Reuters/Kanarraville, Utah

The sun and moon aligned over the Earth in a rare astronomical event yesterday - an annular eclipse that dimmed the skies over parts of Asia and North America, briefly turning the sun into a blazing ring of fire. As the eclipse reached its peak, a crowd of several thousand viewers gathered in a Utah field took a collective gasp and erupted into applause, cheers and even some howling. The wonder of it, the sheer coincidence that this can happen, that totally amazes me, said Brent Sorensen, a physics professor at Southern Utah University, who brought a half-dozen telescopes to the rural town of Kanarraville for the public to peek through. It never ceases to amaze me. Eclipses of some type occur almost every year, but stargazers have not seen an annular - shaped like a ring -eclipse on US soil since 1994, and the next one is not to occur until 2023. That is because the phenomenon requires a particular set of orbital dynamics, Nasa Space Scientist Jeffrey Newmark said. An annular eclipse occurs when the moons orbit is at its furthest point from the Earth and closer to the much larger sun. That juxtaposition allows the moon to block more than 90% of the suns rays when the two orbs slide into alignment. Its like moving your fist in front of your eyes, Newmark said. You can block out the view of a whole mountain. Its the same kind of effect. The eclipse was first visible over southern Asia and then moved across the Pacific. Traveling on a diagonal path, it later crossed parts of Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico before disappearing in Texas with the sunset. Day did not turn into night. But light faded as the moon slid in front of the sun, much like turning down a dimmer switch, and then slowly returned as the moon moved away. A view of the so-called ring of fire spectacle at the eclipses peak, however, lasted about four minutes, and even then was only visible to viewers positioned along the centerline of the eclipses path. In Utah, the sweet spot for viewing the full eclipse was Kanarraville, a community of just 355 residents about 375km south of Salt Lake City. Accessed by an old two-lane highway, the town has just two businesses - a campground and a nursery - plus a church, town hall and tiny post office. Patrick Wiggins, who is part of the Nasa ambassador outreach programme, was overcome with emotion once the moon slipped into place. Wiggins had previously seen five total solar eclipses, but had never before witnessed an annular eclipse. He wasnt disappointed. Ive been planning this since the 1980s, he said, his voice breaking. Youre seeing the solar system in motion. Robin Kopaunik, 38, of Sandy, Utah, brought four of her children, ages 6 to 16, to see the eclipse in Kanarraville. Its so amazing. I think for them its a chance of a lifetime, said Kopaunik, who home-schools her kids. The best way to learn is to come out and see it. A T-shirt salesman said his customers hailed from as far away as Brazil and Japan. Domestically, Edward and Jean Eadurka drove out from Virginia for the eclipse, after Eds last attempt to see an annular eclipse, in 1994, was thwarted by cloud cover. Jean said her 66-year-old husband was so enamored with the skies that he built himself a personal observatory - a backyard shed with a retractable roof - and often spends the whole night looking through his telescope. Im an astronomy geek, I guess, said the retired court administrator, who once took an Atlantic Ocean cruise to see a solar eclipse. Ive been doing this so long its compulsive. Area officials said thousands more astro-tourists had been expected to attend so-called star parties at other locations across the region, including Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park and Cedar Breaks National Monument. Despite the infrequent nature of an annular eclipse, it was part of the normal astronomical cycle, said Inese Ivans, an assistant professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Utah. Still, she said it was bound to pique curiosities and inspire awe. It reminds us that the Earth is spinning. That everything is constantly in motion, Ivans said. This sort of gives you a chance to step out and remember Oh yeah there (is) a lot of stuff out there that we dont know anything about.

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Rare ‘ring of fire’ solar eclipse dims skies over North America

Cameron shares his creative process

A driven perfectionist with vision and a short fuse for mediocrity, James Cameron continues to set the standard in using technology creatively to tell his stories in film.

It was on the BIO Channel that I discovered Visionaries Inside the Creative Mind the other day, which featured the multiple Oscar-winning director responsible for a handful of the worlds highest grossing films.

As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, Every artist was first an amateur and no great man ever complains of want of opportunities, the Canadian-born Cameron initially had humble beginnings.

When he relocated to California in the 1970s, he studied physics at Fullerton Junior College while working as a machinist and a truck driver. Watching Star Wars in 1977 left an indelible impact and made him want to become a filmmaker.

He later raised money from local dentists to produce a 35mm short film, which got him a job with the famed low budget B-movie filmmaker Roger Corman, where he started off as a production designer, matte artist and visual effects DP.

The year he got his big break was 1984, with The Terminator, which also launched the career of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The well-received sci-fi action film about a killer cyborg was where Cameron utilised his guerrilla filmmaking techniques and creative special effects, making use of whatever was around and keeping to a shoestring budget.

He then moved on to produce bigger budget films like Aliens in 1986.

A technical genius, Cameron also founded the famous visual effects production and technology company, Digital Domain, and continues to push the envelope for technology in filmmaking.

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Aerial talk: Cameron dreams his ideas

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By Susan Andrew on 05/22/2012 05:38 AM

But thats about to change. Last month, UNCA announced a plan to partner with the Astronomy Club of Asheville to build a small observatory on the south-facing hillside at the north end of campus, at the end of Nut Hill Road.

Were so excited about working together, says Judy Beck, a faculty member in UNCAs Department of Physics and the science-licensure coordinator for the universitys Department of Education. Its really going to be a wonderful university-community partnership.

The observatory will be a step up for local astro-enthusiasts, who until now have been operating in backyards and parking lots across town, their pursuit of cosmic happenings hampered by light pollution from a variety of commercial and domestic sources.

The 1,300-square-foot facility will provide a shared home for equipment and programs belonging to both the university and the Astronomy Club, and frequent public events are anticipated.

Our first step is to sit down with curriculum specialists and science teachers to collaborate and design programs that will be most effective for teachers and their students, she says, adding that some programs will be geared to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study for elementary through high school. Their input is critical.

An observatory was originally planned by the Astronomy Club as part of a proposed science center at a new Health Adventure, once slated for a vacant property along Broadway near the university. But when the Health Adventure plans fell through in 2011, the group took its proposal to the university, says club president Bernie Arghiere (pictured here).

This observatory will bring the solar system and the universe a whole lot closer to Asheville and Buncombe residents, Arghiere tells Xpress. There are many wonderful astronomical images on the Internet, but nothing takes the place of observing a planet or other celestial object directly in a telescope eyepiece. Thats the power of an observatory.

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Universal joint: UNCA teams with Astronomy Club to build new observatory