Just like almost everyone else in the United States, Google is amped about the total solar eclipse sweeping the nation on Monday.
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An adorable new doodle reimagines the solar eclipse not as the result of the orbital motion of heavenly bodies, but as the product of a game between two aliens tossing the moon in front of the sun.。

It's pretty cute.。

It's pretty cute. 。

SEE ALSO:A space nerd's guide to the Great American Eclipse。

If you click on the doodle, Google takes you to a series of vertical videos (hello, Snapchat clone) that explain exactly what lunar and solar eclipses are and why they happen at all.。Mashable Light SpeedWant more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?Mashable Light SpeedWant more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. 。

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This particular total solar eclipse is special for a number of reasons. 。

Via Giphy。

First, this will be the first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in 99 years when starts in Oregon and ends in South Carolina later today. The eclipse is also unique in that millions of people around the country will get the chance to see the cosmic event.。

Usually solar eclipses only pass over sparsely populated parts of the world (because most of the world is sparsely populated). 。

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While the total eclipse will only be seen by people in a 70-mile-wide path between Oregon and South Carolina, everyone in North America will have the chance to see a partial eclipse.
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Just be sure to use your solar eclipse glasses or an indirect viewer to check out the big cosmic show!

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Just be sure to use your solar eclipse glasses or an indirect viewer to check out the big cosmic show!。

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