The Path of Totality

The Moons shadow initially encounters the surface of the

Earth at sunrise in the South Atlantic Ocean about 400 kilometers southeast of Uruguay at 10:36 Universal Time. For the
first two hours, the shadow sweeps across open sea with no
major landfall. Greatest eclipse occurs at 12:03:41 UT. At
this instant, the duration of totality nears its maximum of 4 minutes 56 seconds as the axis of the
Moons shadow passes closest to the center of

FRED ESPENAK

he solstice on June 21, 2001, has an added bonus:

the Moon will pass between the Earth and the Sun and
produce the first total solar eclipse of the new millennium. Since millions of people witnessed totality for
the first time during last Augusts eclipse across Europe, the
next occurrence is eagerly anticipated. This time, the Moons
shadow wont pass over regions as populous as Munich and
Budapest, but the eclipse will last longer. For eclipse chasers
determined to see the Sun disappear again, subequatorial
Africa will be the place to be.

By Fred Espenak and Jay Anderson

Earth. Unfortunately, this moment occurs at sea some 1,100
km west of Africa.
A half hour later (12:36 UT), the umbral shadow finally
reaches the South Atlantic coastline of the Dark Continent.
Angola serves as the first host to the shadow as it carves out a
190-km-wide path through the heart of the civil-war-torn
nation. The duration of totality exceeds 412 minutes along the
coast with the Sun nearly 50 above the horizon. Although
the weather prospects are excellent, the countrys political
strife makes it a dangerous place for eclipse observers.
As the umbra traverses Angola and beyond, the path width,
duration of totality, and Suns altitude slowly wane as the

African Adventure:
pa

60%

UT

Greatest
eclipse
duration

eg
a
M se b
p
i
l
Ec

SO

RC

F
E:

RE

ES

AK

curvature of the Earth carries the projected eclipse path farther

from the Moon. As a result, the tapering shadow cone will
present a progressively narrower cross section to Earths surface
along the path of totality. Nevertheless, the 2001 eclipse lasts
more than twice as long as the 1999 eclipse at all corresponding
positions along the path.
By 12:57 UT, the shadow reaches the western border of
Zambia, where totality lasts a maximum of 4 minutes 6 seconds. The umbras path now travels to the east-southeast as it
heads toward the nations capital, Lusaka. Lying about 40 km
south of the centerline, Lusaka enjoys a total eclipse lasting a
respectable 3 minutes 14 seconds. Farther to the north, the
centerline duration is 3 minutes 35 seconds with the Sun 31
above the horizon. Quickly crossing the Zambezi River, the
path continues into Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The centerline runs near the border between these two nations for several
hundred kilometers. Zimbabwes capital city of Harare lies just
100 km south of the path, so its citizens will witness a partial

40%

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12:30

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12:00 UT

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11:00 UT

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TOTA LIT Y

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T h e N e w M i l l e n n i u m s F i r s t To t a l i t y

PE

If you want to stand on solid ground and watch the total solar eclipse
on June 21, 2001, youll have to go to Africa, as it is the only landmass the eclipse path will cross.

32

September 2000 Sky & Telescope

2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.

Coauthor Fred Espenak had clear skies and a

grand view of the August 11, 1999, total solar
eclipse from Lake Hazar, Turkey. His composite
view of images taken every 5 minutes includes
a self-portrait during totality.

2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.

Sky & Telescope September 2000

33

Sun 95% ecli

Luanda

Kitwe

Duration of totality 4:19

Suns altitude 44

M O Z A M Tete
B

UT

UE

li
ec
u m UT
xim 0
M a 13:0

Harare

Quelimane

0
:2
13

UT

Beira

ZIMBABWE

ps
e

UT
30
12:

A N G O L A

Lusaka

3:09
23

IQ

UT
:10
13

Kabwe

ZAMBIA

psed

Blantyre

3:38

Centerline

Huambo
S u n 9 5 % e c li

Ndola

P A T H O F T O T A L I T Y 32

UT

40
12:

Lobito
Benguela

4:01
39

:50
12

4:34
48

MALAW I

psed

Victoria Falls

eclipse with 97.8 percent of the Sun covered. As the umbra

leaves Zimbabwe, it lies wholly within Mozambique for 1 minute
before its leading edge reaches the shore of the Indian Ocean
(13:20 UT). At nearly the same time, its northern edge skirts
the southern border of Malawi. The centerline duration is
now 3 minutes 9 seconds as the Suns altitude drops to 23.
Leaving the continent, the umbra races across the Mozambique Channel before making one last major landfall through
southern Madagascar. Here, the eclipse occurs quite late in the
day with the Sun 12 or less above the western horizon. The
central duration now stands at 2 minutes 35 seconds (13:28
UT) as the shadows long elliptical projection stretches across
the entire east-west breadth of the island. Continuing into the
Indian Ocean, the umbra leaves Earths surface along the sunset terminator at 13:32 UT. During 2 hours 54 minutes the
Moons umbra will swipe across approximately 12,000 km,
covering 0.3 percent of Earths surface area.

Fred Espenak witnessed totality on August 11, 1999, from near

Elazig , Turkey. He obtained this shot automatically using a programmable camera set up at his hotel. At the time of this image, the photographer was 30 kilometers away at Lake Hazar.
34

September 2000 Sky & Telescope

Weather Prospects and Observing Sites

June is the middle of the dry season in southern Africa, which
bodes well for would-be eclipse observers. The best weather
prospects can be found in Angola and western Zambia,
though the ongoing civil war in the former eliminates it from
reasonable consideration. In western Zambia, reaching the
eclipse path requires travel to a remote part of the country.
The highway west from Lusaka is rough and slow but under
repair. It leaves the path about 200 km west of the capital so
that travel to eclipse sites will require a turn northward along
roads in worse condition. Kafue National Park offers an attractive location, but accommodations are very limited and
travel requires a four-wheel-drive vehicle.
From Lusaka eastward the eclipse path begins to run into
cloudier conditions, building gradually to a maximum over
coastal Mozambique. The track crosses the Zambezi River and
then follows a course through Zimbabwe along the heights of
the escarpment that marks the southern edge of the river valley. Since the valley is the main conduit for moisture from the
Mozambique Channel to the interior, the area sees a fairly
abrupt increase in the frequency of cloudy skies. This transition is quite distinct in the diagram at the bottom of the opposite page, compiled from satellite data.
Lusaka itself lies within the path of totality and provides
the most-convenient and least-expensive access to the centerline. The Great North Road out of the capital is a fine highway in good repair that reaches the middle of the eclipse track
about 40 km north of the city. The rolling landscape is made
up of mixed farmland and bush, providing plenty of locations

2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.

13

ends

2:35
11

Sun 95% eclipsed

Nor

Fianarantsoa

Kasempa

13

UT

Tlagnaro

that are suitable for stopping to observe the eclipse.

Cloudiness in Zambia and Zimbabwe has a rather peculiar
character. The easterly trade winds are topped by a sharp temperature inversion that prevents low-level moisture from mixing throughout the atmosphere. Under the inversion, moisture collects and forms a shallow layer of clouds that is usually
fairly transparent to the Sun. The clouds have a distinct diurnal variation. On days that are inclined to be cloudy, morning
skies usually dawn clear, turning to a broken layer of clouds
about three hours later. The cloud cover breaks up a little in
the afternoon and dissipates gradually overnight. The convective nature of these clouds should be a blessing regarding the
eclipse: the cooling associated with the oncoming shadow
should cause them to dissipate.
The best ground-measured statistic for eclipse chasers is the
percent of daylight hours with sunshine. In Angola and western Zambia values ranging from 80 to 90 percent are typical.
This falls to a little under 80 percent at Lusaka. Zimbabwe has
a highly variable cloud cover, and the percent of possible sunshine depends on whether the eclipse is viewed from the
heights of the escarpment (75 percent) or in the valley of the
Zambezi, where the centerline crosses into Mozambique south
of Tete (60 percent). Mobility will be an asset for this eclipse,
but only Zambia offers major roads that run approximately
parallel to the eclipse path.
Of course there are days with heavier cloud cover in which
the Sun is not visible at all. Zimbabwe is a little more likely than
eastern Zambia to experience thick clouds and rain. Mozambique suffers the biggest penalty, for the track crosses onto the
coastal lowlands, where moisture from the ocean has ready
access to the land. Monthly precipitation is more than 10
100%

the

rn

lim

it o

Frequency of Cloudiness Along Eclipse Track

OF THE

13 S

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32

Old Mkushi

Kabwe

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Chisamba

15 S

Mumbwa

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Rufunsa
Ngwerere

Lusaka
lips

ZA MB I A
100 kilometers
Sun
95
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sed

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Chibwe

clipse
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Maxim
UT
13:10

sunset

Toliara

Antsirabe

ASCAR

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Morombe

Chingola Mufulira95% un DEM. REP.

ecl

27E

Chilanga
Kafue
Mazabuka
Magoye

Chirundu

16 S

Ibwe Munyama
Lake
Kariba

28E

Z I MBA BW E
29E

Miami

SOURCE: FRED ESPENAK

UT

SOURCE: FRED ESPENAK

:30

M A DAG

Eclipse

Sun 95% eclipsed

Logistics and climate combine to make eastern Zambia the top-pick

destination for an eclipse expedition. Farther east are the cloudy
skies of coastal Africa, and to the west lies war-torn Angola.

times that in Zambia, and possible sunshine drops to between

55 and 70 percent.
Over Madagascar, cloudiness is divided sharply by the highlands that run the length of the island. On the western side,
Toliara (or Tular) receives 86 percent of the possible sunshine, a value that is competitive with the best that Zambia
offers. On the east side Tlagnaro (Fort Dauphin) receives 66
percent of the possible sunshine.
From western Madagascar, the centerline is best reached via
a long difficult road to the small coastal community of Morombe. The town of Ambahikily is about one hour farther to
the northeast. This village lies near the centerline but offers
few amenities. The terrain is flat but covered in a mixture of
small fields and large tracts of scrub dryland forest. The Suns
low altitude during totality demands an open horizon, but
this will be difficult to find, especially for a large group. In
contrast, Morombe has a gorgeous beach that offers a clear
view of the Sun across the Mozambique Channel. The penalty
for choosing Morombe over the centerline near Ambahikily is
a loss of about 17 seconds of totality.
The eclipse path through eastern Madagascar passes over
the highway joining Toliara with the capital, Antananarivo.
The region is surrounded by mountains to the east and west

Eastern
Madagascar

Western
Madagascar

Eastern
Mozambique

Western
Mozambique

Zimbabwe

Lusaka to
Zimbabwe border

20%

Kafue Park
to Lusaka

40%

Central Angola
to Kafue Park

60%

Coastal
Angola

Frequency

80%

0%
Overcast
Broken to overcast

Broken
Scattered to broken

Scattered
Clear

This graph shows the frequency of various cloud-cover categories

along the eclipse track during the past two years. The track is divided
into geographical areas that have similar cloud climatologies. Scattered cloudiness covers 10 to 50 percent of the sky and broken
cloudiness ranges from 50 to 90 percent. A successful view of the
eclipse should be possible with clear or scattered clouds, with progressively more difficulty as cloudiness increases. Scattered-to-broken conditions imply that a modest ability to relocate is likely to result in a successful view of the eclipse. Jay Anderson collected these
data by using satellite images of the eclipse area during June and
July of 1998 and 1999.

2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.

Sky & Telescope September 2000

35

FRED ESPENAK

After 2 minutes 5 seconds of totality, the Sun peeks out from behind the Moon on August 11, 1999, as seen from Lake Hazar, Turkey.

and so enjoys a slightly sunnier climate than the Indian Ocean

coast. While weather prospects are not as favorable as western
Madagascar, better highway access should make it a popular
eclipse site.

Path of tota
li t y

Return to Africa?
Looking even further ahead, the next total solar eclipse occurs
18 months later on December 4, 2002. Interestingly, the path of
totality parallels part of the 2001 path through southern Africa
but extends farther and ends at sunset in southern Australia.
Unfortunately, the path is narrower, the duration is shorter, and
perhaps most important December is rainy in southern Africa,
bringing with it considerable cloud cover. If you savor an
African eclipse, 2001 is the space odyssey of choice.
Astronomer Fred Espenak (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) is
the coauthor of Totality: Eclipses of the Sun (Oxford University
Press). Meteorologist Jay Anderson (Environment Canada) has written about eclipse weather prospects since 1979 and has journeyed to
confirm his predictions in person.

70 %
60 %
50 %
40 %
30 %
20 %
10 %
5%
0%

Percentage of Average
Cloud Cover
This map by Jay Anderson shows the average amount of cloud cover
for the month of June as determined from his analysis of 13 years of
satellite imagery. He notes that the data are free of most of the biases
that accompany measurements of clouds from the ground.

NASAs 2001 Solar-Eclipse Bulletin

36

red Espenak and Jay Anderson have

prepared a NASA bulletin for the
2001 total solar eclipse. The 88-page
publication contains detailed predictions,
tables, maps, and weather prospects. You
can obtain single copies at no cost by
sending a 9-by-12-inch self-addressed envelope stamped with sufficient postage for

11 ounces (310 grams) and with 2001

printed in the lower-left corner. Use stamps
only, since cash or checks cannot be accepted. Requesters from outside the United States and Canada should send 10 international postal coupons. Mail requests
to Espenak at Code 693, NASA/Goddard
Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771.

September 2000 Sky & Telescope

2000 Sky Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.

The 2001 bulletin is also available via the

World Wide Web at http://umbra.nascom.
nasa.gov/eclipse/010621/rp.html. Additional information, updates, maps, and diagrams are available at NASAs official total
solar eclipse Web site for the 2001 event:
http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/
TSE2001/TSE2001.html.