Millions of people in the UK and northern
Europe have glimpsed the best solar eclipse
in years.


A great swathe of the Earth's surface was
plunged into darkness as the Moon came
between us and the Sun. From an aeroplane above the Faroe Islands, a
BBC camera crew captured startling footage of
the event reaching totality at 09:41 GMT. The deep shadow formed first in the North
Atlantic and then swept up into the Arctic,
ending at the North Pole. Brilliant beads People keen to catch a glimpse of the rare
phenomenon were advised not to look directly
at it. Looking directly at the Sun can cause serious
harm, and skywatchers were directed to the
multiple ways to catch an eclipse safely and in comfort. In all parts of the UK, the eclipse reached at least 83%, with the darkness peaking at about 09:35 GMT. The precise timing and degree of
the eclipse varied with location. For the Shetland Islands, the eclipse was at its
height at 09:43 GMT and was very near total,
with 97% of the Sun's disc obscured by the
Moon. For those caught under cloudy skies, the
internet was a good option to see the eclipse. Scientific agencies had planes and even
satellites gathering video to relay on the web
and on television. In the UK, the weather turned out to be slightly
better than anticipated, with clouds breaking in
many places at just the right time. London and
the South East, on the other hand, just saw
their grey day get slightly gloomier. Experiencing a genuine total eclipse required a
trip north of the British Isles - such as the flight
taken by a BBC camera crew and Stargazing
Live's Liz Bonnin, above the clouds in the
Faroes. "We have a pretty spectacular view," Bonnin
said. "This is extraordinary." That footage revealed interesting features of the
eclipse, including a clear view of "Baily's
beads". These are the sparkles of light seen at
the very edge of the Moon, where its rugged
landscape allows the last rays of sunlight to
peak through before full obscuration. Few land areas were directly in the path of the
Moon's deepest shadow - its so-called umbra -
and seabirds probably had the some of the
most dramatic eclipse experiences. The period of greatest darkness - nearly three
minutes - occurred over a spot in the
Norwegian Sea, a little below the Arctic Circle,
at 09:46 GMT. The European Space Agency's Proba-2 satellite
caught this view of the eclipse Eclipse watchers in southern England Many professional and amateur astronomers
positioned themselves in the Faroe Islands,
where the capital city of Torshavn got totality
for a full two minutes, beginning just before
09:41 GMT. And those who could not book a flight or a
hotel for the Faroes went to Svalbard, where the
capital city of Longyearbyen witnessed two and
a half minutes of totality, starting shortly after
10:10 GMT. Shifting the wind Irrespective of the cloud cover, scientists said
citizens could still help them with their research. A University of Reading team wants to learn
more about how the atmosphere behaves as the
Moon's shadow runs over the Earth. Protective glasses allowed many around the UK
to try and catch a glimpse This observer, on a beach in Spain, was plunged
into relative darkness but still cast a shadow The National Eclipse Weather Experiment (NEWEx)asked people to record conditions at their locality. Prof Giles Harrison explained: "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." One phenomenon the experiment hopes to
investigate is the "eclipse wind". This refers to
changes in the breeze that eclipse observers
have reported as darkness falls. Oxford University scientists, meanwhile, are
using the event to try to understand how
eclipses affect electricity grids. The deep shadow will have reduced the output
from solar panels, which now supply a
significant proportion of power needs right
across Europe. The researchers will look to see how this dip in
performance impacted the stability of grid
networks. Next year will have a total solar eclipse, too. That will occur on 9 March, and will cross
Sumatra, Borneo, Sulawesi, and extend out over
the Pacific. The UK will not experience a solar eclipse on
this scale again until 2026.






source: m.bbc.com/news/science-environment-31965456

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