[jemada]

G'day Mike,
Good article - lots of information! However, I don't think it does 'the cause' a lot of good when we talk-up partial eclipses to the public. They're OK for the keener astronomers who will always get something out of anything astronomical, but really a partial eclipse is not much of a 'spectacle' - in fact, unless you were told one was occurring you would never know unless it approached totality and caused some obvious reduction in sunlight. Added to this is the fact that you can't really look at it without special filters or a pin-hole camera.
A total eclipse, on the other hand, is something else altogether! It is a truly awesome and unforgettable experience which everyone will appreciate. So maybe we should be encouraging people to travel to see totality. There are some great opportunities in the next few years - 2008 in Russia / Mongolia, 2009 (the big one!) in China & the north-west pacific, and 2012 in north-eastern Australia. So start saving your travel dollars!
Darryl.