 Wuwei China (town on central path) |
The next total solar eclipse will occur on the first of August in 2008. Much of the eclipse path crosses areas of the Earth that are not inhabited or are difficult to reach. Starting near the northeastern tip of Canada the path moves northeast into the Arctic Circle over northern Greenland. It then passes over the Arctic Ocean to northern Russia moving south east into Siberia. Novosibirsk is one major city that the path covers before passing over the Altai mountains into China near the Mongolian border. The eclipse path ends in the middle of northern China. | |
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The weather plays an important part in viewing this eclipse. In early August the ice prevents most ships from going into the regions of northern Greenland plus the weather is extremely variable. The only sure thing is to board an aircraft and get above the clouds. (Check out Glenn Schneider's web site for details) Northern Siberia does not present a better weather picture however as the path enters the farming regions surrounding Novosibirsk the climate begins to improve quickly for eclipse chasing. One of the better locations is south of Novosibirsk near the northern edges of the Altai mountain range. The mountains themselves present all sorts of difficulties in regard to climate plus travel conditions. The climate improves along the Chinese-Mongolian border with 50% and better chances however travel can be difficult in that region. As the eclipse path ends in China the cloud cover percentages indicate a rapidly decreasing chance of seeing the eclipse. | |
| Analysis of the eclipse path shows that the best locations for land based observation will be along the Chinese-Mongolian border and south of Novosibirsk, Siberia. | ||
 Photos supplied by Jasmine China Adventure Tours |
2008 Olympics in China and the Eclipse
Official XXIX Olympiad site
The Olympics will be taking place in Beijing, away from the eclipse path. As a result the Olympics should not pose a problem for eclipse chasers traveling to China. Initial research on the web has not found any eclipse and Olympic combination packages available (but I am still looking!) The timing works well since the eclipse will be over before the Olympic crowds are expected to start arriving in force. Tour packages for China for the week following the eclipse are expected to fill up quickly as that will preceed the start of the Olympics. |
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TSE2008 Details
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Eclipse 2008 Tour Links
The following links are to help you along on your own research. They are not endorsements but consist of links found using web search engines and those sent by fellow eclipse chasers and tour companies. When looking for an eclipse group to join carefully consider your own interests and needs in terms of comfort and tour pace. At this time many of these tours are wait list only or have only a few places remaining available. If you want to see the eclipse this summer now is the time to sign up!
Tour operators: Please send URL information to be listed and keep me updated for new tours! Please send your pictures and reports here after the eclipse! There will be a page assembled from all the submissions at this same URL. |
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