Live broadcast of solar eclipse planned

by: Makoto Mitsui / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

The first total solar eclipse that can be seen from Japan in 46 years will occur on July 22. It will only be visible from such southern islands as Amami-Oshima, but efforts are under way to broadcast the celestial spectacle to other parts of the nation.

A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and the Earth, blocking almost all of the sun from view. When envisioning a total solar eclipse, most people think first of the solar corona, a halolike ring that can be seen around the sun at such times. According to Prof. Masami Okyudo of Wakayama University, however, "the true beauty of a total solar eclipse lies in the changes it causes in the entire landscape."

When the sky darkens during a total solar eclipse, the horizon takes on a red glow like that of a sunset. Observers sometimes can see stars and birds return to their nests, mistakenly believing that night has fallen.

"I want to show people [not just the covered sun] but the entire sky during a total solar eclipse," Okyudo said. To that end, he and others are planning to relay video of the eclipse to dome-shaped screens in other parts of Japan.

First, the entire sky over Amami-Oshima island will be filmed with a high-precision video camera equipped with a fish-eye lens. The eclipse will be visible on the island at about 11 a.m.

The high-precision camera offers resolution four times higher than ordinary high-definition video cameras. It will record 30 frames a second--each frame containing 8 million pixels--and the video will be transmitted to viewing facilities via fiber-optic cables.

There, the video will be projected through another fish-eye lens onto the ceiling of the domes.

Because this method can display high-definition images of the entire sky, it will create a highly realistic environment--as if audience members were seeing the eclipse in person. They will be able to watch the shadow of the moon move in from the west and to see the corona and the diamond ring effect, which occurs when the sun is just disappearing or emerging from behind the moon. The sun looks like a diamond attached to the ring of the corona at that moment, hence the name.

Audiences also will see stars in the sky, and perhaps animals surprised by the eclipse.

Okyudo and his team have done similar dome shows in the past using still images. They began preparing for the video presentation about 1-1/2 years ago, utilizing data-compression technologies to efficiently transmit the images and adopting the latest high-definition video technologies.

Video of the eclipse will be shown on dome-shaped screens at Keihanna Plaza in Seikacho, Kyoto Prefecture, ABC Hall in Osaka and Tsukuba Expo Center in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture. Details are posted on the Web site of the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (www.nict.go.jp).

These facilities can only accommodate a limited number of people, but Live!Universe, a nonprofit organization chaired by Okyudo, also will broadcast live footage of the eclipse on the Internet from four locations--Amami-Oshima island, the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, a suburb of Shanghai and Kiribati in the Pacific Ocean. Details are posted at www.live-eclipse.org.

Comparing the progress of the eclipse from the four different locations will entertain the viewers.

Comprising researchers and fans of solar eclipses, Live!Universe began airing solar eclipses in 1997. July 22 will mark their 16th broadcast.

Members of another project also are attempting to transmit high-definition images of the solar eclipse--in their case from a remote island where Internet access is not available.

Masafumi Oe, assistant professor of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, and his team will air scenes of the eclipse from Iwoto island, about 1,200 kilometers from central Tokyo, using a high-speed Internet satellite named Kizuna. The satellite will make it possible to transmit images as clear as those sent via fiber optics.

Oe's team is aiming to transmit highly realistic images of both the sun and the surrounding landscape.

The video will be sent to science museums and other facilities, where attendees will be able to see footage of both the total eclipse from Iwoto and of the partial eclipse that will be visible around the country. Events will also be held to explain the mechanics of solar eclipses.

The July 22 eclipse has attracted international attention for its length--it will last for as long as 6 minutes 44 seconds, making it one of the longest solar eclipses of the 21st century.

The next total solar eclipse visible from Japan after that will occur 26 years from now, in 2035. Even those who cannot see the eclipse as it happens can watch the fascinating images sent from the southern islands.