3月19日上午，青岛、广州、沈阳、银川等地的天文爱好者观测到了日偏食天象。据国家天文台专家称，此次日偏食持续了1个半小时，西部地区最大食分可达0.7以上，即太阳直径的十分之七被月球遮掩。由于天气原因，北京居民与这次天象奇观失之交臂。

Photo taken at 9:26 am Monday shows the partial solar eclipse observed in Yinchuan, northwest China's Yinxia Hui Autonomous Regions, March 19, 2007. Many parts of China experienced a partial solar eclipse on Monday morning, lasting around one and a half hours. [Xinhua]

Many parts of China experienced apartial solar eclipseon Monday morning, lasting around one and a half hours, according to the China National Astronomical Observatory.

In Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province, the partial eclipse occurred from 9:25 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Monday, in which the moon covered about 20 percent of the sun, according to Wang Sichao, researcher with Zijinshan Astronomical Observatory under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Sky gazers in northeastern Jilin, central Henan, eastern Shandong Provinces and northwestern Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region also witnessed the partial eclipse.

In western China, 70 percent of the sun was eclipsed but in Beijing, however, cloudy and drizzly weather deprived enthusiasts of the chance of seeing their first partial eclipse since 1997.

"Those who missed this one will have opportunities to seetotal solar eclipseson August 1, 2008 and July 22, 2009, and a partial eclipse on January 15, 2010," Wang said.

During the last century (1901- 1999), 78 partial and 71 total solar eclipses have been reported worldwide.

Chinese astronomers are believed to have been the first to record solar eclipses more than 3,000 years ago.

（Xinhua） 

Vocabulary:    

partial solar eclipse：日偏食

total solar eclipse: 日全食

（英语点津陈蓓编辑）