Dallas mum demands that solar eclipse 2017 be moved to the school holidays

A mother questioned why the great American solar eclipse event could not be held in the school holidays - prompting waves of ridicule from others Facebook users.

The event in question was the Solar Eclipse Party hosted by the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas, scheduled for 21 August when the sun will completely disappear behind the moon.

Unfortunately, children in Dallas will be returning to school on that particular Monday.

"Can it be done on the weekend?" the frustrated mother asked, apparently oblivious to the unchangeable path of celestial objects.

As one user put it: "Did this lady just ask to reschedule the sun?"

That was one of the less mean-spirited responses.

Another said: "I'd like to reschedule the eclipse, too. My cat is getting married that day. We've paid deposits!"

One man wrote: "It's all good, everyone. I just got my time machine fixed. You can reschedule it for whenever, I'll just go see it yesterday."

The 2017 solar eclipse will pass through 14 US states from Oregon to South Carolina on 21 August. It will be the first total solar eclipse to hit the US since 1979.

Although the sun is 400 times the size of the moon, it is also 400 times further away. A total solar eclipse occurs when the two bodies are at the same angular size and the moon passes 'in front' of the sun.

Astronomers say that in about 600 million years, total eclipses will not be possible. This is because the moon is moving gradually away from the Earth and will one day reach a distance at which it can no longer block out the sun entirely.

"About 600 million years from now, Earth will experience the beauty and drama of a total solar eclipse for the last time," said Richard Vondrak, a lunar scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.