The 25 November 2030 Total Solar Eclipse
in New South Wales (NSW)

Overview of the total eclipse path (grey shading) and some main roads in northwestern NSW. Click on the image for a bigger version.
On this map the red contours are the Sun's altitude at maximum eclipse, and the dashed blue lines are partial eclipse % obscurations. See the following maps for detail of the total eclipse. Adelaide has the closest international airport to this part of the eclipse path. Broken Hill is about 500km driving distance from Adelaide and Packsaddle is about 700km driving distance from Adelaide. For comparison Sydney is 1150km driving distance from Broken Hill. There are domestic airline flights Broken Hill <--> Adelaide and Broken Hill <--> Sydney.
Note: Broken Hill's clocks will be UT+10h30m on eclipse day (South Australia time zone). The rest of NSW will be UT+11h.



The total eclipse path through northwest NSW in more detail. There are three views of this map area; click on the preview for a bigger version. All three views show:

• The total eclipse path as a grey band across the map, with a purple Centre Line and two purple boundaries (North limit and South limit). You will need to be inside this grey band to see a Total Solar Eclipse.
  If you're less than two kilometres outside the purple boundaries you will see a "Beaded" eclipse.
  Everywhere else on the maps sees a Partial eclipse.
• Towns within and near the total eclipse are labelled, for easier comparison of these maps with your other maps.
  
• The roads which feature in the duration graphs (below) are highlighted and labelled. Dark pink for sealed roads, dark orange for unsealed roads.
  
• All maps and eclipse times have been corrected for lunar and local topography, and assume Delta-T = 70.2 seconds. We've also suppressed known errors from Google Maps and Open Street Map.
  

The differences between each view are:

• First view shows total eclipse duration contours (in seconds) as dashed purple lines, and partial eclipse obscuration percentages as dashed blue lines.
  
• Second view show the (local) starting time of the total eclipse, in hh:mm:ss, using contours at 10 second intervals.
  
• Third view show the (local) ending time of the total eclipse using contours at 10 second intervals.
  

We tried showing all of this information combined onto single maps but it was too hard to read!

Closer views of the near-misses:

• Packsaddle  
  
  
• Wanaaring, just inside the eclipse path...  

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These road graphs plot driving distance in kilometres along a road -vs- the duration in seconds of total solar eclipse.
The durations were calculated for hundreds of points along each road, and an identifiable location (usually a road intersection) is chosen as zero km. Reset your vehicle's trip meter at this location and start driving to your chosen spot. No need for a GPS or navigation app. The graphs include road intersections and other identifiable features as a distance check.
All of the durations have been corrected for lunar and local topography, and assume Delta-T = 70.2 seconds. Driving distances between points were also corrected for any changes in height.

Some of these roads are unsealed and you should check the weather forecasts and the current Outback road conditions before travelling on them. You will be prosecuted & fined $$ if you drive on an officially closed road. You may also become trapped out there and require a very expensive rescue.
Also note some car rental companies prohibit driving their vehicles on any unsealed roads at any time.

Beware -- all of these roads are crossed by numerous intermittent creeks and floodways; and have low places that may collect water. Check the depth of any water over the roadway before driving through it. A shallow puddle may hide a very deep pothole, deep mud, missing pieces of road, or debris that punctures tyres or breaks your car. Flowing water more than 0.2 metre deep can push your car off the road. Four Wheel Drive or All Wheel Drive does not make you invincible.

Also beware of wandering sheep & cattle, and suicidally stupid wildlife, on these unfenced roads.

If you're not an experienced traveller then we highly recommend watching Visit Corner Country's excellent series of videos about driving safely in the Australian Outback.

Silver City Highway (B79)

From Broken Hill to Tibooburra this is a sealed road with a single lane in each direction. Although it's a big improvement on the original unsealed road, it may occasionally be closed by flood waters or by recent deposits of thick mud in floodways.

Driving north from Packsaddle roadhouse to Tibooburra (click for a larger image).


Driving south from Tibooburra to Packsaddle roadhouse (click for a larger image).

The Cut Line + Tibooburra Road

This is an unsealed route from Tibooburra to Wanaaring. Passable (with care) to all vehicles when conditions are dry; although a four wheel drive or all wheel drive is advised. Also beware of several sharp bends en route. May become impassable to any wheeled vehicle for weeks after rain.

Driving east from Tibooburra to Wanaaring (click for a larger image).


Driving west from Wanaaring to Tibooburra (click for a larger image).


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7 day weather forecasts for New South Wales, and for Tibooburra.
High resolution weather satellite images.

Cloud forecast maps and meteograms from Cloud Free Night, Meteologix and Skippy Sky.

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• Road conditions and traffic restrictions for New South Wales.
  
  
• Weather radars homepage, high resolution weather satellite images and weather forecasts.
  
  
• Fuel prices and locations at Petrol Spy, or use their phone apps.
  
  
• Interactive map of RV Dump Points (for your caravan / motorhome toilet waste).
  
  
• Some tourism websites in New South Wales:
  • New South Wales tourism.
    
  • Corner Country NSW website (Tibooburra, Milparinka, Packsaddle, and the Silver City Highway).
    
  • Bourke Shire council website (Wanaaring).
    
  • Broken Hill city council website.
    
  • Central Darling Shire visitor information
    
• Aussie Towns contains descriptions of hundreds of Australian towns and localities.
  
  

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