Will my cell phone service be disrupted?

By John Towfighi | CNN

As darkness envelops millions during Monday’s total solar eclipse, spectators will raise their cell phones to the sky to capture the moment. But could increased cell usage lead to network extinction?

In city centers and rural villages, network providers and officials say they are bracing for a significant increase in traffic on cellular and Wi-Fi networks, as eclipsing floods of tourists put pressure on major providers that keep networks online.

The path of totality – where it is possible to see the moon completely block the face of the sun – will draw thousands of tourists to states from Texas to Maine. Travelers will rely on the network infrastructure of these areas as they use social media, live streams and video calls to commemorate their experience.

The eclipse itself has no effect on wireless networks. But the influx of tourists into cities creates an environment similar to that of a crowded stadium soccer game or concert: The bigger the crowd, the harder it can be to find a cellular connection.

“Any location in the center of the path of totality is going to see a significant increase in cell phone use, particularly during and shortly after totality,” said Caty Pilachowski, professor of astronomy at the University of Indiana in Bloomington. an interview with CNN.

Bloomington, which last experienced a total eclipse in 1869, will be in the path of totality Monday and could welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors.

“An eclipse is very often thought of as a shared activity,” Pilachowski said, noting that people will take photos and videos and share those images with others.

Cellular networks eclipsed?

AT&T expects network traffic to increase as people “grab their devices to capture and share content” throughout the month, according to a company spokesperson.

When the last total solar eclipse crossed America in 2017, AT&T reported network usage spikes of up to 15% around some cell towers in the path of totality. But the company, which experienced an outage affecting millions of people in February, says it is ready for Monday. “The eclipse itself will have no direct operational impact on our wireless network,” an AT&T spokesperson wrote in an email.

And other major providers such as Verizon and T-Mobile are echoing AT&T’s confidence ahead of Monday’s celestial show.

“We do not anticipate any impact from the 2024 solar eclipse on the operation of our network,” Chris Serico, a Verizon spokesperson, told CNN.

Verizon says it has built up its U.S. infrastructure in the path of the eclipse over the past year. Serico said the wireless provider has built and activated 19 new cell sites in New York’s Niagara and Erie counties – locations in the path of totality – since the start of 2023.

In Northeast Ohio, Verizon activated 60 new cell sites in six counties positioned on the path to totality. In the Dallas area, Verizon activated 375 new cell sites.

“In areas where people may gather to attend this event, we are confident that the additional capacity we have built into the network over the past few years will be able to accommodate any increases in data usage,” said Serico.

T-Mobile says it is also deploying additional temporary cell sites that will be on standby in areas with high tourist traffic. These portable sites – cellular on wheels – are called COW for short.

Major mobile providers are also benefiting from 5G innovation since the last eclipse. AT&T has expanded its 5G network to reach more than 295 million people in 24,500 cities and towns across the United States.

“All 5G launches and upgrades have been integrated into our network since the last solar eclipse crossed the United States in 2017,” said Verizon’s Serico.

Preparing for the eclipse

In New York, which will experience its first total eclipse in nearly a century, state and local governments say they have coordinated efforts with wireless service providers for more than a year to prepare for the event.

“Carriers are aware of the influx of people expected in New York for this event and have conducted site audits and evaluated coverage maps,” said Heather Groll, spokeswoman for the Division of Homeland Security and New York State Emergency Services. an email.

Still, officials expect a significant influx of visitors: Buffalo, New York, could see up to 1 million tourists, and Rochester, New York, expects between 300,000 and 500,000, according to Groll. This means that people in these areas could experience standard service interruptions.

“Visitors and New Yorkers should expect that there will be limited coverage in locations where there are large gatherings and plan accordingly,” Groll wrote in an email.

While some cities can expect some disruption, it all depends on how many people are using a tower and the specific capacity of the area, according to Lisa Winter, a program scientist at NASA.

“This can be difficult in a busy area if many people are using the same towers,” Winter said in an email.

Bloomington has coordinated with service providers to deploy COWs in areas with low coverage, Rick Dietz, director of the city’s Department of Computer and Technology Services, said in an email.

He said providers indicate regular calls should go through, but data services may be strained or unavailable.