South-east London and north Kent will be plunged into darkness on Friday (March 20) due to a partial solar eclipse over the UK.

According to the Met Office Londoners will see 85 per cent of the sun covered by the moon at 9.30am.

Residents in Inverness and the far reaches of Scotland will be the last in the UK to get a glimpse of the eclipse at 9.39am - by which time the sun will be 95 per cent covered.

News Shopper:

Picture courtesy of Met Office

What is a solar eclipse?

As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse is a type of eclipse that occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun.

This can happen only at new moon, when the Sun and the Moon in alignment 

News Shopper: People hoping to catch a glimpse of a solar eclipse are likely to be disappointed because of clouds

A solar eclipse

Impress your friends wth your eclipse knowledge using News Shoppers top five eclipse facts:

  1. The eclipse on March 20 will be the last total solar eclipse in Europe for over a decade, with the next one not visible in Europe until 2026.
  2. The UK will experience this as a deep partial eclipse, while the total eclipse will be seen on two remote groups of islands: the Faroe Islands and Svalbard.
  3. The partial solar eclipse will been seen across Northern Africa, Europe and Northern Asia as the moon's orbit travels in front of the sun, casting a shadow over the Earth.
  4. Europe will see between 30-98 per cent coverage depending on location, with a higher percentage of the sun obscured as you move further north. All of England will witness a partial eclipse of over 80% with over 90% of the sun obscured when viewing the partial eclipse in Scotland.
  5. There will also be a Supermoon the evening before the eclipse, meaning the Earth and Moon are as close together as they can be.

 

News Shopper: A view of the 'supermoon' seen from south London

A supermoon, seen from south London

Experts have warned of the dangers of looking directly at the sun during the eclipse.

Use these methods to ensure your eyes are protected on the big day:

  • Pinhole projector: An easy and cheap way to view the Sun is to project its image to a screen, such as a sheet of white paper or cardboard. Projection works well with or without a telescope or binoculars. However, don't look through the telescope’s eyepiece or side-mounted finder scope while projecting the Sun's image to a screen.
  • Eclipse glasses: If you are not the DIY type, check in with local museums and astronomy clubs for where to rent or buy eclipse glasses.
  • Welder's goggles: NASA recommends welder's glasses rated 14 or higher. These can be found at your local welding supply store. 
  • Aluminised Mylar sheeting: Mylar can be easily cut with scissors but make sure that the sheets you use are aluminized and that you take the advice of experts while using it

Tweet us your eclipse pictures at @NewsShopper