Scientists issue urgent warning ahead of next month's solar eclipse

If you've not been paying attention to the news- either current or from the 1970s - there's a total solar eclipse happening next month.

Lucky viewers with a clear sky view will be able to see the blocking of the sun's light in a wonderous event.

The total solar eclipse is set to take place on 8 April and will cross North America, with Brits set to see a partial eclipse.

Anticipation is high amongst Americans, with many planning trips to one of the 14 states in the eclipse's path, including Texas, New York and Oklahoma.

According to NASA: 'The Monday, April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada. The total solar eclipse will begin over the South Pacific Ocean.

'Weather permitting, the first location in continental North America that will experience totality is Mexico’s Pacific coast at around 11:07 a.m. PDT.'

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The last recorded solar eclipse in the US was in 2017 lasting a maximum of 2 minutes 42 seconds.

However, scientists worry about a spike in fatal car crashes at the time of the event.

The concern comes from University of Toronto researchers who analysed data from the 2017 solar eclipse using the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System.

The team found over 1,000 additional road fatalities occurred across the US in the three days before and after the event.

During the eclipse period, fatal car crashes increased by 31%, with an average of 10.3 individuals involved in such accidents per hour, compared to 7.9 in other time frames.

'This averaged to 1 extra crash-involved person every 25 minutes and 1 extra crash fatality every 95 minutes,' the researchers wrote.

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With more people on the roads travelling to see the event, road risks are much higher than on any other given day. An estimated 3.7 million people are expected to travel to one of the 14 states next month.

'The problem is the surrounding hours, when people are traveling to their place of observation and especially afterwards. We're especially concerned about the drive home,' said Dr. Donald Redelmeier, the report's co-author and a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto.

Similar incidents happen on busy US holidays such as Thanksgiving weekend and the Fourth of July.