Greetings Eclipse Chasers -

We've just returned from a site selection and planning trip to China for next year's total solar eclipse. Once again we found these site trips invaluable in fine-tuning our planned itinerary. Although the trip was exhausting (6 hotels, 11 plane flights, 1 train trip, and numerous car/bus/taxi rides packed into 9 days), we learned some critical things about China that require important changes to our 2008 eclipse expedition.

Our original itinerary called for international flights via Beijing. Our Chinese contacts have informed us that the 2008 Summer Olympics are going to have an enormous impact on Beijing including all air connections, hotel rates and local tourism. Even though the eclipse is 8 days before the Olympics, we decided to switch to Shanghai for the hub of our international flights.

We're still working out the details on how this will affect the optional pre and post tours so stay tuned. If you had your heart set on Beijing, it will now be featured on our 2009 eclipse trip.

Xian remains a major part of our 2008 itinerary and it has a lot to offer. Fred visited Xian's famous Terracotta Warriors back in 1997, but photography was forbidden. The Chinese government has continued development of the site to make it a world class archeological treasure. The view of over 8000 soldiers is quite spectacular (see: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracotta_Warriors) and you can now take as many photos (no flash) as you like.

Another perturbation to our original plans is the elimination of the 30-hour train trip from Xian to Hami. After riding the train, we realized how difficult it would be to get a large group on and off the train with all our luggage and equipment. Although the train was certainly an adventure, we think a plane flight from Xian to Dunhuang is a much better option. And waiting for us at Dunhuang is a fabulous hotel with great views of nearby sand dunes. Dunhuang is on the edge of the Gobi desert but the landscape reminded us of Libya in 2006. There are fun shopping and photo opportunities at Dunhuang's outdoor market as well as an archeological museum and the nearby Mogao Grottoes also known as the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas (www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mogao_Caves).

The eclipse site we've selected is in a flat, stoney desert area about 4 hours drive east from Hami. We'll have plenty of time to make the drive on eclipse day because the eclipse doesn't begin until 6:09 pm with totality at 7:08 pm. The duration of totality is a few seconds shy of two minutes and the Sun will be 19° high in the west. For our comfort, the viewing site will have tents for shade, chairs (we're still working on this) as well as snacks and drinks. After fourth contact (9:04 pm) we will make the long drive back to our hotel in Hami.

Although there are many details still to work out, our new itinerary is a big improvement over the original one thanks to insights gained during our recent trip to China. As more information becomes available, we'll post it at www.SpearsTravel.com/astronomy/.

China is a fascinating destination which we're sure you'll enjoy traveling there. See you in the Moon's shadow in 2008!

Gary Spears and Fred Espenak