Let me give some values for the sizes of these things, then I will make some sort of diagram. Radius of the Sun: 6.95 x 10 8 m. Radius of the Earth: 6.38 x 10 6 m.

OK, let's go back to that wrong (but common) diagram showing the path of the moon as it orbits the sun. Notice that at some points the moon is curving toward the sun and sometimes it's curving away.

The sun traces out a figure-8 over the course of a year in Colorado's sky and it looks like this. Yep, a figure eight. It's a combination of everything we just talked about.

These maps show path's timing, how long it lasts. Hundreds of cities in 13 U.S. states fall directly on the April 8 eclipse's path of totality as the moon blocks the sun's disc and ushers in darkness.

Maps outlining the solar eclipse’s path of totality may not be exact — and no one can be certain. NASA advises moving as close to the path’s center as possible.

It combines images taken at different times of day over the course of six months, and each curve tracks the Sun’s path across the sky on a particular day. Gaps indicate cloudy days.