[Skyjim73]

Originally Posted by tentcamper

I would like to be in the area that has the longest maximum eclipse or totality. This is the short period that the Moon completely covers the disc of the Sun. Only the Sun's corona is visible. What I'm seeing on the nasa link is at best location (nasa chart "GD"). Totality is 5 seconds at best and is quickly reduced left and right of GD along the path across the US.

The stages on each side of totality is the total eclipse and it seems to be around ~3 minutes along most of the path over the US. This is the time most of the sun is covered but not completely.

Tentcamper, totality at the point of greatest duration will be about 2 minutes and 42 seconds, NOT 5 seconds. As was pointed out earlier, you get better than 2 minutes 30 seconds from Nebraska to the Carolinas. Your biggest factor in seeing the eclipse at totality or not is cloud cover - as a couple of posters have already pointed out, that means a wise eclipse chaser will be ready to MOVE in response to late weather reports in the final hours before the eclipse. Some areas are better with regard to highways running along the centerline area, an important factor is making a choice on where to base yourself. Ideally you would like a better statistical chance at clear skies, plus decent roads running roughly along the path. Duration of totality does not change much across the bulk of the lower 48. The partial phases will take about 3 hours from start to finish along the centerline for most of the states.