Missouri

Eclipse over Missouri: As found from the NASA interactive eclipse map, the Moon’s shadow along the centerline crosses the western border at St. Joseph, Missouri, just south of Downtown, at 1:06:27 PM Central Daylight Time (18:06:27 Universal Time). In St. Joe’s, totality lasts 2 minutes, 38 seconds and the path of totality is almost 71 miles wide.

The path of totality passes over several large cities of Missouri, including Columbia and the southside of St. Louis. At Jefferson City, the state capital, totality begins at 1:13:07 PM, and lasts for 2:29. At the centerline, the lunar umbra passes over 306 miles of the state of Missouri in the span of 15 minutes, 8 seconds, at an average speed of 1453 miles per hour, or 1.91 times the speed of sound.

The Moon’s shadow along the centerline crosses the Mississippi River at Belgique, Missouri at 1:21:35 PM CDT (18:21:35 UT). At Belgique, the duration of totality is 2 minutes, 40 seconds and the path of totality at the eastern border is over 71 miles wide.

NOTE: Duration of totality is longest along the centerline. Duration of totality approaches ZERO near the edges of the path of totality. Please consult the NASA interactive eclipse map for precise times and durations of totality at each specific location in the state, along with locals times for the beginning and ending of the partial eclipse phases.

Lodging: As with all locations along the path, hotel reservations will fill up well in advance. Plan instead to tent camp or rent an RV. While there are many commercial and public campgrounds, primitive camping is inexpensive in the National Parks and free in the National Forests.

Visit the following in Missouri: Mark Twain National Forest.

Visit our Eclipse Lodging page to find local accommodations!

Traffic Concerns: In the event of any last-minute, impromptu eclipse day trippers, there might be a lot of traffic heading south from St. Louis. The northern limit of totality crosses just south of Downtown, and a lot of people might decide to head south, to be deeper within the path. Being in a more populous part of the USA, there might be a volume of traffic heading south on I-35 from Des Moines and even Minneapolis, and heading north onto the path from Oklahoma and Texas.

Weather: According to the Eclipsophile site, based on meteorological averages, western Missouri should have afternoon weather prospects comparable to Nebraska. However, the risk of afternoon cloud cover increases in the western end of the state.

Planning Your Missouri Eclipse Vacation: Please read the resources on our Be Prepared! page for finding opportunities for overnight lodging at your Missouri eclipse viewing destination. Missouri has urban and rural attractions, from music in Branson to riverboats on the Mississippi. The path of totality passes over several national forests, allowing ample space for hosting prepared eclipse chasers. Check out Visit Missouri and also Explore St. Louis for more information on planning your Missouri eclipse vacation.

Organized Eclipse Events in Missouri:

2017 Eclipse: St. Joseph, Missouri - The Front Page Science website includes a considerable amount of information about the eclipse, and a viewing event in St. Joseph, Missouri.

Lathrop Eclipse Festival - visit their website for more information.

St. Louis Eclipse 2017 – An excellent resource page devoted to seeing the eclipse from Missouri. These folks are savvy astronomers, well-organized, and are making big plans for Eclipse Day in Missouri. St. Louis has a “Solar Eclipse Expo” planned for June 17, 2017 at the Greensfelder Recreation Complex at Queeny Park located at 550 Weidman Road, Ballwin, MO 63021. 1,000 tickets have already been issued for the public to attend this event. Tickets are FREE if purchased in advance.

Sullivan, Missouri 2017 Solar Eclipse – The eclipse page for the City of Sullivan, which is already planning ahead for Eclipse Day.

Perryville Solarfest - Starting on Friday, August 18th the Perryville Area Chamber of Commerce will host a two day festival, Solarfest- sponsored by Perry County Memorial Hospital. This will include food vendors, carnival, concerts, parade, and festival vendors.

This list is a work in progress! Please contact us if you know of any other Missouri eclipse events!