Get Married During the Total Solar Eclipse on April 8th, 2024!

Plan or Officiate a Solar Eclipse Wedding during next year’s epic eclipse

 

Monday, April 8th, 2024, a total solar eclipse will be visible in locations across North American, In the U.S., it will travel a ‘path of totality’ from Texas to Maine, passing through Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, and New Hampshire along the way. 

 

For couples planning a spring wedding, this event is an epic opportunity for a completely unique ceremony. And if you weren’t planning a spring wedding,i this might just change your mind…

 

We’re talking endless possibilities for creativity: Celestial themes! Symbolic candle lighting rituals! Custom eclipse glasses for guests! Eerie, otherworldly wedding photos! Vintage sci-fi themed wedding attire! Moonstone wedding bands! Ring-shaped sun silhouettes! Galactic space inspired vows! The list goes on and on… 

 

Related: Pantheist Wedding Ceremony Script with Reading from Carl Sagan

 

But if you have a particular venue in mind, grab it fast! Venues and vendors, including wedding officiants, will book up quickly for this noteworthy date. 

 

Consider asking a friend or relative to get ordained online to perform your ceremony, and plan to say ‘I do’ outdoors, where you’ll have a great view of the sky… just have a backup plan for any sudden spring showers or storms. (Umbrellas are always a cute wedding addition!)

 

• Get ordained online here to officiate a wedding 

 

• How to Ask Someone to Officiate Your Wedding - Our Favorite Way to Say 'Will You Marry Us?'

 

 

Photo (cropped): Jonathan Borba / Unsplash

 

 

Couples will Gravitate to Eclipse Mass Weddings

 

Group weddings are also a great option for this incredible occasion. Professional wedding officiants and celebrants in the path of the eclipse are likely to offer group options to keep up with demand and give the most couples possible a chance to create a special memory. 

 

• How to Officiate a Group Wedding Ceremony

 

One such event has already been announced – during the Total Eclipse of the Heart music festival in Russellville, Arkansas – and it sounds stellar! 

 

Total Eclipse of the Heart will feature three days (April 6th-8th) of live music, hot air balloons, and food vendors, plus a unique ‘Elope at the Eclipse’ mass wedding ceremony. 

 

The group ceremony has already attracted dozens of couples, and is expected to be the largest mass wedding in Arkansas’s history (via KARK). All couples need to do to say ‘I do’ during this fun festival is purchase an event ticket and register online. 

 

What causes a solar eclipse?

 

Did you know? A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, casting the Moon’s shadow on the earth… kinda like a really big cloud blocking the sun on a stormy day. Solar eclipses only occur during a New Moon, and partial solar eclipses happen a few times a year. Total solar eclipses, like April 8th’s, are less common and occur approximately every 18 months (via Space.com). Because each eclipse is only visible from certain locations on Earth, the opportunity to witness one for yourself can feel quite rare! 

 

Destination Weddings in the Path of Totality 

 

To experience the eclipse fully, couples will need to get married at a venue located in the ‘path of totality.’ Luckily for us, Astronomy magazine published a list of view-worthy cities, 20 of the best places to view the 2024 Great North American Eclipse. We’ve included seven of their top cities below, along with information from the article on when the eclipse will begin and end in each location. 

 

Astronomy chose each location based on its relationship with the eclipse path, which determines how much time you’ll be able to see the eclipse in its ‘totality,’ or completeness.

Use this information to plan your celestial vow exchange, ring exchange, first kiss, or pronouncement! 

 

Seven top spots for the 2024 solar eclipse: 

 

1. Kerrville, Texas 
4 minutes and 25 seconds of totality
Eclipse starts: 12:14:43 p.m. CDT
Eclipse end: 2:55:29 p.m. CDT
Maximum eclipse: 1:34:17 p.m. CDT
Population 24,000

 

(Eclipse fans will be able to see a partial solar eclipse in San Antonio.)

 

2. Russellville, Arkansas
4 minutes 11 seconds of totality
Eclipse starts: 12:33:08 p.m. CDT
Eclipse ends: 3:10:46 p.m. CDT
Maximum eclipse: 1:52:10 p.m. CDT
Population 30,000

 

3. Cape Girardeau, Missouri
4 minutes and 6 seconds of totality
Eclipse starts: 12:41:51 p.m. CDT
Eclipse ends: 3:17:26 p.m. CDT
Maximum eclipse: 2:00:21 p.m. CDT
Population 80,000

 

4. Indianapolis, Indiana
3 minutes and 49 seconds of totality 
Eclipse starts: 1:50:31 p.m. EDT
Eclipse ends: 4:23:10 p.m. EDT
Maximum eclipse: 3:07:56 p.m. EDT
Metro Population 2 million

 

5. Cleveland, Ohio
3 minutes and 49 seconds of totality
Eclipse starts: 1:59:20 p.m. EDT
Eclipse ends: 4:28:57 p.m. EDT
Maximum eclipse: 3:15:37 p.m. EDT
Metro Population 1.761

 

6. Erie, Pennsylvania
3 minutes and 42 seconds of totality
Eclipse starts: 2:02:23 p.m. EDT
Eclipse ends: 4:30:48 p.m. EDT
Maximum eclipse: 3:18:12 p.m. EDT
Metro Population 267,700

 

7. Buffalo, New York
3 minutes and 45 seconds of totality
Eclipse starts: 2:04:54 p.m. EDT
Eclipse ends: 4:32:07 p.m. EDT
Maximum eclipse: 3:20:11 p.m. EDT
Metro Population 1.137 million

 

(Eclipse fans will also get an incredible view of the totality in Niagara Falls.)

 

To see the full list of the best cities and towns to catch a glimpse of the eclipse, visit this Astronomy.com article. 

 

Photo: DaveDavidsoncom / Pixabay

Don't forget your eclipse glasses!

 

 

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Read Next: 

 

• Would You Perform a Wedding in Space?
   
• Get Married on Mars*: Plan an Out of This World Destination Wedding
   

Photo: Still shot from the vintage sci-fi film Forbidden Planet.

Inspired by the Red Planet, vintage sci-fi, and NASA’s Perseverance rover, we offer a few suggestions to help you plan a Mars wedding... here on Earth! Read the full article here. 

 

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