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www.eclipse-chasers.com Gallery Report Programmer: Bill Kramer Last update: April 17 2015 |
Eclipse Chaser
(noun) - Anyone that wants to see a total solar eclipse. 
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Eclipse Chaser Reports - Jan 2010 ASE
Stefano Rosoni observed the annular eclipse in the Maldives on the island of Hulhule near the international airport just four degrees above the equator. Clouds blocked the view during the annular phase of the eclipse with only glimpses visible through the thinner sections.
Henrik Glintborg from Corona Adventure reports: Our Danish group had a very successful eclipse, observed from a mountain (about 6500 feet over sea level) overlooking Lake Nakuru in Kenya with thousands of pink flamingos. During annularity the sun was a bit obscured for a few minutes, which allowed us to observe the eclipse without any protection - just perfect for some very nice eclipse pictures with clouds adding a very dramatic - and very beautiful! - effect!
Terry Cuttle of Brisbane Australia reports: Brilliantly clear skies for the ASE observed from the Point Lenana summit of Mt Kenya at 4,985m. Reports indicated cloud and at times rain and snow on the summit of Mt Kenya during the three days preceding the ASE. However on the pre dawn final ascent to the summit, the sky was brilliantly clear and dark (background sky brightness 21.7mag/sq arc sec). Sunrise at 06:30 from the summit was stunning with the sun rising through a surrounding cloud layer that appeared to be at about 3,000m. The sky above remained completely cloud free and crystal clear for the duration of the ASE. The clarity was like the view from an aircraft without the intervening window and movement. About 50 people were at the summit for the ASE with perhaps half that there especially for the eclipse, many of those being first timers. An incredible location to experience an ASE only 17km from the equator, at -3 deg C (plus significant wind chill) surrounded by the peaks and glaciers of Mt Kenya. Summit day was exhausting with a 21km trek which included an 800m vertical ascent and 1,700m descent, but absolutely worth the effort. It was clear from the view from the summit that there was cloud over much of Kenya at eclipse time especially to the east.
Stephan Heinsius reports: I observed the annular solar eclipse on 15th January 2010 on Ellaidhoo (Maldives). Clouds were moving in from the east during annularity. The last 4 minutes of annularity were lost, but the others could be experienced with increased beauty. The eclipse was filtered by the clouds and many people were happy to see the ring they'd otherwise not have seen.
Michael Gill reports: I observed the annular eclipse from the only resort on the small (approx. 1.2km x 0.5km) island of Meerufenfushi in the North Male Atoll, Republic of Maldives. I set up my tripod and C90 telescope at 4.4548 N 73.7154 E on the island's western side to avoid problems with breezes and waited out a long 2hr 5m interval between first and second contacts. Indeed, the whole event lasted over 4 hours, combination of the latitude of the observing site and the slow motion of the Moon around apogee.
A small crowd of multi-national holiday makers and resort staff gathered around me, some with (considerable) prior knowledge of the event (it seems that someone's eclipse outreach efforts made a difference); others knew very little about the eclipse or astronomy but were delighted with views of the spectacle that I and a French guest at the resort observing with me were able to provide them with.
Prior to annularity there were occasional cloud interruptions, but happily the whole of annularity was seen without problems.
Annular Time: 10m 49s
Links to external websites
IOTA Northern Limit
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