Eclipse fans take to the skies
Updated on 10 July 2009
Sun watchers have chartered a special plane to fly across India following the longest solar eclipse in over 200 years.
Travel firm Cox & Kings, along with Space Technology and Eclipse Chasers Athenaeum, all based in Ahmadabad, Gujarat, want to capitalise on the six-minute, 38-second eclipse on July 22, which will not happen again until 2132.
Starting in India, the natural phenomenon will cross into China and then over a few small Japanese islands before heading out into the Pacific Ocean.
The Historic Eclipse Flight, on a Boeing 737, is the first experience of its kind in India and will offer a view of the solar eclipse from over the clouds.
The flight, which will last for three hours, will take off from New Delhi at 4.30pm Indian time on July 22 and wait at Gaya in Bihar until the eclipse starts. The aircraft will intercept the middle of the eclipse shadow at 6.26pm at a height of 41,000 feet.
Cox & Kings vice president Sanjeev Chajjer told Indian website DNA: "This is a unique idea and the packages are in great demand from the younger generation. They are really excited about witnessing the solar eclipse."
Passengers on the "sun side" seats, on the right of the aircraft will have the best view of the eclipse and will be able to photograph the event as it happens.
Other experiences organised by the firms include being able to view the eclipse from the terrace of the Patna planetarium in Bihar and join a team of astronomers in studying the various phases of the eclipse.
The co-ordinator of Eclipse Chasers Athenaeum, Sunita Mukherjee, said: "Most Indians still do not understand the meaning of a solar eclipse. We, as an organisation, are trying to spread awareness. However, people are really excited about flying in the chartered plane. They will be flying parallel to the eclipse. It is an opportunity of a lifetime."
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