Solar eclipse updates: When is the next total solar eclipse?

The contiguous United States hasn’t seen a total solar eclipse since August 2017, but the seven-year difference between eclipses is "deceptive," Fred Espenak, a former astrophysicist from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and author of "Road Atlas for the Total Solar Eclipse of 2024," previously told ABC News.

"If you look previous to 2017, the last one was in 1979,” he said. "So, it's a little bit deceptive that these two eclipses were in seven years of each other."

The next total solar eclipse to occur in the contiguous U.S. won't be until August 2044 in Montana and North Dakota, and the next to span coast-to-coast is slated for 2045, according to NASA.

Comparatively, 2024's total solar eclipse is "better" than 2017's, because the path of totality is almost 60% wider and the duration of the eclipse is about 60% longer, according to Espenak, who explained some locations within the path will experience up to four and a half minutes of the eclipse.

-ABC News’ Leah Sarnoff

For seven years, Deb Ross has been helping prepare the city of Rochester, New York, to welcome thousands of visitors for the total solar eclipse.

Rochester, which is in the path of totality, is expecting between 300,000 and 500,000 visitors and to earn between $10 million and $12 million over eclipse weekend.

"I think probably I was little over the top, so maybe people were saying, 'Seven years out, really Deb? Six years out, five years out, this a little early, isn't it?'" Ross told ABC News. "But the fact is pulling all these folks together and working for something that's going to happen far in the future for three minutes and 38 seconds, that is a kind of wacky proposition. But it was really fun, and everybody just jumped right on board."

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Rochester resident describes years of planning for eclipse

Debra Ross, chair of the Rochester Eclipse Task Force, says she has been a part of planning for the total solar eclipse for almost seven years.

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As chair of the Rochester Eclipse Task Force, Ross has recruited the local government, museums, small businesses and even the local transportation council to make the event memorable for visitors by creating eclipse-themed events, food and merchandise.

"We've had practice runs, we've had a lot of meetings to get at the nitty gritty, and I've been able to be part of those and watching everybody here play so beautifully together in this sandbox," she said. "I think what we'll be doing here on Monday, April 8. is converting hundreds of thousands of skeptics into eclipse chasers."

From Mexico to Maine, if you're in a city where the total solar eclipse will grace the skies Monday afternoon, cloud coverage may dampen your view.

Mazatlan, Mexico, will have low clouds through the morning. The clouds will begin to break by the afternoon, but the weather may still be mostly cloudy at the time of the total eclipse.

Del Rio, Texas, is forecast to have mostly cloudy skies, so eclipse viewing weather won't be ideal. There's a chance to see the eclipse in Dallas, where the skies will be partly cloudy with some passing clouds.

Along the path of totality in Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, the forecast has improved in recent days.

The forecast calls for good eclipse viewing in Carbondale, Illinois, with mostly clear skies and a few passing clouds. Similarly, Indianapolis will have a good view with lots of sun and a few thin clouds.

In Niagara Falls, New York, the weather will be mostly cloudy with an isolated shower is possible, making it hard to see the eclipse.

Meanwhile, Houlton, Maine, will have sunny skies -- and will be the best place to see the eclipse in all of North America.

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What the forecast looks like for solar eclipse

ABC News Chief Meteorologist Ginger Zee is in Carbondale, Illinois, with the latest track and forecast across the U.S. for Monday’s eclipse.

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-ABC News' Emily Shapiro and Max Golembo

A total solar eclipse is passing over North America on April 8, creating a path of totality that will cast some parts of Mexico, the United States and Canada in darkness.

During a total solar eclipse, which is a rare celestial event, the moon passes between the sun and Earth. The moon slowly covers and, for a brief period, completely blocks the face of the sun.

In the U.S., the path of totality begins in Texas and will travel through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Some parts of Tennessee and Michigan will also experience the total solar eclipse, according to NASA.

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2024 solar eclipse: what to know

A historic total solar eclipse will cast a shadow over parts of the United States from Texas to Maine on April 8.

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April 8’s solar eclipse will be the last of its kind to occur in North America for the next 20 years. There will not be another total solar eclipse in North America again until 2044.

The best time to view totality will depend on where you are in the U.S. In Eagle Pass, Texas, totality will occur at 1:27 p.m. CDT and last 4 minutes and 23 seconds. In Presque Isle, Maine, totality will occur at 3:32 p.m. EDT and last 2 minutes and 47 seconds.