She and her friends went to Yinchuan, capital of the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, to watch an eclipse last August, and the wonderful experience made her an eclipse chaser.

"It made me forget about urban life. I was struck by the beauty of nature," she said.

"When the sun was blocked and everything fell into darkness, you could hear the dogs barking and feel a sudden fall in temperature. For a while, you thought it was the end of the world. But when the sun came out again, you could feel the sunshine was so beautiful."

To attract astronomy lovers like Yan, many cities labeled themselves as the best spot for watching the eclipse to court the stargazers who chase eclipses across the world.

Places that experience a total eclipse usually see a shocking increase in tourism revenue. For example, a small county in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region gathered nearly 10,000 people in August last year.

Not only the travel industry, but also online vendors have eyed business opportunities in the eclipse.

A Shanghai salesman known as "Fengfeiyu" said his store sells mainly tailor-made T-shirts, badges and mugs, but the eclipse offers a wealth of business opportunities.

He has specially ordered eclipse glasses ranging from low-end to high-end.

"The glasses are selling pretty well, and many people bought a dozen at a time," he said.

(China Daily July 17, 2009)