ICYMI: A Lunar Extravaganza

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have one of the most envied jobs in the world – or above it – and on Monday, they'll yet again witness something special from a unique vantage point.

The spacecraft will orbit the Earth as normal, but the six ISS astronauts will get three chances to view the Great American Total Solar Eclipse. And as they view the eclipse, the astronauts will be 250 miles closer to the celestial event than any other living human.

"Because we're going around the Earth every 90 minutes, about the time it takes the sun to cross the U.S., we'll get to see it three times," Randy Bresnik said Friday during a Facebook broadcast. "The first time will be just off the West Coast, we'll actually cross the path of the sun, and we'll have (a partial) eclipse looking up from the space station."

(MORE: Follow Our Eclipse Coverage on Twitter)

During each of the orbits, the astronauts won't only look away from the planet – they'll also be looking down at the shadow as it streaks across Earth's surface, according to CBS News. The ISS won't be on the same path each time, and those varying paths should allow the astronauts to get different views of the special event.

Astronauts have chased the eclipse from orbit for more than half a century, according to Sky and Telescope. Starting with Gemini 12 on Nov. 12, 1966, astronauts have jumped at the chance to view a solar eclipse from space and get the perfect photographs to share with billions of people on Earth.

However, there's still one shot left to get: nobody has ever managed to capture an image of the eclipse as the ISS passes through the umbra, or shadow cast by the moon during totality, Sky and Telescope also said. With the ISS traveling at a speed of 17,000 mph and the umbra whizzing past at more than 1,000 mph, it's a near-impossible photograph to acquire, but they're eager to try yet again this Monday.

"We've got special filters and cameras, and we're ready to go take those pictures and go ahead and share them with you on the ground," Bresnik told Space.com in July.