The total solar eclipse Wednesday can be observed via free webcasts. Australians should rise early to share the experience real time with those camping out in Cairns, Queensland. Viewers from other time zones should adjust your clocks accordingly.

Total Solar Eclipse in Cairns: Where to Watch Online, 12 Things Observers Need to Know

The total solar eclipse at its peak will last 2mins 4secs for observers near Oak Beach, just south of Port Douglas. This peak is expected to begin within the 6:37am to 6:39am window. Web broadcasts will start as early as 5am.

Other parts of Australia will experience only a partial solar eclipse.

So, where can you watch webcasts of the total solar eclipse?

UStream.TV

Bookmark or go to this URL for a UStream webcast of the solar eclipse. Broadcast will begin at 5am AEST on November 14 (Wednesday).

Slooh.com

Slooh.com has sent a crew in Cairns to film the eclipse and stream the video to the eclipse observers online. You can watch Slooh's pre-eclipse show now. (See one of the prep videos below.) Other videos can be viewed here.

From an astronomer's point of view

Even for scientists who have observed numerous eclipses in their career are still thrilled to anticipate Wednesday's total solar eclipse. Take for instance Jay Pasachoff of Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts.

Speaking to Space.com, Pasachoff said:

"It is very wonderful to be uncovering part of the mysteries about the sun's atmosphere and magnetic field, and to be outdoors surrounded by the darkening of a solar eclipse is a primarily fabulous experience."

Twitter upates on total solar eclipse

Enhance your solar eclipse experience by sharing eclipse photos via Twitter. Some users have already started tweeting about the cosmic event. Read sample tweets below:

Weather is looking GREAT for #solareclipse (exc maybe SEQ) - here's the rain forecast for 4am-10am Wed 14 Nov - Queensland Online ‏@QLDOnline

For all non-Australians: #Slooh space camera will broadcast live feed of total #solareclipse from Cairns: http://goo.gl/pXgZf - ESA Science ‏@esascience

Brisbane Planetarium and other well know science stores are all out of stock for #solareclipse glasses. - Josh Bavas ‏@joshbavas

#SolarEclipse tomorrow! #Melbourne, eclipse starts 7.16am, mid 8.06am & ends 9am. Fingers crossed for a clear morning http://ow.ly/feDk4 - @scienceworks_mv

Also read:

Total Solar Eclipse 2012 in Australia: Eye Safety Tips - Forget Floppy Disks, Get Welder's Glass

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