What is a Total Solar Eclipse?
An eclipse of the Sun occurs when the orbit of the moon passes in front of the Sun as seen from the Earth. The shadow of the moon follows...
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Astro Trails
Aug 1, 20211 min read
Phases of a Total Solar Eclipse
There are five stages in a total solar eclipse: Partial eclipse begins (1st contact): The Moon becomes visible over the Sun's disk. It...
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Astro Trails
Jul 31, 20211 min read
What is an Annular Solar Eclipse?
When the Moon is at a more distant point of its orbit the Sun is not completely covered and a very small, bright circle or annulus...
268 views
Astro Trails
Jul 30, 20212 min read
Planning to see an Eclipse
Success in observing an eclipse requires a mix of detailed research and, as far as the weather goes, an element of luck! You need to know...
391 views
Astro Trails
Jul 29, 20212 min read
The Eclipse event
The Eclipse observation site On the day of the eclipse you will want to get to your observation site in good time before “first contact”....
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Astro Trails
Jul 27, 20211 min read
When is the next Total Solar Eclipse?
Astro Trails current eclipse projects can be viewed here Exmouth, Australia - Hybrid Solar Eclipse April 2023 Torreon, Mexico and Texas,...
2,392 views
Astro Trails
Dec 1, 20206 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse December 2020, Patagonia, Argentina
The total solar eclipse of 2020 December 14 started at sunrise in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, fortuitously reached its maximum...
48 views
Astro Trails
Jul 1, 20193 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse, July 2019, Bella Vista, Argentina
The centre of the umbra of the 2019 July 2 Total Solar Eclipse first touched the Earth’s surface at 18:02 UTC in the Pacific, north east...
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Astro Trails
Jun 1, 20141 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse, June 1991, Hawaii and Mexico
With a long duration eclipse in prospect and a choice of two attractive locations, what could possibly go wrong? This was our biggest...
41 views
Astro Trails
Jan 1, 20141 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse, July 1990, Finland
This was always going to be a weather dependent eclipse with rapidly changing sunny gaps in large cumulous clouds. We flew in on a...
108 views
Astro Trails
Mar 1, 20131 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse, March 1988, Sumatra and Philippines
There were several destination options for this eclipse and based on weather data we selected a site on Banka Island, off the Indonesian...
26 views
Astro Trails
Jun 1, 20121 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse, June 1983, Java
Anticipating the likely weather conditions was quite an artform in those days, long before any sort of satellite aid. I spent some time...
10 views
Astro Trails
Jul 1, 20111 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse, July 1981, Kazakhstan
Every eclipse has different logistic obstacles and the 1981 event had plenty. As the track ran through the Soviet Union even getting...
21 views
Astro Trails
Feb 1, 20101 min read
Chasing Shadows: Total Solar Eclipse, February 1980, Kenya
I had driven over the road from Mombasa to Malindi some twenty years earlier when Kenya was still a colony and the road had aged no...
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