9/11 Memorial Ceremony: Where to Watch Live, What Time Does It Start?

Today (September 11, 2019) marks 18 years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks and people across America will be honoring the 2,983 men, women and children that were killed in the attacks at the World Trade Center site, the Pentagon and aboard United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

A commemoration ceremony will be taking place at the 9/11 Memorial plaza at the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan, starting at 8:40 a.m. EST. According to the organization's website, during the ceremony, the 9/11 Memorial & Museum will be accessible to only the family members of the victims of the 2001 and 1993 World Trade Center attacks. The memorial will reopen to the public at 3 p.m. EST but the museum will be closed all day.

The names of the men, women and children killed as a result of the 9/11 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombings will be read aloud at the official anniversary ceremony. A complete list of the names to be read during the ceremony can be found on the 9/11 Memorial website.

An honor guard, made up of individuals representing the FDNY, NYPD and Port Authority Police, will also participate in the ceremony.

The program of events is as follows:

• 8:46 a.m.: One minute of silence to mark when the hijackers deliberately crashed American Airlines Flight 11 into floors 93 through 99 of the North Tower (1 WTC)
• 9:03 a.m.: One minute of silence to mark when hijackers deliberately crashed United Airlines Flight 175 into floors 77 through 85 of the South Tower (2 WTC)
• 9:37 a.m.: One minute of silence to mark when hijackers deliberately crashed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon, near Washington, D.C.
• 9:59 a.m.: One minute of silence to mark when the South Tower (2 WTC) collapsed
• 10:03 a.m.: One minute of silence to mark when, after learning of the other attacks, passengers on United Airlines Flight 93 launched a counterattack on hijackers aboard their plane to try to seize control of the aircraft. In response, the hijackers crashed the plane into an empty field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania
• 10:28 a.m.: One minute of silence to mark when the North Tower (1 WTC) collapsed

The ceremony can be watched live on the 9/11 Memorial Facebook page or on 911memorial.org/live. Broadcasters such as CBS and ABC will be showing the ceremony live.

In the evening, the public art piece Tribute in Light will light up the New York skies. The lights will be turned on today at sunset (7:12 p.m. EST) and will fade away at dawn tomorrow.

For parents and teachers who are worried about explaining the events of 9/11 to children, there is a resource guide to help: September 11 Classroom Activities, Lesson Plan, Worksheets, How to Talk to Children about Terrorism.