Dear Kristine,

The shadow of the Moon is small, only about 100 miles across, so the "path of totality" of the portion of the Earth that is covered by the shadow of the Moon during a total solar eclipse is a thin swath that covers only a small portion of the Earth's surface. Since 70% of the Earth's surface is water, then it is unlikely that a total solar eclipse will happen often in your neighborhood. But don't lose hope! Because on Aug 21, 2017, there will be a total solar eclipse that will cross the entire United States from the northern west coast to the southern east coast, so you'll have your pick of places to see it here in our country. The trick will be finding a place with low cloud cover, so start studying your geography and meteorology for regions you'd like to visit for the eclipse. For more information, look at Fred Espenak's eclipse page, he has been predicting eclipses for years! his page is mreclipse.com (Mr. Eclipse).

Best wishes,

Isabel Hawkins