On August 1, Chinese people will see the first full solar eclipse this century. The path of the totality will begin in northeastern Xinjiang Autonomous Region and end in the central Henan Province. At the moment of the eclipse, day will turn into night. At the same time, people in Nanjing City of Jiangsu Province will see a partial solar eclipse.

According to Wang Sichao, an expert from the Purple Mountain Observatory, the path of the Moon's umbral shadow will begin in northern Canada, extend across northern Greenland, the Arctic Ocean and central Russia, and end in central China. The partial solar eclipse will be visible in most parts of Asia. Over a period of two hours, the Moon's shadow will fall on 0.4 percent of the earth's surface.

The total solar eclipse in China will begin in the Altay Region of Xinjiang, extend across Yiwu and Balikun in Hami District, then Jiayuguan, Jiuquan and Jinta in Gansu Province, eastward across Wuwei, and gradually end in Xi'an District.

The best observation point in China for this total solar eclipse will be in Yiwu County, 140 km east of Hami in Xinjiang. It will last one minute and 56 seconds, and the moment of mid-eclipse will be at 19:10 PM Beijing time.

(China.org.cn by Wang Wei July 28, 2008)