This summer, on a seemingly normal Monday afternoon in August, at exactly 1:34 p.m., the Sun above Montgomery will almost disappear from view. The sky overhead will darken & if conditions are just right, Venus may appear in the southern sky. The temperature will drop by several degrees, and nocturnal creatures will emerge from sleep. The bustle of Montgomery will slow as people stop and look to the skies to witness the peak of the 90% partial eclipse that will last for two minutes above our heads.

Dubbed The Great American Eclipse by the press, it’s the first total solar eclipse to sweep from coast to coast since 1918. The path of totality is only 70 miles wide, touches no land outside the U.S., and Nashville is the largest city within that path.

To kick off the countdown to August 21, the W.A. Gayle Planetarium will introduce a new, fulldome production, ECLIPSE: The Sun Revealed. This original show will take viewers on a spectacular journey through the fascinating historical and cultural impact of eclipses, the astronomical events that produce them, and the geometry that leads to lunar, partial, annular and total solar eclipses.

Showing Sundays @ 2pm and Monday—Thursdays @ 4pm. Special showing Monday August 21 @ 10:30 am.
Admission is $6.50 per person and one pair of solar eclipse glasses will be given free for each paid admission.
(Public shows only) While supplies last!!
Tickets go on sale 30 minutes before each show starts.
No late admittance into building once a show has started.