The total solar eclipse on the 22nd of July 2009 will be the longest of the 21st century. Lasting over six and a half minutes at the maximum duration (in the same Saros as the long 1991 eclipse). Starting in India along the western shore near Surat the path of the shadow heads towards Butan touching the southern tip of Nepal and the northern edge of Bangladesh. The eclipse passes over the Chinese cities of Chengdu, Suining, Chonging, Wuhan, Xiaogan, Hangzhou, and Shanghai by which time the duration of the eclipse is over five minutes of totality. Leaving Shanghai the path continues into the ocean encountering islands such as Toshima and Akusaki south of Japan and eventually the Marshall islands.

The maximum eclipse duration of 6 minutes and 43 seconds occurs far off the coast in the Pacific Ocean.

For those seeking the maximum time in totality the only option is a cruise ship located east and south of Japan. The mobility of a cruise ship to avoid bad weather well in advance will be very useful.

Climate: Late July is in start of the typhoon and rainy season. Because long eclipses such as this one only occur in the tropics, the anticipatedweather is always a gamble. On a good day the sun will shine in the morning and it will rain in the late afternoon. If a storm is settled into the area then the rain and clouds may go on for days. Thus it will be very important to stay tuned to the local weather reports during the time leading up to the eclipse. A more eastern location is recommended (resulting in less totality time) with good mobility being important.

Over land the weather trend is more cloudy than over the sea. The best percentages for cloud cover (the lowest percentage) is found near the end of the path, in the Pacific Ocean (Long: 180 degrees). The only way to observe the eclipse in that location will be by cruise ship or from an airplane. Toward the end of the eclipse path totality is about 4 minutes and the sun low on the horizon.

For more weather information visit Jay Anderson's web site.

Tour groups: many of the tour groups are near full or already wait listed. If you want to see the longest eclipse of the century, you'd best sign on for one of them now!