Millions across Britain have stopped to watch the first solar eclipse of
this century, which plunged parts of the UK in to brief darkness.
Britain's skies began to darken at around 8.24am this morning as the
Moon started to move between us and the Sun, with the eclipse peaking at
around 9.30am across the country.
The Sun's light was almost totally concealed, casting a huge shadow of
the Moon across the nation that will turn day to night, but watchers
must not look directly at the Sun because they risk damaging their eyes.
But cloud coverage meant that millions were unable to see anything at
all of the eclipse, the like of which will not be seen for several more
decades.
But millions may be left disappointed because a blanket of cloud is sitting across much of the UK.
In Scotland, where up to 98 per cent of the Sun will be covered,
forecasters are predicting rain and cloud, with some saying that up to
40million of the population may be unable to see it.
Forecasters believe that Lincolnshire and the Midlands through to
southern parts of Wales might be treated to the best celestial show as
the moon moves in front of the Sun, covering up to 97 per cent of its
surface.
There is also a possibility that northern parts of the South West
Peninsula - including Devon and Somerset - will also see clouds part in
time for the lunar phenomenon.
But there will be pockets of clear-skies across Britain, meaning people may still be lucky.
Met Office forecaster Kate Brown said: 'The south-east corner is
currently overcast and is going to stay that way into the time of the
eclipse. But even if people don't see it happening they will still be
able to sense it getting darker during that time.'
Cloud is likely to cover the rest of the country, becoming thicker in
the north - but no one can predict when there might be a curtain-raising
break in the cloud at any given location in the UK.
A Met Office spokeswoman said: 'Forecasting exactly where cloud will
break and re-form is really not scientifically possible. But it's not as
thick in the south as further north, so you're more likely to see
breaks in the cloud the further south you are.'
It is not unknown for a fleeting break in cloud to occur during an eclipse as the atmosphere cools.
This is one effect scientists at the University of Reading hope to
capture as they conduct the largest eclipse weather experiment with the
help of sky-watchers throughout the country.
Despite the cloud, the event is expected to have a significant impact on
the National Grid with a predicted loss of 850 megawatts of solar power
from the electricity supply network.
Around the UK the proportion of the sun covered by the moon will
increase towards the north, ranging from 84% in London to 89% in
Manchester, 93% in Edinburgh, and 97% in Lerwick in the Shetland Isles.
Times will also vary. In London, the eclipse begins at 8.24am, reaches
its maximum extent at 9.31am, and ends at 10.41am. For observers in
Edinburgh, the eclipse starts at 8.30am and peaks at 9.35 am.
The last solar eclipse of such significance occurred on August 11 1999,
and was 'total' - with 100% of the sun covered when seen from Cornwall.
Another 'deep' partial eclipse visible in the UK will not occur until
August 12 2026, and the next total eclipse not until September 2090.
Today's eclipse will produce a 100-mile-wide 'totality' shadow path that
crosses the North Atlantic and covers only two land masses, the Faroe
Islands between Scotland and Iceland and the Norwegian archipelago of
Svalbard.
Away from this path the sun is partly obscured. A partial eclipse will
be visible across a large part of the northern hemisphere, including the
whole of Europe, Greenland, Newfoundland, northern Africa and western
Asia.
Robin Scagell, vice-president of the Society for Popular Astronomy
(SPA), who will be travelling on the P&O cruise ship Oriana to
witness the total eclipse, said: 'We won't experience totality in the UK
but it will still be a memorable event.'
He added that it may be memorable for the wrong reasons if people fail
to heed the numerous warnings from experts not to look directly at the
sun.
'Unlike every other eclipse of any size, this one takes place right in
the middle of the rush-hour,' said Mr Scagell. 'It's not the best time
from a safety point of view.
'A partial eclipse is more risky by far than a total eclipse because
people don't realise that even looking at a thin sliver of sun is
dangerous.
'It's absolutely true that there is a serious risk to people's eyesight.
If people can't find a way to view the eclipse correctly then they
shouldn't look because they're likely to damage their eyes.'
Dr Susan Blakeney, from the College of Optometrists, said: 'You should
never look directly at the sun and that applies when there's a total or
partial eclipse as well. This is because the radiation emitted by the
sun is so powerful it may cause a solar burn of the retina.'
Together with the SPA, the Royal Astronomical Society has produced a booklet on how to view the eclipse safely.
Popular methods involve projecting an image from a telescope or
binoculars on to a piece of white card, using a mirror to cast the image
on to a wall, or making a pin-hole viewer from pieces of card or a
cereal box that acts like a lens.
Two organised events are planned in London, where members of the public
will have the chance to view the eclipse using specialist equipment.
One is being hosted in Regents Park by the Royal Astronomical Society
and a group of amateur sky-watchers called the Baker Street Irregular
Astronomers. The other takes place at the Royal Observatory in
Greenwich, assisted by the Flamsteed Astronomy Society.
Several tour operators have organised 'total eclipse' trips to the Faroe Islands and Norway.
Rosemary Sloggett, managing director of The Independent Traveller, which
is taking 133 eclipse-watchers to the Faroe Islands in a specially
chartered airbus at a cost of £2,500 per ticket, said: 'The response has
been absolutely enormous.. A lot of people travelling with us are
experiencing their eighth, ninth or 10th eclipse. I think once you've
seen one total eclipse it's something that gets under your skin.'
The National Grid said the impact of the eclipse would be offset by
large numbers of people leaving their homes to witness the event.
As a result, it was expecting a net 200 megawatt drop in demand at
9.30am, equivalent to the typical electricity usage of Glasgow.
Jeremy Caplin, forecasting manager at National Grid, said: 'This loss of
solar is entirely manageable and will be largely offset by demand
suppression. We started planning for this in May last year and have a
range of tools in place to manage any effects of the eclipse and balance
the network, including demand side services and extra generation.'
The effect on solar power is likely to be greater in other parts of
Europe which depend more than we do on the sun for electricity
generation.
Solar panels feed large amounts of electricity into the power grids of
Germany, Italy and France. In the summer, up to 40% of Germany's energy
comes from its solar farms.
The last European eclipse occurred before the proliferation of solar
power, so experts are somewhat in the dark over what will actually
happen.
Scientists hope today's eclipse will help them test their models of how solar farms are likely to behave.
Professor Alessandro Abate, from Oxford University's department of
computer science, said: 'While the impact over the UK is not likely to
be as substantial as for other European countries, this eclipse is a
rare opportunity to challenge in a worst-case scenario the mathematical
models we are developing to predict the behaviour of large populations
of solar panels.'
Members of the public are being recruited by scientists at the
University of Reading to help them study eclipse weather - changes in
the atmosphere caused by the sun's rays being temporarily blocked out by
the moon.
The National Eclipse Weather Experiment (Newex) will draw on
observational data recorded by an army of 'citizen scientists' across
the UK.
There are anecdotal reports of an 'eclipse wind' - a breeze that appears
as a solar eclipse reaches its peak - and breaks in the cloud appearing
as the atmosphere cools.
Professor Giles Harrison, head of the Department of Meteorology at the
University of Reading, who is leading the experiment, said: 'This is the
first big partial eclipse to happen in the UK since 1999, and the next
one isn't until August 2026, so this is a once-in-a-generation
opportunity.
'By observing what happens on Friday we are effectively turning the
skies of Britain into a giant weather lab, giving us a rare chance to
see what happens when you 'turn down the sun'.
'This will give us a precious insight into how the sun influences the
clouds and wind, as well as more obvious effects, such as temperature.
By improving our understanding of how the weather works, we're better
able to predict it, meaning scientists can further improve weather
forecasts.'
The amateur observations will be combined with other data to provide the
most detailed picture of the weather effects of an eclipse ever
assembled.
Total solar eclipses can be seen somewhere on Earth every 18 months on
average, but are considered rare events that recur at any given location
just once every 360 to 410 years.
A solar eclipse takes place when the Earth, moon and sun are aligned and the moon's shadow touches the Earth's surface.
Budget airline easyJet said passengers on three of its flights to
Reykjavik in Iceland would have a grand-stand view of the total eclipse.
Flights EZY 2295 and EZY 1805, departing from Luton and Manchester at
7.45am, and EZY 6747 from Belfast at 8.05am will pass almost directly
over the Faroe Islands during the event.
Ali Gayward, easyJet's commercial manager for Iceland, said: 'It's great
that easyJet passengers will be in the right place at the right time on
Friday and are set to be rewarded with the best view anywhere in the
world from 37,000 feet.
'We would encourage passengers to bring eclipse viewing specs with them
and keep their window blinds open for the safest but most spectacular
way to view it.'
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