Followed by the lunar eclipse on July 07th 2009, the most powerful eclipse for this year happens on 22nd July 2009. This eclipse is called as total solar eclipse and it is sixth total solar eclipse for this decade. A total eclipse occurs when the Sun is completely hidden by the Moon. The intensely bright disk of the Sun is replaced by the dark silhouette of the Moon, and the much fainter ring called corona is visible. This eclipse is a 6-minute plus eclipse—the longest of the 21st century.

total_solar_eclipse

The eclipse is seen initially in India and it traverses through Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and China and across the Pacific Ocean. Hence the major part of the eclipse occurs at eastern Asia, Indonesia and Pacific Ocean.

It is safe to observe the total phase of a solar eclipse directly with the unaided eye, binoculars or a telescope, when the sun is completely covered by the Moo. In fact this cannot be viewed thorough the filters as the light will be very dim. At this point of total solar eclipse the sun will be completely hidden and just a ring will visible which is nothing but the corona of the sun.

diamond_ring

When the shrinking visible part of the photosphere becomes very small, Baily’s beads will occur. It has been named so as the image formed because of the sun rays looks like beads. This is caused by the sunlight still being able to reach Earth through lunar valleys, but no longer where mountains are present. After this begins the Totality with the Diamond Ring Effect, which emits the last bright flash of sunlight.
Occurrences

The following are few of the places where the total solar eclipse on 22nd July 2009 can be experienced. All timings mentioned here are local timings of that place.

Location

Start Time

End Time

Maximum Eclipse at

India

05:54

07:18:11

06:21:00

Bangladesh

05:59:16

08:04:39

06:58:14

Japan

09:55:39

12:30:19

11:13:00

Singapore

08:40:52

09:43:56

09:11:26

Indonesia

16:20:18

18:50:14

17:40:54

China

08:33:45

10:54:09

09:41:59
Photography

Photographing such total solar eclipse is possible with fairly common film camera equipment. In order for the disk of the sun/moon to be easily visible, a fairly high magnification telephoto lens is needed (70-200 mm for a 35 mm camera), and for the disk to fill most of the frame, a longer lens is needed (over 500 mm). For those who are interested in photographing the total solar eclipse, here are few tips to make your photographing fruitful.
Precautions

Viewing the Sun after totality can be dangerous. Hence do not view the sun after eclipse as it emits highly hazardous rays.

While in Photographing, do take proper precautions to safeguard your eyes. The sun when viewed through the view finder of the camera might affect the retina of the eyes, which might even be a cause for losing our eyes. One of the most widely available filters for safe solar viewing is shade number 14 welder’s glass, which can be obtained from welding supply outlets.
Live Streaming/Webcasts On Internet

You can follow the live broadcast of the total solar eclipse on 22nd July 2009 here. For more information read our article How To Watch July 22, 2009 Total Solar Eclipse Live On Web
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“Voices That Care” is a 1991 song written by David Foster, Linda Thompson and Peter Cetera and recorded by a supergroup of popular musicians, entertainers and athletes. The single and supporting documentary music video was intended to help boost the morale of U.S. troops involved in Operation Desert Storm, as well as supporting the International Red Cross organization.

SYDNEY (AFP) - An Australian woman described as the world’s oldest Internet blogger has died at the age of 108 after posting a final message about singing “a happy song” in her nursing home.

Olive Riley “passed away peacefully on July 12 and will be mourned by thousands of Internet friends and hundreds of descendants and other relatives,” a note on her website said.

Riley had posted more than 70 entries on her blog since February last year, sharing her thoughts on modern life and her experiences living through the entire 20th century.

Born on October 20 1899, she lived through two world wars and raised three children while doing various jobs, including ranch cook and barmaid.

In her final post on June 26, she wrote: “I can’t believe I’ve been here in this nursing home for more than a week.

“How the days have flown, even though I’ve been in bed most of the time. I still feel weak, and can’t shake off that bad cough.

“Penny, who’s in the next bed to mine, had a visit one day this week from her daughter, who’s a professional singer. Guess what happened! She and I sang a happy song, as I do every day, and before long we were joined by several nurses, who sang along too. It was quite a concert!”

Riley’s blog, initially on www.allaboutolive.com.au and more recently at http://worldsoldestblogger.blogspot.com, was “mind-blowing to her,” her great grandson Darren Stone said.

“She had people communicating with her from as far away as Russia and America on a continual basis, not just once in a while,” he told the national AAP news agency.

“She enjoyed the notoriety — it kept her mind fresh.”

Olympic China

China aftershock death toll rises to six

BEIJING: The death toll from a strong aftershock in southwestern China rose to six on Monday, with four more deaths reported, state-run media said.

The four newly reported deaths from Sunday’s aftershock came in the city of Hanzhong in northwestern China’s Shaanxi province, Xinhua news agency said.

Another 20 people were injured there, Hanzhong major Hu Runze said, adding to hundreds of injured already reported elsewhere.

The aftershock was centred in quake-ravaged Sichuan province and had a magnitude of 6.4 on the Richter scale, an official with the Sichuan Earthquake Bureau told AFP.

It was the strongest of thousands of aftershocks in the region since an 8.0-magnitude quake on May 12 left about 86,000 people dead or missing, the official said.

The US Geological Survey, however, put the quake magnitude at 5.8.

The four deaths add to two reported previously, including one death in Sichuan’s Guangyuan city, Xinhua reported a local official as saying.

The official had also said 262 were injured in Guangyuan.

Longnan city in northwest China’s Gansu Province also reported one person killed by stones falling from a mountain, and 109 injuries, 15 of them serious.

In Qingchuan County, the epicentre of the aftershock, about 359 people were reported injured, Xinhua said.

The quake sent people fleeing from buildings across southwestern China and was felt as far away as the capital Beijing. - AFP/ac

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