Watch July 22, 2009 Total Solar Eclipse Live Online WebCast

On Wednesday July 22, 2009 we are going to witness one of the most power solar eclipse of this year. Earlier this month we wrote an article about this solar eclipse that provide indepth analysis of the solar eclipse – time of occurrences at various parts of the world, path of the solar eclipse and precautions to be taken.

The Exploratorium’s eclipse expedition team has chased its fair share of total solar eclipses—seven so far—Webcasting these magnificent events to people around the world. While we won’t be traveling to this year’s eclipse, we plan to cover the total solar eclipse in July 2010. For this year, we’re providing links to other eclipse Web sites, and we’ll direct you to live Webcasts or broadcasts of the eclipse. We'll keep adding information, so check back here as the date approaches. On this site, you can watch archived Webcasts of previous eclipses, learn how to view an eclipse, read feature stories about eclipses, and much more!

The path of totality

At sunrise on July 22, 2009, (the evening of July 21 PDT), the moon’s umbra—the cone-shaped part of the moon’s shadow—will fall on India’s Gulf of Khambhat. The shadow will sweep across Asia and the South Pacific before leaving the earth near the Marshall Islands about 3½ hours later. The path of totality will cover a distance of approximately 9,500 miles (15,200 km). The maximum duration of totality is an exceptionally long 6 minutes and 39 seconds, which will come while the shadow is over the Pacific.

Webcasts

Grupo Saros (China - Wuhan) http://www.saros.org/index.html

Eclipse City (China - Shanghai) http://www.eclipse-tv.com/

Live! Eclipse 2009 (Japan) http://www.live-eclipse.org/

SEMS-Sun Earth Moon Systems (University of North Dakota): http://sems1.cs.und.edu/~sems/index.php

For more information

NASA Eclipse Website: http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse.html

Mr. Eclipse: http://www.mreclipse.com/MrEclipse.html

Eclipse Chaser: http://www.eclipsechaser.com/

World Map of Future Eclipses: http://www.exploratorium.edu/eclipse/future.html

Date and Time Help: http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

Eclipse Chasers

Features Exploratorium senior physicist Paul Doherty, the happy veteran of many eclipse chases, and showcases the 1900 eclipse photography technique of Charles Burckhalter, the first director of the Chabot Space and Science Center.

Railway Budget 2009 | List of new trains

List of new trains

• Non-stop AC sleeper Turanto trains to be introduced
  
  
• Superfast parcel express trains on pilot basis
  
  
• Ladies special trains in Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata
  
  
• AC Yuva trains @ Rs. 299 and Rs. 339
  
  
• 12 new point-to-point AC sleeper trains
  
  
• Turant trains to connect major Metrosc

Railway Budget 2009 Highlights

# Tatkal fares reduced from Rs. 150 to Rs. 100

# No change in passenger fare charges in any class

# Tatkal scheme: Booking time reduced from five to two days

# Two dedicated freight corridors planned

# No hike in freight charges

# 1000 MW power plant at Jharkhand- Bengal border

# Kolkata metro to be expanded

# Cold storage facilities for farmers to store products

# AC Yuva trains @ Rs. 299 and Rs. 339

# 12 new point-to-point AC sleeper trains

# Turant trains to connect major Metros

# Non-stop AC sleeper Turant trains to be introduced

# Superfast parcel express trains on pilot basis

# To develop Railway medical colleges

# Ladies special trains in Chennai, Kolkata and Delhi

# Madrassa students included in concession scheme

# Doctor aboard Shatabdi

# Izzat: Uniformly priced monthly season ticket @ Rs. 25 up to 100 km for poor proposed

# Railway Recruitment Board policies to be reviewed

# Integrated security system for 130 vulnerable stations

# Optical Fibre Cable usage for Railways proposed

# Higher education scholarship for girls

# New coach factory with state-of-art facility to come up Kachrapara, West Bengal

# 3000 more unreserved ticketing terminals

# SC/ST backlog in Railway Recruitment Board jobs to be filled up

# Colleges on Railway land through public-private partnership

# SMS updates on wait-listed passengers

# Ramps, special bogies for aged and handicapped

# Mega logistic hubs in Eastern and Western corridors

# Railways to lease out land for commercial purposes

# Railways hospitals to be upgraded

# Commando battalion to be increased for higher security

# Women commando to be inducted

# Security top agenda for Railways

# Mobile ticketing vans to be introduced for selling tickets

# High capacity air-conditioned double-decker coaches for intercity travel

# Infotainment in Shatabdi and Rajdhani trains

# Computer ticketing from post offices

# Environment friendly toilets in trains

# Automatic vending machines to be set up

# Special facilities for physically challenged

# At least one doctor in long-distance trains

# Janata Khana will be ensured

# 309 stations of 370 identified for development

# 49 stations of religious importance to be upgraded

# Priority to catering, food and cleanliness

# Punctuality is priority

# Multi-functional complexes on stations

# Priority for food and water on trains

# To develop 50 stations with world class facilities

# Economic viability of projects not key concern

# India wants better connectivity

# Priority on passenger amenities

# Railways trying to keep up with change

# Committed to the downtrodden

# Committed to development of nation: Mamata

# Mamata begins Budget speech

# Stock market awaits cues from Railway Budget

# Lalu Prasad also reaches Parliament

# Mamata Banerjee arrives in Parliament

# This is Mamata Banerjee's third Railway Budget


# Mamata Banerjee leaves for Parliament




Read full Coverage :

Railway Budget 2009

Indian Railway Budget 2009 Live Streaming Online

Railway Budget 2009 Live

Railway Budget to focus on better passenger amenities today

Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee is scheduled to present the Railway Budget at 12 pm in Parliament today amid much speculation. Banerjee's previous stint saw finances in a mess and she must be careful not to reverse Lalu Prasad Yadav's smart ways of raising passenger revenue and should not let the Railways slip into departmentalism.

CNBC-TV18’s Economic Policy Editor Vivian Fernandes reports that the Railway Minister is likely to focus on better passenger amenities like sanitation and hygienic food, issues that were ignored by her predecessor. She may also promise quick completion of the East-West dedicated freight corridor and the extension of the Western corridor from Sonnagar to Dankuni.

Here is a verbatim transcript of Vivian Fernandes’ comments on CNBC-TV18. Also watch the accompanying video.

Mamata Banerjee has said that passenger amenities are going to be the focus and so one could expect emphasize on cleanliness, hygienic food aspects which were ignored by predecessor Lalu Prasad Yadav with his drive for profits.

She said that the East-West dedicated freight corridor is gong to be completed expeditiously. One can expect her to announce an extension of the Eastern corridor that currently terminates at Sonnagar on the Bihar West Bengal Border to Dankuni near Kolkata,

Mamata Banerjee might be in Railway Bhavan but her eyes are set on righteous building Chief Ministership of West Bengal and Lalu Yadav has shown it is possible to cater to ones political constituency without hurting the railways and Mamata Banerjee can do likewise if she does not reverse some of the smart but not so face forward decisions taken by Lalu Prasad Yadav to enhance passenger revenues.

She will also have to show leadership and she will have to make sure that the railways do not slip in to departmentalism and that the stretched targets set by Lalu are maintained. Already the railways have scaled back the 910 million tonne set by Lalu in the Interim Budget for freight loading to 875 million tonnes. In her previous stint as Railway Minister in October 1999 and March 2001, Mamata Banerjee left railway finances in a mess. Fully Rs 98 out of every Rs 100 earned, went into expenses despite unpaid interest on government’s preference capital; it was the worst operating ratio since 1951. This time one expects Mamata Bangerjee to do better.


Railway Budget 2009

Indian Railway Budget 2009 Highlights