A lot of people fell for an April Fool's joke related to the upcoming total solar eclipse that will be visible in a large part of the United States next Monday.
The confusion appeared to be linked to a post on the site Eleven Warriors.
It stated: "The National Weather Service, in conjunction with the Weather Channel, has announced the postponement of the upcoming solar eclipse scheduled for 04/09/24 due to projected inclimate and excessive cloudy weather patterns indicated for the midwestern and Southwestern regions of the United States."
The post went on to say, "The eclipse will be rescheduled for another day in which viewing conditions are found to be more favorable."
Of course, there is no way to postpone a celestial event but that didn't stop people from trying to confirm the fake information.
On Tuesday morning, Google Trends, which tracks searches on the web browser, said searches for "solar eclipse postponed" had jumped around 650% in the past day.
The search was especially popular in West Virginia. It was also trending in nearly 20 other states, including Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas.
The solar eclipse, when the moon's shadow blots out the sun, will pass over much of the United States on in the afternoon of April 8, meaning millions will be gazing into the sky if the weather permits.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration is warning of potential delays and disruptions to air traffic during the historic solar eclipse as throngs of people travel to locations in the path of totality.
The Canadian region of Niagara is bracing for an influx of up to 1 million visitors prompting a state of emergency ahead of the gathering.
Prisoners in New York are suing for the right to view the event, saying a planned lockdown during the eclipse violates their constitutional rights.
