YESTERDAY'S TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN WAS THE SUBJECT OF MORE SCIENTIFIC STUDY THAN ANY PREVIOUS DISAPPEARANCE OF THE SUN BEHIND THE MOON.MOST OF THE SCIENTIFIC ACTIVITY TOOK PLACE IN CANADA AND THE NORTH-EASTERN CORNER OF THE UNITED STATES.

THE PATH OF TOTALITY STARTED AT JAPAN, TRAVELLED ACROSS THE PACIFIC TO ALASKA, AND THEN DOWN OVER CANADA TO THE NORTHEASTERN TIP OF THE U.S.UNTIL IT DISAPPEARED IN MID-ATLANTIC.THE BAND OF TOTALITY WAS 60 MILES WIDE AND ON ALL ITS SIDES A PARTIAL ECLIPSE WAS VISIBLE FOR HUNDREDS OF MILES.

DIFFERENT STAGES OF THE ECLIPSE ARE SHOWN ON FILM TAKEN IN NEW YORK CITY AND GRAND MERE, CANADA.

THE NEW MOON GRADUALLY COVERED THE FIERY DISC OF THE SUN UNTIL THE EARTH BELOW WAS DARKENED TO A DEEP TWILIGHT.THE SHADOW SWEPT ACROSS THE AMERICAN CONTINENT AT 2,800 MILES, (4,500 KILOMETRES) AN HOUR.

PROMINENT AMONG THE ECLIPSE OBSERVERS WAS ASTRONAUT CDR SCOTT CARPENTER WHO SAT IN A DC-8 AIRCRAFT WITH AN ASTRONOMER WHO POINTED OUT VARIOUS SCIENTIFIC DETAILS WHICH ASTRONAUTS MAY ENCOUNTER IN SPACE FLIGHTS.

THE PERIOD OF THE ECLIPSE WAS A GOOD TIME FOR POINTING OUT SOME OF THESE PHENOMENA, SUCH AS THE SO-CALLED AIRGLOW OF ZODIACAL LIGHT.OTHER SCIENTISTS ALSO USED JET AIRCRAFT TO RACE THE SHADOW AS LONG AS POSSIBLE TO EXTEND THE TIME OF OBSERVATION.