Good point, but difficult. There are many imponderables I’ve not taken into account. For example, a big eclipse festival in one area may draw disproportionate number of people. And people in some geographies may be more inclined to drive, say wealth is a factor. You can really go down a rabbit hole, but I kept it simple
I made this map/infographic with ArcGIS Pro software and Adobe Illustrator for finishing. I started with the US Bureau of the Census population aggregated at the county level. Next, I computed the shortest distance drive paths from each county seat to the intersections of major highways and the centerline of the eclipse, which I digitized. From this I apply a distance-decay model that assumes a high estimate of 2% visitation from 200 miles away and a low estimate of 0.5% visitation. I apply this model for each county, weighing distance and population counts, and derive these estimates. This and other infographics are at https://www.greatamericaneclipse.com/2024-total-solar-eclipse-over-the-united-states
You've seen maps of watersheds, here's a drive shed map. Imagine someone going to see the 2024 total solar eclipse. What's the shortest drive there? What are the odds of making the drive to see the eclipse? I calculated how many people will drive to the eclipse > greatamericaneclipse.com [OC]
MichaelZeiler OP t1_jdfryvf wrote
Reply to comment by Cloakmyquestions in A unique website dedicated to just 4 minutes and 27 seconds, the maximum duration of the Total Solar Eclipse of April 8, 2024 across North America. Where will YOU be? by MichaelZeiler
Have you seen a total solar eclipse? It’s an event that truly lives up to the hype