THE ONLY solar eclipse of the year will be visible from the UK on Tuesday.
Solar eclipses occur when the Moon gets between the Earth and the sun, causing it to be obscured.
Here’s everything you need to know about seeing it.
When is the eclipse?
Skygazers can expect to see the eclipse from around 10am until midday, with times varying according to their exact location. The eclipse favours people living in the east, and to a lesser extent, the north.
In London, the eclipse will begin at 10.08am on, with the maximum eclipse occurring at 10.59am, when the Moon will cover close to 15 per cent of the Sun. The event will end at 11.51am in London.
Lerwick in the Shetland Isles is expected to have a better view, with 28 per cent of the Sun obscured at mid-eclipse. The eclipse is expected to begin at 10.01am, running for almost two hours.
In Truro in Cornwall, the eclipse is expected to start at 10.12am, ending at 11.38am.
From Birmingham it is expected to start at 10am, running for 101 minutes, while in York, it will start at 10.06am, lasting 106 minutes.
Where is this eclipse visible from?
Because the moon is much smaller than the Earth, its shadow only covers a small part of the Earth’s surface. That means that a solar eclipse can only be seen from a certain region of the Earth.
This eclipse will be visible over areas of Europe, Western Siberia, Central Asia, Western Asia, South Asia, and from the northeast of Africa.
In the UK, around 15 per cent of the Sun will be obscured, so it might not be as spectacular as eclipses from the past. Those in Siberia will see the most coverage.
Of course, this depends on your local area having clear skies at the time.
