There hasn’t been a total solar eclipse over North America for nearly 40 years.
But in 1979, the last time the United States witnessed the phenomenon, the moon fell dark a more hopeful country.
Toward the end of ABC’s coverage of the 1979 eclipse, the network’s news anchor Frank Reynolds signed off by noting the next time it would happen — and offering a prediction that resonates today.
“So that’s it, the last solar eclipse to be seen on this continent in this century,” Reynolds said. “And as I said, not until August 21, 2017, will another eclipse be visible from North America. That’s 38 years from now. May the shadow of the moon fall on a world of peace.”
Reynolds passed away in 1983 at the age of 59, so he’s not here to see the world now. But with a nuclear threat from North Korea, violent white supremacy rallies and a president poised to increase U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan, 2017 hasn’t been the most hopeful of years.
Let’s hope the shadow of the moon falls on a world of peace in seven years, when the next solar eclipse visible from North America takes place on April 8, 2024.
You can watch the 1979 ABC broadcast above.