LIVE! UNIVERSE, a Tokyo-based nonprofit organization chaired by Masami Okyudo, will broadcast the total solar eclipse (*1) that can be observed in East Asia and the Pacific area on July 22 via the Internet.

The total solar eclipse will be broadcast from a suburb of Shanghai in China, Nakanoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, and the Republic of Kiribati to the audience worldwide under the project “LIVE! ECLIPSE 2009.” The live broadcast can be viewed on the following Website for free of charge.

http://www.live-eclipse.org/

LIVE! ECLIPSE 2009 is one of the major projects in Japan to celebrate the International Year of Astronomy 2009.

The characteristics of the coming total solar eclipse

The coming eclipse will begin in India. The moon shadow will pass some Southeast Asian countries including Nepal and then major cities along the Chang Jiang river in China such as Chongqing, Wuhan and Shanghai.

Next, the eclipse can be observed from the Satsunan Islands in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan, where it will overshadow the southern edge of Tanegashima, the Tokara Islands and the northern part of Amami Oshima. After that, the eclipse of the sun will come to Iwo Jima and Micronesian countries like Kiribati before sunset.

This time, the total eclipse will be the longest in the 21st century (*2). At a certain point on the Pacific Ocean, it will last for six minutes and 44 seconds, according to the National Astronomical Observatory in Japan. And the Tokara Islands is one of few land areas where the eclipse can be observed for more than six minutes.

The Internet broadcast in LIVE! ECLIPSE 2009

LIVE! UNIVERSE will report the total solar eclipse via the Internet from the following locations.
1. Jiaxing City in Zhejiang Province, China (located in the southwest of Shanghai)
2. Nakanoshima, Toshima-mura, Kagoshima Prefecture in Japan (the Tokara Islands, from Tokara Nakanoshima Observatory)
3. Amami City in Kagoshima Prefecture (the northern part of Amami Oshima)
4. Marakei Atoll in the Republic of Kiribati

Viewers will be able to switch the locations at any time during the broadcast, which will air from midnight to four o’clock (GMT) on July 22. The eclipse will be broadcast using Adobe Systems Inc’s Flash Video and Microsoft Corp’s Silverlight 3. Technical details will be presented in future news releases and on their home page.

“We have traveled to various places, from Iceland to Antarctica, to bring solar eclipses to people around the world,” Okyudo said. “And, finally, we will have a total solar eclipse in our home country. We have been forging close ties with residents in the Tokara Islands and Amami Oshima to prepare for this event. I hope you will fully enjoy watching the eclipse, which will last for six minutes.”