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CNN Live At Daybreak

Total Eclipse to Occur in Southern Africa

Aired June 21, 2001 - 08:47   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.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: We're now coming up on prime time viewing for the first total solar eclipse of the millennium.

COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN ANCHOR: But the eclipse is only visible in southern Africa. That's why you need us. So don't worry about a passport; you can watch the eclipse from the comfort of your own home with us.

This morning, we're talking with Kenneth Brecher. He's an astrophysicist with from Boston University, who is on the West Coast.

And CNN science correspondent Ann Kellan is here with us.

We've also got CNN's Charlayne Hunter-Gault on videophone from Zambia, and that's where we're going to start.

Charlayne, describe what you're seeing.

CHARLAYNE HUNTER-GAULT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I have to put these glasses on, but the dark moon has moved into the sun, and I'm seeing a crescent in the sky. The tension is building as people are watching that along with me.

The tension is building in the atmosphere. It's getting a little bit cooler. Around here, the leaves have started to rustle in the trees, but it's not yet started to affect the color of the atmosphere. It's still quite a bright day, although, as I said, with these glasses, the moon has moved into the sun.

There's also a drama going on behind me. I think people are as excited about that as they are about the eclipse. The king of the Ngoni people is going to make an appearance shortly, and as you have been hearing, these are the people who were crossing the Zambezi River, coming from South Africa, just as this eclipse happened in the 1800s. So they're here reenacting this dramatic moment in their history. This king is a descendant of one who was born just after they crossed the river. They have been reenacting aspects of that all day and are now waiting for the king to make his appearance.

Even as I'm speaking now, my arms are starting to get a little bit of a chill, because the temperature is starting to drop slowly.

LIN: Charlayne, stand by there.

Let's go to Kenneth Brecher here.

Kenneth, as you heard Charlayne describing some of the actual changes, could you go into that further, what some of the physiological or atmospheric changes are that are going on right now?

KENNETH BRECHER, BOSTON UNIVERSITY: As the moon moves in front of the sun, of course, you're blotting out a lot of the sun. In the next 20 minutes, you completely blot out the sun.

LIN: I'm sorry, we've lost Kenneth's signal. We're going to try to reestablish that.

But let's go to science correspondent Ann Kellan, who's right here in the studio with us -- Ann.

ANN KELLAN, CNN SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT: We can sort of pick up. As the moon starts blocking the sun, what we are going to be seeing is the edges of the sun. This is exciting for scientists because they can actually study the atmosphere of the sun. They'll take great pictures of that and study -- the big mystery -- why the sun's atmosphere so much hotter than the surface of the sun.

LIN: What do they look for?

(CROSSTALK)

KELLAN: They're looking at the gases. They look to analyze the activity that's going on in the atmosphere, and usually that's -- pardon the pun -- clouded over. The sun's shining brightness usually blocks that. So they're able more to pinpoint the atmosphere. It's exciting because, in Africa, obviously, we're in a place full of ancient superstitions regarding this, so in Zambia, it's a national holiday. In Zimbabwe, some tribes think it's an omen, because there has been unrest there from their ancestors, sending a signal to then that they should go back to peace, that the ancestors are unhappy with them. Eclipse means, actually, abandonment -- it's a Greek word -- so we think that the sun is abandoning the earth.

It's fun to know all these superstitions. Some people still think that pregnant women should go inside because of miscarriages. Of course, we say that's not true today.

LIN: Lots of people believe lots of different things.

MCEDWARDS: A lot of mythology.

KELLAN: There's a lot of myth around eclipses. As this is happening, it's exciting. People are here, and they're watching it. The demons aren't swallowing the sun. Eventually, the sun will come back.

MCEDWARDS: Why don't we bring Charlayne Hunter-Gault back. She's there and she can tell us how people are reacting there now.

Charlayne, go ahead. HUNTER-GAULT: Yes, there doesn't seem to be any demons in the minds of these people, but I was going to add that there's a sun legend that says that the sun was angry, that the moon was a man and the sun was angry with it, and so the sun, just every time it presented itself in its fullness, started cutting away at it, and when it would get finally down to this small portion, the moon would beg the sun not to take any more, because he wanted to save some of himself for his children, and the sun would agree. That's when the moon would become full again.

As I said, no one around here seems to be preoccupied with that mythology. They are very excited about the historical significance to the Ngoni people. There's a real picnic atmosphere here. The children are out of school; they're running around playing. I must say most of them are being very careful not to look directly into the sun. Somehow, the word has gotten out, and most people here don't have glasses. The children -- I saw some with a piece of paper, trying to get that effect by holding the paper up and watching the progression of the sun.

It has moved a bit more now. There's still a bit of a crescent there.

And as I said earlier, the leaves on the bushes where we happen to be standing are starting to tremble a little bit because the temperature is starting to drop. It's not cold, but it is cooler than it was.

LIN: How about animals? Are you seeing any reaction from animals, at this point? They say they hibernate or they go to sleep during an eclipse.

HUNTER-GAULT: Not yet.

LIN: That's true. I've heard that flowers...

HUNTER-GAULT: They don't know it's happening yet, because it's still quite bright.

Carol: We're laughing, Charlayne. I know it's hard to understand.

HUNTER-GAULT: It's still quite bright here. I don't think the animals yet know what's coming. The crocodiles are out here in the Zambezi, just behind me. As I've told you, I can see the mountains in Mozambique. I can see parts of Zimbabwe. And I'm standing in Zambia.

So it's an interesting confluence, and part of the struggle of these people, who are reenacting their history here, is that they had to get across the Zambezi, which is crocodile infested. You may even know of the folks tale here that the sun is swallowed each night by crocodiles and comes out the following morning to make a new appearance.

So people are sort of staying away from the river and just sitting on tops of buses and cars, but as I said, most of them right now are preoccupied with the festivities of the king. There are some maidens who are dancing here now, topless maidens -- I don't think we'll be showing that on CNN. But that is the tradition here, to bear themselves for the king, that everything belongs to the king, so all the dancers, all the pageantry, is in his honor.

He will soon be making an appearance. We're not quite sure just when. I asked a few minutes ago if the king had glasses, and someone said of course he has glasses. So I'm sure he'll be coming out soon to watch this.

I looking up, once again, at the eclipse. There is a little less of the sun to be seen. This, obviously, is going to come off if anybody had any doubts about it. It is really moving. The moon is really moving into the sun. And it's a very exciting moment.

The little children are rushing around, borrowing glasses from people who have them, so that they can get quick glimpses, but there are a lot of people with their backs turned to it. The word, obviously, has gone out, that it's dangerous to look at this raw.

LIN: We're seeing a lot of activity behind you, Charlayne, as we're watching live the first solar eclipse of the millennium.

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