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    Great visibility for most - The solar eclipse arrives tonight

07:57
12 August 2026

Great visibility for most
The solar eclipse arrives tonight

Annular solar eclipse against a black sky, with the Moon centered over the Sun and a bright golden ring of sunlight visible around its edge.
A total solar eclipse arrives over Europe, with a partial eclipse darkening the skies here.

A remarkable event takes place Wednesday evening with the first total solar eclipse over mainland Europe since 1999, and a partial but almost full coverage eclipse over the UK and Ireland.

The sun will go dark for parts of Europe in the evening. Parts of Greenland, northern Spain, and Iceland are treated to full totality.

In the UK and Ireland, a partial eclipse with up to 94% coverage in Dublin and 91% coverage in London will arrive. Starting from around 06:00 pm for Scotland and slightly later as you move further south the peak is expected around 07:10 pm, again slightly dependant on your location.

Within the path of totality, the eclipse will last for around two minutes, and millions of tourists have reportedly moved into northern Spain for the event.

Safety first!

As tempting as it might be, never look directly at the eclipse. Looking at the sun beings significant risks to your eyesight and the event can only be directly obseved during full totality. Use approved eclipse glasses, a pinhole projector, or watch a livestream online.

Due to the timing, when the partial eclipse occurs the sun will be low looking west. Unfortunately for some in Ireland and Scotland there is cloud cover hogging the western views.

Elsewhere, clear skies and a hot evening should provide a great chance at spotting the moon passing in front of the sun. Finding an area with clear western views, and at higher altitude, will provide an even better shot.

If you capture the scene, we'd love to see! Send in pictures to the Uploader, or record the moment live with the video feature in the app. Remember though, just as we shouldn't look directly at the sun, recording for long periods or zooming with additional lenses can also damage cameras.

Ryan Hathaway
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