You’re ready for North America’s rare total solar eclipse—but is your smartphone? On April 8, North America will see a partial solar eclipse, but only those inside a narrow 115-mile path will experience the splendor of totality.
There are dozens of excellent websites to check—links to which you should save to your smartphone—such as:
1. Xavier Jubier’s Interactive Google Map (map)
2. Eclipse2024’s Eclipse Simulator (map and simulations)
3. The Eclipse Company (community events and historical weather)
4. Timeanddate (eclipse schedule)
5. Eclipsophile (weather)
Another helpful way of getting precise information on the move is from Eclipse apps for smartphones. They offer information about the partial solar eclipse and the total solar eclipse, which could be valuable if you have to relocate at the last minute on April 8 to avoid clouds, rain, or snow.
Here are the best smartphone apps designed for the solar eclipse on April 8:
1. Solar Eclipse Timer App
Platforms: iOS and Android
Cost: $1.99 per eclipse
Developed by eclipse chaser and eclipse educator Gordon Telepun, author of “Eclipse Day: 2024 and More” on Apple Books, the Solar Eclipse Timer app geolocates your position, confirms you’re in (or out) of the path of totality, and talks you through the contact times. It also calls out when to check for other phenomena, such as shadow bands. New for 2024 is a Photographer’s Mode, a timing aid for imaging developed with ex-NASA eclipse calculator and photographer Fred Espenak, a.k.a. “Mr. Eclipse.”
2. The Eclipse Company
Platforms: iOS and Android
Cost: Pro version costs extra (TBC)
The “Pro” version of The Eclipse Company’s new app offers real-time weather updates and cloud forecasts for totality, a countdown timer with a vibration alert to let you know when it’s safe to remove your solar eclipse glasses, and detailed information about local eclipse events.
3. Windy
Platforms: iOS and Android
Cost: $18.99/year
There are lots of weather apps, but Windy is handy for eclipse chasing because it gives you more than one model. If you subscribe, you can see the ECM WF model, which is hard to get in North America, and the GFS model. Toggle between them and get an idea of what the cloud is doing.
4. One Eclipse
Platforms: iOS (no Android version)
Cost: $1.99
Created by the non-profit Astronomers Without Borders and Simulation Curriculum (makers of the SkySafari planetarium app), OneEclipse supports an eclipse glasses recycling program for underserved communities worldwide. In addition to allowing you to simulate the eclipse from your location or anywhere on Earth, there’s an interactive map that includes precise eclipse event times and a dynamic Eclipse Countdown clock.
5. Totality
Platforms: iOS and Android
Cost: free
Created by eclipse-chaser Jeff Bennett at Big Kid Science, this app has been donated to the American Astronomical Society and comes without ads. It’s an easy way of accessing eclipse maps in a simple, clear way that works great on a smartphone. It includes interactive maps for April 8’s total solar eclipse in the U.S. and October 2, 2024’s annular solar eclipse on Easter Island and in South America. The maps are pre-loaded, so they can be consulted offline, though a cell reception is required to get timings for the eclipse for specific locations. Bennet also offers a book of the same name as well as readings.
6. Total Solar Eclipse
Platforms: iOS and Android
Cost: free
San Francisco science museum Exploratorium and NASA have worked together to send expeditions to sites around the world to film solar eclipses, so it’s no surprise that this app has a live stream built-in. It will let you watch Exploratoriam’s own live feeds from Junction, Texas and from Torreón, Mexico, on April 8. However, there’s little more in the app of much interest, merely linking to webpages.
7. Eclipse Guide 2023-2027 Times
Platforms: iOS
Cost: $1.99
If you’ve got one eye on the future—and you want to become an eclipse-chaser—then this is the app for you. As well as interactive and animated maps for the upcoming total solar eclipse, there’s an eclipse simulator and a calendar of solar and lunar eclipses long into the future.
8. NASA
Platforms: iOS, Android & Amazon
Cost: free
Despite its name being synonymous with space science and solar science, space agency NASA isn’t particularly involved with, or expert on, eclipse chasing. However, it’s made an exception for the 2017 and 2024 eclipses, and its excellent app will be a great place to stream its feeds from Kerrville in Texas, Indianapolis in Indiana, and Cleveland in Ohio.
I’m an expert on eclipses—the editor of WhenIsTheNextEclipse.com and author of The Complete Guide To The Great North American Eclipse of April 8, 2024. For the very latest on the total solar eclipse—including travel and lodging options—check my main feed for new articles each day.
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
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