Fun with the Total Solar Eclipse

It's almost total solar eclipse go time. If your family is fortunate enough to be within range of observing this event be prepared for one crazy show. However, if you're not then you're still in luck. There are some pretty impressive sites dedicated to bringing up-to-date webcasts and information about this natural phenomenon.

One of my favorite to check out with my kids is the Exploratorium's comprehensive solar eclipse site. The site contains links to all sorts of eclipse goodies. Among the fun to be explored is their eclipse tracker section. This is a great page discussing eclipse chasing and who will see what on June 22nd. There's even a video discussing how it's all done. There's also a section on the how-to's of viewing an eclipse complete with instructions for building a pin-hole projector and a section displaying a world map of future eclipses illustrating the path of eclipses all the way to September 2, 2035...So if you miss this one you can see where you'll need to be to catch the next! A direct link to NASA's eclipse page is there as well so you'll have the best news from the best in the solar business.

According to the Exploratorium, "At sunrise on July 22, 2009, (the evening of July 21 PDT), the moon’s umbra—the cone-shaped part of the moon’s shadow—will fall on India’s Gulf of Khambhat. The shadow will sweep across Asia and the South Pacific before leaving the earth near the Marshall Islands about 3½ hours later. The path of totality will cover a distance of approximately 9,500 miles (15,200 km). The maximum duration of totality is an exceptionally long 6 minutes and 39 seconds, which will come while the shadow is over the Pacific."