The 3.6 magnitude star Beta Virginis will be occulted by asteroid (124) Alkeste on 2003 June 24.
The path of the occultation crosses Australia from just south of Carnarvon on the coast of Western Australia, on to Adelaide, then across Victoria about one-half path width north of Melbourne.  Across the Tasman Sea the path crosses the South Island of New Zealand a little north of Christchurch.

The magnitude of the star makes this a rare, naked eye event.  However it would be better observed through binoculars or a small telescope, especially for timing purposes.  The asteroid will be moving fairly quickly, so any occultation will last at most just under 4 seconds.  Even so, since Alkeste will have a magnitude 12.7, the 9.1 change in magnitude will make the event easy to detect.

HIP 88816, magnitude 5.7, will be occulted by (976) Benjamina on 2003 July 19.
This star is barely naked eye even at a dark site.  However it is an easy binocular object.  This occultation will follow a path very similar to the June 24 event, except the asteroid will be moving in the opposite direction.  The two paths overlap, with this event being about half a path width to the north.

The occultation again crosses the South Island of New Zealand, with Kaikoura lying close to the middle of the path, then northern Victoria and on to Adelaide which lies on its southern edge.  Being earlier in the evening the occultation then moves into twilight so will not be observable much further west.

Updates and reliability
The paths of both occultations already have reliable updates,  with the June 24 event being the more secure.  Even so further updates close to the dates of the events are very likely.  Any shift in the paths are likely to be quite small.  These will be posted on the Occultation Section website and also be available on Steve Preston's site at http://www.asteroidoccultation.com .
Charts showing the paths of both events were published in Circular CN2002/4, November 2003.  Further details will be posted on the occultation web site,  http://occsec.wellington.net.nz/.  Also details of  the event and observing are to be found at a site prepared by Alfred Kruijshoop,
http://tufi.alphalink.com.au/astro/twomp2003.htm .
 
 

Local conditions,  (124) Alkeste, June 24.  Moon 24% set. Australia West coast:  time ca 10:34:00 UT, altitude 62°, azimuth 346°.  About 50 minutes after sunset Adelaide: time ca 10:36:00 UT, altitude 43°, azimuth 314° Victoria: time ca 10:36:20 UT, altitude 37°, azimuth 309° NZ South Island: time ca 10:37:20 UT, altitude 16°, azimuth 288°

Local conditions,  (976) Benjamina, July 19.  Moon 68% set. NZ South Island:  time ca 08:41:48 UT, altitude 53°, azimuth 56° Victoria:  time ca 08:45:00 UT, altitude 36°, azimuth 85° Adelaide: time ca 08:45:48, altitude 30°, azimuth 91°.  About 48 minutes after sunset.

The results from the occultation of HIP 36189 by (704) Interamnia  as observed in Japan and Hawaii,  and the European success with (345) Tercidina in September 2002 (see elsewhere on this asteroids web site), show what can be achieved with a large number of observers.  The two events in Australia and New Zealand in June and July are well worth a coordinated effort and given good observing conditions could well become the best observed minor planet occultations in the southern hemisphere.  But this all depends on getting plenty of observers in the field.

In almost all cases, observers will have to move into the occultation path.  Ideally, positions of observers will be coordinated, so that they are spread out across the full width of the paths.

Interested observers in New Zealand should contact either the director of the Occultation Section, Graham Blow or Brian Loader.  Email addresses for both are on the Occultation Section RASNZ Web Site   http://occsec.wellington.net.nz/     Australian observers should contact their local society.  Alternatively contact Alfred Kruijshoop on the contacts at this link
 

The chart shows a Southern hemisphere binocular view of the field, that is south is at the top and east is to the right.  The circle centred on Beta Vir has a 5° diameter, so all stars in the field should be visible in binoculars when Beta Vir is centred.  Stars to magnitude 8.5 are shown with those brighter than magnitude 6 labelled.   Beta Vir has a magnitude of 3.6.  At the occultation the image magnitude will change by 9.1 to 12.7, the magnitude of Alkeste.  The maximum length of occultation is 4 seconds.

The chart shows a Southern hemisphere binocular view of the field, that is south is at the top and east is to the right.  The circle centred on HIP 88816 has a 5° diameter, so all stars in the field should be visible in binoculars when HIP 88816 is centred.  Stars to magnitude 8.5 are shown with those brighter than magnitude 6 labelled.  HIP 88816 has a magnitude 5.7.  At the occultation the image magnitude will change by 8.3 to 14.0, the magnitude of Benjamina.  The maximum length of any occultation  will be about 8 seconds.