An eclipse of the sun can only take place at new moon, and only if the moon passes between the sun and earth. Under these conditions, the moon's shadow sweeps across a portion of earth's surface and an eclipse of the sun is seen from that region. Unfortunately, this takes place from Baffin Island in northern Canada. More populated locations further south in North America will see a smaller fraction of the sun's face covered by the Moon. The eclipse magnitude varies across the USA from over 60 percent in the northeastern to under 20 percent in the far southwest.
Eclipse magnitude is simply the percent of the sun's diameter covered by the moon.
Extreme care must be taken when viewing the eclipse. The eclipse itself is no more dangerous to view than the sun is on any other day. The only difference is that human curiosity impels some people to stare directly at the sun during an eclipse and this is can cause permanent damage to your eyesight. Use an approved solar filter designed specifically for sun viewing. Early in the morning of November 18th the Leonid meteors will enter the atmosphere over North America.