Hello - ni hao - and goodbye - Zai jian - as I write on Thursday, July 16, 2009 in preparation for my departure tomorrow.

I'll start out my solo trip with a 14-hour flight non-stop to Shanghai, leaving LA Friday, arriving in China on Saturday. 

First astronomical phenomenon of note: crossing the dateline, I gain a full day. So afternoon Friday becomes afternoon Saturday as I travel with the sun, but slower than its 900-mph speed in the 600mph jet. I leave at 130PM, and arrive at 600pm, my entire flight is in daylight. 

Saturday night in Shanghai: I sleep!

Sunday, see the town, towers, eat, shop, etc. Monday, move to the city of Jiaxing about 90km (55 miles) southwest of Shanghai. It's very close to the eclipse centerline. It's also centrally located and on a highway, so I can move quickly towards the coast (Jinshanwei) or the hills NW of Hangzhou if need be to dodge clouds on the day of the eclipse.

My greatest fear is that a typhoon will come inland on E-Day Wednesday July 22 and drown our chances of seeing the details of totality. But the sky will get awesomely dark even under thick clouds.

I'll hire a driver, perhaps in company of other eclipse-chasers from Australia and China. Crossing our fingers and toes for good weather.

One either Tuesday or Thursday, I'll travel to the Qiantang River estuary, home of the largest and highest tidal waves in the world. These are true tidal waves or bores (as they are called), caused by the moon and yet another astronomical phenom I hope to see on my Oriental Astro Adventure. They are expected to be higher than usual because the moon is at perigee, the same reason that causes the eclipse to be the longest one until 2132. 

Stay tuned for some images of the eclipse on celestronlife and links to images on other sites, even if it's cloudy or a typhoon, I'll get pics of the darkness. So under no circumstances will I come away empty-handed!

I'll use two set-ups: Primary will be a vintage C90 G3 (circa late 90s) used with the live-view Canon 450D to help with focusing. It will be on a carbon-fiber Flashpoint tripod with an Orion slo-mo head. Filtration will be 1000 Oaks Type 2+ metal-on-glass and a black polymer filter on the C90's finderscope. Secondary setup will be the Canon 20D on a Slik tripod ball head fitted with an 18-270 zoom lens. This camera will be used for scenics, etc. I can grab the tripod and simply shoot while holding the whole thing, if needed.

Plans are to get some partial phases with both cameras, then concentrate on the overall with the zoom lens, switch to the C90 just before totality, try to catch Bailey's beads, get a bracketed set of shots. Mid-totality a long-exposure shot to capture the earthlit lunar surface - surrounded by the corona! Another bracketed sequence. Meanwhile, I'll pause just to look up and snap a few more shots with the 18-270. Then a final bracketed set around then end of totality. Finally, a few partial phases after totality.

Whew! That'll keep me busy for a few minutes! Good thing totality's almost 6 minutes near Jiaxing. 

The rest of my trip will be hiking up Huangshan, traveling to the old villages of Anhui Province, then my third astro tie-in: Nanjing's Purple Mountain Observatory. I actually have a tie to the PMO that hoes back 30 years. So I can hardly miss the opportunity to see it in person while in China. 

Finally, a possibility to visit Celestron's factory in Suzhou. My final planned astro-tie-in of the trip has yet to be worked out. 

While in China  from July 18-30, I'll occasionally check e-mail at Internet cafes.

I'll also have a cellphone while there, but no laptop, since I'm travelling light (yeah, right -with all that photo gear!)

For a great summary of the eclipse, see this Sky and Telescope web article:
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/highlights/50020537.html


Wishing us all - Zhu ni hao yun, yi hue er jian!

I finally got the pictures done - I took a thousand and have placed about 600-700 online in two albums.

All kinds of interesting stuff - China itself, fellow eclipse chasers, quest for the tidal wave, Purple Mountain Observatory, ancient astro instruments, modern Synta plant (that's where a lot of Celestrons are made), etc.

Check it out!

 
Summer in East Central China and the prospects for the longest total solar eclipse for more than 100 years. An irresistIble trip for the astronomy, the food, people, scenery and Shaoxing wine.

Part I covers Shanghai Days, Jiaxing, Mission to Moganshan, Eclipse Nightfall Jiaxing, OOPS!, Hangzhou West Lake Story, Huangshan Shi orr is it Tunxi? (what's in a name?), Huangshan.

Part II covers Nanjing, Purple Mountain Observatory, On the Road to Suzhou, Synta Factory Suzhou, Zai jian China!
 
http://picasaweb.google.com/ProfessorPhoto/China2009InTheShadowOfTheMoonPartIShanghaiThroughHuangshan#

http://picasaweb.google.com/ProfessorPhoto/China2009InTheShadowOfTheMoonPartIINanjingThroughZaiJian#

Hello, everyone!  

What a trip it was - 14 days, meeting many very nice people, both locals and foreigners, visiting Shanghai and 3 provinces, the Synta telescope factory at Suzhou, Purple Mt. Observatory at Nanjing.

And of course, the total solar eclipse!  

That part of the adventure began with preparations here in the US, resulting in two complete photo rigs and approximately 20 lbs in photo gear. Everything was packed into one Jetpilot wheely bag of medium size plus a smallish Gregory Advent backpack. I had no troubles with the airline's size and weight restrictions.  

At LAX, I met Bob, Mike and Alan, fellow eclipse chasers who were on the same China Eastern flight to Shanghai. We swapped a few stories and plans.  

After a long 13-14 hour flight, I landed at Pudong airport, cashed a traveler's check into Yuan, managed to get my cell phone working and found a hotel. Then I had a hair-raising taxi ride from the airport to the People's Park area in Shanghai. Darting about and eventually ahead of all traffic, my 20-something Chinese driver drove like a bat out of hell, cutting from the right to the left and in between buses, trucks and traffic at about 80mph. He passed all others, including his fellow cabbies. I made it to Hotel 168 in one piece and had a good night's sleep.  

The next day I walked towards the Bund and the river when lo and behold I spot Alan at a sidewalk cafe. Mike joins us and we all spend the rest of the day having (what else?) Coronas, great Chinese food and fun sightseeing in central Shanghai.  That night I meet Australian videographer Anthony and his Chinese girlfriend Carrie. We share a very nice meal and plans at a restaurant off Nanjing Dong Lu. They plan to shoot high-def video of totality happening over iconic Shanghai structures. He's well-equipped, carrying several cameras and tracking mounts for the event.

Monday I move on to Jiaxing via train form the south bus station. My second taxi ride to the station was merely normal and the driver used a GPS to find his way. I check in to the Fortune Hotel, where I meet several other chasers, most notably Ron and his Chinese guide Jing.  

My plan to go mobile for the eclipse has its first setback. The hotel cannot locate an available English speaking driver or cabbie for me.

The second setback is learning that even knowing the language has not helped. Jing has called every number in the hotel's directory of local guides and drivers and she had no success at lining up anyone either.  

Tuesday the three of us try to see if we can move easily via bus and taxis to Moganshan, a high hill and national park maybe 70 miles from Jiaxing in the west and a possible eclipse watching site. It is a lovely park. Yet after 9-1/2 hours round trip, we realize that the possibilities of moving around Jiaxing on E-Day are remote. We are where we are and pray for good weather the next day. The forecast is for rain.  

So far on the trip, the weather had been generally good in the morning, with haze and clouds developing in the afternoons. The first evening in Shanghai featured a magnificent red sunset, while Sunday in the city had been hot and sunny. Moganshan was sunny with some hazy clouds.  

Wednesday dawns foggy. We meet at 645am and plan to scout out a couple of nearby local parks on foot for observing sites. We find a good spot quite nearby. At 8am, heading back to the hotel, the sun peeks out, encouraging us on our way. Alas, soon after we get to the hotel, rain begins, heavy and steady. All we can do is wait in the lobby, watching the torrent come down. As second contact nears, I take most of the gear back up to my tenth floor room and set up a tripod, photographing the city at intervals, watching it get dark and lights come on.  

At totality, I run downstairs and outside. The rain has lightened and the excitement of the nightlike darkness in the midmorning has gripped everyone.  

I run back upstairs. The sky lightens abruptly. Third contact. Ron calls, saying the sun is out. I look down at rooftops seeing people looking up with solar filters and sun goggles. Specular reflections glint off car windows.  

I dash downstairs with one camera, zoom lens and solar filter. At the front door, people are peering at the sky, catching glimpses of the partial eclipse through clouds. I manage to get off two shots before the clouds close again for good and the rain starts again as a sprinkle.  

I join Ron at the park. He is unluckier than I am and has not been able to get a shot of the sun. It refuses to reemerge and after 20 or so minutes, we adandon the attempt.  

Later in the day I take the bus to Hangzhou. At the taxi stand, I spot a man with a solar eclipse t-shirt and ask: "Did you see it?" "Yes, just one minute of totality!" So, there were a few people in the region who got lucky and saw the bad weather eclipse after all.  

I check into a very nice hotel right on West Lake and have a very good dinner of fish with lime grass. Ah, I'm in China and will have a good trip despite the eclipse washout.  

But the day is not over. As I head back to the lake and hotel in evening darkness, my foot is caught by something behind a row of scooters. I'm hurt! I stumble on back to the hotel and ice up what I learn later is a broken foot.  

The rest of the trip? That is many stories. In brief, I continue with my foot up Huangshan and loop back to Shanghai over the next eight days.  

Stay tuned for more on this adventure!

Here are my photo results from Eclipse Day, July 22, 2009, Jiaxing.

Time sequence: Eclipse Nightfall, Jiaxing

Direct link for best view: http://www.shadowcasterpress.com/albums/TSE-China-2009/07222009_Jiaxing.gif

Bleak weather after first contact.
Direct link for best view: http://www.shadowcasterpress.com/albums/TSE-China-2009/1_9674.jpg

After third contact, the partial eclipse comes out to play.
Direct link for best view: http://www.shadowcasterpress.com/albums/TSE-China-2009/2_9702.jpg

Post-totality partial eclipse.
Direct link for best view:
http://www.shadowcasterpress.com/albums/TSE-China-2009/3_9704.jpg