It’s set to be a stunning phenomenon.
The natural phenomena have kind of slowed down since normal life returned – which is pretty fitting given that the world is far less of a crazy place these days as we transition to post-pandemic life. From glittering meteor showers to pink supermoons and even sights of Jupiter, Saturn and Mars lighting up our skies – we’ve really seen it all this past year. But one natural phenomenon was visibly absent from the ongoing party of the planets, and that was the solar eclipse.
Set to peak this Thursday, June 10th at 11.13am BST, Brits will get to see a gorgeous crescent sun this week – as part of a ‘Ring of Fire’ eclipse that will be most prominent in North America and Canada. And while it isn’t likely that we’ll get to see the ‘Ring of Fire’ perfectly aligned like our American counterparts, the crescent sun promises to be just as rare and beautiful a spectacle.
One of the most stunning natural-occurring events seen on Earth, the solar eclipse only take place every one or two years, when both the sun and the moon line up perfectly with Earth, distorting our view of the two planets.
It’s believed due to the positioning of our island, only a third of the sun will be blocked for Brits, with the full eclipse expected to be visible from Canada, North America, Russia and Greenland.
Although, of course, we’ll be keen to look up to see the eclipse this week, NASA has warned that even when partially blocked, looking directly at the sun is dangerous without the appropriate protection, with experts advising the use of a simple pinhole projector or solar eclipse viewing glasses over regular sunglasses.
NASA said: “At the peak of this eclipse, the middle of the Sun will appear to be missing and the dark Moon will appear to be surrounded by the bright Sun.
“Remember to never look directly at the Sun even during an eclipse. An annular eclipse occurs instead of a total eclipse when the Moon is on the far part of its elliptical orbit around the Earth.”
The solar eclipse will begin at approximately 10.08am, peaking at around 11.13am and ending at around 12.22pm BST.