【1994 Archives】

We live in a special time994 Archives at least when it comes to space.

On Monday, a total solar eclipse will pass over a 70-mile-wide swath of the United States, stretching from Oregon to South Carolina.

But don't take it for granted. We won't always have the chance to experience total solar eclipses from Earth.

SEE ALSO: How to watch the total solar eclipse from anywhere on Earth

According to astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, eventually, we won't be able to see these kinds of total eclipses from Earth at all.

In about 500 million to 1 billion years, the moon will be too far from our planet to totally blot out our closest star in the sky.

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"There will be a day where the moon will never in its orbit be large enough to completely cover the sun," Tyson said in a new video.

Via Giphy

Ever since its formation billions of years ago, the moon has been progressively getting farther and farther from Earth in its orbit.

In fact, according to Tyson, the moon was about 20 times larger in our sky when it first formed by comparison to its apparent size now.

Each year, the moon moves about 1.5 inches, 3.8 centimeters, farther from our planet in its orbit.

While future occupants of our planet will be able to see eclipses -- which occur anytime the moon passes between the Earth and the sun, casting a shadow -- they just won't have a chance to see the moon fully cancel out the light of our star.

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20 questions you're too embarrassed to ask about the solar eclipse

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