Next Friday, 20 March 2015, there will be a Partial Eclipse of the Sun and it’ll start in Cornwall. Unlike the full eclipse in Cornwall on 11 August 1999, this one is a partial eclipse so won’t be a total blackout – I was on Porth Headland for that event! I think I was a bit disappointed to be honest. Underwhelmed.
The eclipse on 20 March starts at 8am and passes across the UK from the bottom corner (Cornwall) up to the Orkneys. To see a total eclipse of the sun this time you’d have to be in the Faroe Islands. In Cornwall you’ll find about 80-85% of the sun will be covered, so it’ll be darker, but not totally dark.
In 1999 I had the special eclipse book, complete with the orange Eclipse Glasses (still got it!) – as you shouldn’t look at the sun – and don’t try to photograph it or you’ll feck up your nice camera unless you have fitted a special solar filter to it.
The time of most darkness will be about 9:20am in Newquay. Set your alarm so you don’t forget it/miss it.
When is the next eclipse in the UK if you miss this one? Not until 2026! So it’s worth making the effort to see this.
Get a Solar Viewer
To view the eclipse, don’t look at the sun directly – unless you have a Solar Viewer bought from a reputable seller.
Eclipse Glasses in Newquay
Eclipse glasses will be for sale in most of the supermarkets in Newquay as well as a lot of the small traders that sell 1001 random items. It’s impossible to say who has eclipse glasses for sale today as they’re selling out fast – but, you can bet your bottom dollar that not everybody is sold out, so get out there and get asking/hunting!
xtr eclipse of the sun 2015 in cornwall