Partial Solar Eclipse on 26th January 2009

The first solar eclipse of 2009 will soon be upon us, and the best view for it, from Africa, will at its most southern points. The eclipse will be only partial, and a maximum coverage of about 65% from Cape Town is predicted at 8:15 am. The eclipse will start at about 7 am, and will be over at around 9:30 am. The maximum coverage at Musina will be about 23%. This will be the best solar eclipse visible from South Africa for several years – so don’t miss the opportunity.
A solar eclipse occurs when the moon moves between the Sun and the Earth, and casting a shadow on the Earth. The figure (top right) illustrates such an instance, similar to the one that will occur on the 26th of January 2009. Once every month the Moon's orbit around the Earth takes it to a location between the Earth and Sun (when this happens we observe what is called new moon). The orbit of the Moon is slightly inclined with respect to the Earth's orbit however, leading to its shadow missing the Earth on most of these occasions.
On the occasions where it does happen either a partial, total or annular eclipse will be seen depending on the the location of the observer as well as the relative distance of the moon from Earth. The figure (bottom right) illustrates each of these  possibilities.