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CNN Live At Daybreak

South Africans Prepare to View Solar Eclipse

Aired June 21, 2001 - 07:09   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN ANCHOR: Now on to the celestial event of the day: the new millennium's first total eclipse of the sun. However, we are not in a position to witness it here. That honor goes to Africa, as we hear from our science correspondent, Ann Kellan.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANN KELLAN, CNN SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When such a powerful force as our sun suddenly disappears, people can't help but notice.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's fantastic. Absolutely superb setting for watching the eclipse. It is brilliant.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's beautiful. It's the most beautiful sight I ever seen in my life.

FRED ESPENAK, NASA: You're literally swept from daylight into this twilight in a matter of 10 or 20 seconds. And it's very dramatic. It's very obvious when the total eclipse begins.

KELLAN: Today it happens again: a total solar eclipse. The moon will pass between the Earth and sun, casting a shadow on part of the Earth, blocking the sun's rays. You have to be in the right place to get the full effect: not visible in North America, Asia or Europe. This time, if you live in Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Madagascar, you have the front-row seat.

Totality will start about 12:03 Greenwich Mean Time and will last about 4 1/2 minutes.

ESPENAK: I think it's the most beautiful thing in nature. It's also very valuable scientifically because it give scientists an opportunity to study the corona.

KELLAN: The corona is the sun's atmosphere. And with the sun blocked, scientists can get a good look at it. One particular mystery is why this halo surrounding the sun is so much hotter than its surface.

ESPENAK: That halo is filled with streamers and intricate details that follow the magnetic fields of the sun. And the corona is always different at each eclipse. KELLAN (on camera): Looking directly at the sun with your naked eye before or after the sun is totally blocked can cause serious damage to your retina, even blindness. That's why the Angolan government spent $3 million to hand out protective glasses like this. Or you can use a No. 14 welder's glass to look at the sun. Or you can punch a hole in a box, aim the hole at the sun and watch the reflection on a white piece of paper on the other side.

(voice-over): These days, it's a tourist event.

ESPENAK: Everybody should make an effort to see a total eclipse at least once in their life.

KELLAN: If you miss it this time, the next total solar eclipse will occur in December 2002.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KELLAN: So in about an hour and a half from now, maybe an hour and fifteen minutes, Angola will start getting the partial solar eclipse. The sun will start being blocked and it will go into phases. You -- because we're not going to be able to see it from North America, you'll be able to log on to various Web sites.

We were personally having trouble getting onto Exploratorium.com. If you have a high-speed Internet connection, you might try to get there. The Exploratorium will be doing live Webcasts. CNN.com will also be able to provide some kind of link to it as well.

But what is so exciting is once it starts moving across, this is probably one of the longest total blockage that we'll be able to see. It should last about four minutes.

Now, if you feel a little left out here, you -- there is an event -- you can check out Mars tonight. Apparently, Mars is closest to Earth than it's been in 12 years. And if you want to take a look at Mars -- let's see if we can take a look here -- no, can't get it -- but you'll have to take a look yourself. It's low on the horizon tonight. It will be after 10:00 if you want to take a good look. It should be a gold-orange look low on the horizon tonight.

But in a little while, in about an hour, we're going to start seeing that eclipse. It's going to start covering the sun. And by about 9:11 Eastern time, we'll see a total eclipse. And you can check it out right here -- back to you, Colleen.

MCEDWARDS: All right, thanks very much, Ann.

Well, let's go now to someone who's in a good position to witness this eclipse. Our own Charlayne Hunter-Gault is in Southern Africa, where the eclipse will first strike land. She joins us now by videophone from Luangwa, Zambia -- Charlayne.

CHARLAYNE HUNTER-GAULT, CNN JOHANNESBURG BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, we're here where we can see Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique all in one place. We've chosen this spot because this is where one tribe that was coming out of South Africa at the time came across. And the sun disappeared. And they thought it some kind of sign that maybe something was going wrong. But we're going to be here seeing this tribe, the Ngoni people reenact that situation that took place in the 1800s.

And a lot of people from all over the world have also chosen this spot along with local Zambians. Many of the young people here don't have glasses because they've run out. So they're experimenting right now with candy wrappers, hoping that they won't actually use those when the eclipse finally does, in fact, happen. But many people do have their glasses.

And the excitement is building. It's like a picnic atmosphere. But, as I said, people have come from all over the world to watch from this particular vantage point, as have we -- Colleen.

MCEDWARDS: All right. CNN's Charlayne...

HUNTER-GAULT: We'll be back.

MCEDWARDS: Thanks. Charlayne Hunter-Gault, thanks very much for that. And, of course, we'll go back to Charlayne. We've got lots of coverage for you as this eclipse takes place. So keep it right here.

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