Next week, lucky people across the US will be treated to one of the most spectacular sights in the solar system – a total solar eclipse.
And if you’re in the UK, you’ll be happy to hear that you may not need to travel across the pond to catch a glimpse of this incredible natural phenomenon.
On April 8, a handful of towns and cities in the UK and Ireland will be able to see a partial eclipse just before sunset.
Eagle-eyed viewers in Dublin, Belfast, Londonderry, Glasgow, and Aberdeen will have a chance to see the astronomical phenomenon, according to UK Weather Updates.
‘While parts of the UK and Ireland will be able to see it too, there will be a very short opportunity for it, as the eclipse will take place at sunset shortly before the sun goes below the horizon,’ it explained on X (formerly Twitter).
An eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, casting its shadow onto the surface of the planet.
From a vantage point on Earth, this looks like the sun is disappearing behind a dark shadow.
For those directly in the path of the solar eclipse shadow, next week will be an incredible opportunity to see a rare ‘ring of fire’ eclipse.
Since the moon will be at its farthest point from the Earth, called the apogee, it will not completely obscure the sun – leaving a bright ‘diamond ring’ around the edge.
However, this ‘annular’ eclipse will only be visible to those directly beneath the moon’s shadow which will travel over America and Mexico.
For everyone on the edges of the eclipse path, which includes parts of the UK and Ireland, observers will only see the sun become slightly covered.
UK Weather Updates, an amateur weather enthusiast from Wakefield, shared a breakdown of where this will be visible from the UK.
The partial eclipse over the UK will begin at 19:52 BST at the Hevda Stack, a mountain summit in the far north of the Shetland Isles.
The last place the eclipse will be visible will be near Rockall, an uninhabitable granite islet in the North Atlantic, at 20:51 BST.
Since sunset over the UK and Ireland will be at roughly 19:38 BST, this means only a few places will get the chance to see any partial eclipse at all.
UK Weather Updates adds: ‘Western parts of Ireland are at the greatest chance due to a later sunset time.’
Professor Don Pollacco, an astronomer from Warwick University, says: ‘TSEs [total solar eclipses] occur on average about every 18 months but the visibility path of seeing the full total eclipse is extremely narrow, around just 80 miles.
‘The path of totality starts in the South Pacific and moves through Mexico and up through the USA, before finishing in the Atlantic, west of Ireland.’
Professor Pollacco adds: ‘From the UK and Ireland, you will see a partial eclipse of the Sun close to sunset, with about 20-30% of the Sun obscured by the Moon.’
The town of Belmullet will see the most coverage in the UK and Ireland, with 44 per cent obscuration.
Across the UK and Ireland this is followed by Galway with 35 per cent, Londonderry with 21 per cent, Belfast with 17 per cent, and Dublin with 15 per cent obscuration.
In the UK, Northern Ireland and Scotland will have the best views of the eclipse, although the sun may begin to set by the time the eclipse starts.
Glasgow will see 11.2 per cent of the sun obscured, Edinburgh 6.2 per cent, and Aberdeen 4.3 per cent.
In England, the eclipse will be even less noticeable with only 0.64 per cent coverage in Liverpool starting from 19:57 BST.
If you are going to try and watch the eclipse it is absolutely essential that you do so safely with the correct equipment.
Looking directly at the sun under any circumstances can be dangerous and you need to make sure you are protected against eye damage.
Professor Pollacco adds: ‘With no protection you will at best damage your eyes, or you could blind yourself.’
To view the eclipse safely you can use eclipse glasses which reduce the brightness of the sun to safe levels and are widely available online.
Alternatively, you can create a simple pinhole camera to project an image of the sun onto a surface.
In bright conditions, even a household colander can work, projecting the sun’s image through each of its holes.
To do this, put your back to the sun and hold the pinhole camera or colander in the light to project the sun onto the ground in front of you.
If you do have a telescope or binoculars, ensure these are fitted with appropriate solar filters to avoid instantly damaging your eyes.
Dr. Thomas Hughes is a UK-based scientist and science communicator who makes complex topics accessible to readers. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
