Key events
Where will I be able to see it?
Nicola Davis
The partial solar eclipse will be visible in parts of the UK between 10am and noon on Saturday – with viewing chances best in the east where skies should be clearest – and in several other parts of the world, including western Europe, Greenland, north-west Africa and north-east North America.
“It won’t be total anywhere but there are parts of Canada where it will be about 90%,” said the Royal Observatory’s Jake Foster. “So it’ll be very impressive over there.”
While he added the situation in the UK will differ based on location, in general between 30% and 40% of the sun is expected to be obscured. “The best place in the UK is going to be further north-west, parts of Northern Ireland and Scotland where it’s about 40-45%,” Foster said.
“The weather forecast is actually looking quite good, as far as we can tell. So we’re quite optimistic,” he added.
But those hoping for an eerie darkness to descend could be disappointed. “The thing is, with a partial solar eclipse like this [with] around 30-40% of the sun being blocked, If you’re not looking up, you wouldn’t really notice the difference,” said Foster.
“In a partial solar eclipse, you’re unlikely to notice it getting any darker or any colder in the same way you would during a total eclipse. You really do have to be observing it to really see its effects.”
The timing of the event also differs by location, but in London it will begin at 10.07am, with the moon reach its maximum coverage of the sun at 11.03am before ending at noon.
Nicola Davis
The next total solar eclipse visible from the UK is in 2090. However, in August 2026 a total solar eclipse would be visible across much of Europe, including parts of Spain.
“In fact, it’ll be over some islands like Ibiza as well,” the Royal Observatory’s Jake Foster said. Those who can’t get away may still want to dig out their colanders as viewers in the UK will be treated to another partial solar eclipse.
How can I view the eclipse safely?
Nicola Davis
“If people want to directly view it, to actually look up at the sun, they are going to need a pair of solar eclipse glasses or a solar viewer,” said the Royal Observatory’s Jake Foster. “Those make use of a special filter that blocks out 99.9999% of the sun’s light, which makes it safe for us to view. And, similarly, solar telescopes use similar filters.”
However, there are simple ways to view the partial solar eclipse indirectly. Foster recommends taking either a colander from your kitchen, or a piece of paper with a small hole in it, and holding this up so that the Sun’s light shines through the holes. This will project an image of the eclipse on to the ground, wall or another piece of paper.
“It’ll look like the sun is having a bite taken out of it but it’ll be projected so that you can actually safely view it as it happens,” he said. “Sometimes the sunlight passing through the gaps between leaves in the trees can have the same effect.”
A warning for those of you planning to watch the eclipse outdoors rather than online (crazy, I know) :
Looking straight at the Sun – during an eclipse or otherwise – can lead to irreversible vision loss.
Sky-gazers are advised to buy eclipse-viewing glasses and ensure they are in good condition.
Even a slight defect or “microscopic hole” can cause eye damage, the Paris Observatory warned.
What is a partial solar eclipse?
Nicola Davis
A partial solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Earth and the sun, partially blocking out the sun’s light. By contrast, in a total solar eclipse the moon completely blocks the sun’s light.
“These eclipses, whether they be partial or total, it is effectively watching the clockwork of the solar system in action,” said the Royal Observatory astronomer Jake Foster.
Partial solar eclipse to be visible in northern hemisphere
Sky-gazers across a broad swathe of the northern hemisphere will have a chance to see the moon take a bite out of the sun today when a partial solar eclipse sweeps from eastern Canada to Siberia.
The partial eclipse, which is the first of the year and the 17th this century, will last around four hours from 8.50am GMT to 12.43pm GMT.
Curious observers making sure to protect their eyes might be able to see the celestial show in most of Europe, as well as in some areas of northeastern North America and northwest Africa.
Eclipses occur when the sun, moon and Earth all line up. When they perfectly align for a total solar eclipse, the moon fully blots out the sun’s disc, creating an eerie twilight here on Earth.
But that will not happen during Saturday’s partial eclipse, which will instead turn the Sun into a crescent.
“The alignment is not perfect enough for the cone of shadow to touch the Earth’s surface,” Paris Observatory astronomer Florent Deleflie told the AFP news agency.
Because that shadow will “remain in space, there will not be a total eclipse anywhere” on Earth, he said.
At most, the Moon will cover around 90 percent of the Sun’s disc. The best view will be from northeastern Canada and Greenland at the peak time of 10.47 GMT.
We’ll have a live stream for you to watch shortly…
