2010 programme

Sun 4th
09:30-10:00

A Tale of Two Chinese Cities

Stephen Russell

National Australian Convention of Amateur Astronomers

A pair of total solar eclipses crossed China in 2008 and 2009. I organised two expeditions with participants from Australia, New Zealand and the US to observe these events. The two cities we were based in -- Jiayuguan and Shanghai -- are a tale of contrasts. One is a bustling new city full of surprises, the other full of history. But both cities had much in common too: great food, and friendly people that made us very welcome. Alas, both expeditions were affected by foreign agents that caused last-minute changes of plans. One was still a success, the other a disappointment. The tale of these two cities will be presented, accompanied by photographs taken by the group members.

Stephen's interest in eclipses dates back to 1976, when he travelled to Bombala, NSW, with his Illawarra Astronomical Society buddies to watch the clouds darken one October afternoon. His first attempt to photograph an eclipse was in Mexico in 1991 and was again thwarted by cloud. Since then, he has travelled to nine other total and annular eclipses around the world and has managed to see and photograph almost all of them. Plans are well underway to travel to the Cook Islands for the 2010 July event.