Its the greatest 2 minutes and 40 seconds in astronomy and August 21st, you have a chance to see it. At 10:15 am Pacific Daylight Time , the Great American Eclipse will begin. The first total solar eclipse in history unique to the United States, it enters the country near Depoe Bay, Oregon, and, at 2:49 pm Eastern Daylight Time, exits outside McClellanville, South Carolina. The best place to watch, of course, is within the totality band. But for those who dont live in or cant get to one of the 12 states the eclipse crosses, theres always the internet.

Thanks to NASA, citizen scientists, and public libraries across the country, youve got options to watch the total solar eclipse online. Heres a quick look at where you can watch:

1) NASA.gov

NASA.gov/eclipselive will stream 10 live webcasts, each with a different angle: See the eclipse from the International Space Station. Watch ground footage from the point of greatest eclipse outside Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Catch the view from 11 international spacecraft. Or watch the eclipse from near-space: NASA Space Grant Consortium volunteers are launching 57 high-altitude balloons across the nation, each with its own Raspberry Pi camera.

NASA expects 100-500 million site hits, so as a backup, you can also catch the balloon webcast here: eclipse.stream.live

2) Watch Parties

Go offline and see the eclipse online at the same time. Public libraries across the country are holding watch parties! Locations outside totality will stream NASAs total eclipse broadcast and also host live viewing areas for partiality. You can find the closest eclipse party to you on organizer STAR_Nets website.

No participating library in town? Then go to a NASA Museum Alliance or NASA Night Sky Network party instead.

3) Social Media

200 million Americans live within a days drive of totality, so the Great American Eclipse will be all over Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. The official hashtag is #eclipse2017. As soon as the event is over, Eclipse Megamovie will compile everyones smartphone footage into a continuous video showing the solar eclipse from start to finish. Watch their replay here: https://eclipsemega.movie

4) Astronomy.com

See what the eclipse looks like on the ground from Denver, Colorado. Astronomy will have its own 4K webcast right here on this site.

Read the rest here:

How to watch the total solar eclipse online - Astronomy Magazine