in the path of totality of the eclipse in the United States. Clicking on the Google Doodle brings users to a new page with eclipse facts. The first is that there are actually different types of eclipses, solar and lunar. What the country will experience Monday is a solar eclipse, meaning the sun is eclipsed or covered.

via GIPHY

Clicking through the facts there are also moving graphics that show the way the moon is moving to cause the eclipse and shadow here on Earth. The featured facts also say that the eclipse will cause some small animals to act like the sun is setting. The facts also touch on the subject of eye safety while viewing the eclipse, reminding potential viewers to only look at the eclipse with verified eclipse glasses or viewers and to use these while taking photos too.

Google collaborated with University of California Berkeley to create a simulator for the solar eclipse that would show what the coverage of the sun will look like across the country. This is helpful for those not in the path of totality who wish to track when it will be darkest out.

The next total solar eclipse won’t occur on the continental United States until 2024 so this is the last chance for quite some time. If you can’t make it outside to view the total or partial solar eclipse there are several live streams and broadcasts happening throughout the day Monday. And some social media platforms like Snapchat have original content.

A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon moves between the sun and the Earth and blocks the light from the sun from reaching Earth. The path of totality is the area of Earth directly in the shadow of the moon. Other areas that are only in the partial shadow will only see a partial solar eclipse.