Webpage dated 25 July 2008

Total Solar Eclipse of 1 August 2008
Observing from the Cambridge Bay area of Nunavut
at ~ 0924 UTC (3:24 AM MDT local time)

     This webpage offers information and files on observing the Total Solar Eclipse (TSE) of 1 August 2008 from the Cambridge Bay area of Nunavut.  While the prospects of a good observation are much lower than the Hami area of China, the Cambridge Bay area offers probably the best prospects in the Canadian Arctic and is easily accessible from Edmonton, Alberta via First Air or Canadian North.
     The eclipse track passes just to the east of Cambridge Bay, which will experience an eclipse magnitude of 0.9984, while Ovayok (Mount Pelly) which is easily accessible by road from Cambridge Bay (18 kms) will experience an eclipse magnitude of 0.9995.  The Northern Limit of the eclipse track is just a few kilometers of relatively easily walking from the SE tip of Ovayok.
     Weather is always a critical factor in eclipse chasing; topography becomes an especially critical factor for observing from Cambridge Bay where the eclipse will be low on the horizon.  If traveling to the Cambridge Bay area for the eclipse, please travel safely (see Nunavut Parks for safety tips).

• CURRENT WEATHER
  • NOAA Aviation Weather Centre
  • Cambridge Bay - Clear Sky Chart     
  • Cambridge Bay - Environment Canada
     
• Cambridge Bay's Eclipse Day Activities  (161 Kb) [right-click to download] (courtesy of Vicki Aitaok)
• Eclipse Handout  (403 Kb) [right-click to download] (courtesy of Karen Finstad)
   
• NASA Eclipse Bulletin: Total Solar Eclipse 1 August 2008  (11.6 Mb) [right-click to download]
• Maps
  + Track of the 1 August 2008 Total Solar Eclipse
  + Eclipse track through Nunavut
  + Eclipse track through the Arctic Archipelago
• Weather Prospects
  + map of average August cloud cover along track
  + graph of average August cloud cover along track
  + Weather Commentary by Jay Anderson
• Google Earth track of TSE 2008 in .kmz file (credit: Xavier M. Jubier) near Cambridge Bay
• NASA Eclipse website of TSE 2008
  + Google Map of TSE 2008 (from NASA Eclipse website)
  + NASA Eclipse Website (Homepage)
• Starry Night simulation of TSE 2008 from Ovayok (Mount Pelly)   .snf Download
• Cambridge Bay Pictures
  + Cambridge Bay & Ovayok (Mount Pelly) area (Google Earth image)
     The Northern Limit of the eclipse track is shown in pink.  Ovayok is accessible
     by an 18 km road from Cambridge Bay.
  + view towards Ovayok from road to Cambridge Bay
  + View ESE towards Long Lake and the Northern Limit of the eclipse track (Google Earth image)
     The Northern Limit of the eclipse track is shown in pink, the topographical
     elevation is exaggerated.
  + Ovayok and Long Lake detailed imagery (Google Earth image)
     Following the path marked on the image, from the road access point near Ovayok to
     to the Northern Limit of the eclipse track is approximately 7.5 kilometers, and
     from the road access point to the SE tip of Long Lake is approximately 16 kilometers.
  + Looking approximately east from top of Ovayok towards the eclipse track.
     Notice the generally flat terrain.
  + a general photo album of Cambridge Bay and area
   
• Tourism Information may be obtained by contacting:

Territorially:  Nunavut Parks

Locally:  Arctic Coast Visitors Centre (Cambridge Bay)
* Tel: (867) 983-2842 * Fax: (867) 983-2302
I recommend that you talk to Vicki Aitaok, Manager, and
the other friendly and helpful folks at the Arctic Coast Visitors Centre!

'"Eclipse Predictions by Fred Espenak, NASA's GSFC