An
"annular eclipse" has being viewed across a swathe of the Earth
stretching across the Pacific from Asia to the western US. The
eclipse occurs when the Moon is at its farthest from the Earth and does not
block out the Sun completely. Millions of people witnessed the resulting
"ring of fire" phenomenon. The eclipse passed almost directly over
Tokyo before sweeping just below Alaska's Aleutian islands and making landfall
in the western US. In Japan "eclipse tours" were held at schools and
parks, on pleasure boats and even private airplanes. Similar events were also
held in China and Taiwan. TV in Tokyo broadcast the event live. Light rain fell
on Tokyo as the eclipse began, but the clouds thinned as it reached its peak,
providing near perfect conditions. "It was a very mysterious sight - I've
never seen anything like it," said Kaori Sasaki, who joined a crowd in
central Tokyo.
Japanese electronics giant
Panasonic sent an expedition to the top of Mount Fuji to film the eclipse using
solar-powered equipment. "Our goal is to broadcast the world's most
beautiful annular eclipse from the highest mountain in Japan," the company
said. However, in Hong Kong sky watchers were not so lucky. Hundreds had
gathered along the Kowloon waterfront where the Space Museum had set up
solar-filtered telescopes, but heavy clouds obstructed the view.
In the US,
viewing parties were reported in Reno, Nevada; Oakland, California, and
elsewhere. Hundreds also travelled to the Petroglyph National Monument in
Albuquerque, New Mexico, which was hailed as one of the best vantage points. "That's
got to be the prettiest thing I've ever seen," said Brent Veltri of
Salida, Colorado. The eclipse was fully visible across a 240 to 300km-wide
swathe but partial views could be seen across much of east Asia and North
America. The Slooh series of space telescopes has
been covering the event on its website.
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