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Watch live feed of total solar eclipse from Nasa telescope

Lucy Leeson
Tuesday 09 April 2024 06:37 BST
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Watch a live feed of the 2024 total solar eclipse from a Nasa telescope on Monday (8 April).

An eclipse of the Sun occurs when the Moon moves directly between the Sun and the Earth.

During a solar eclipse, the Earth is basically in the Moon’s shadow.

Because the Moon is much smaller than the Earth, its shadow only covers a small area of the Earth’s surface. Any solar eclipse therefore will only be visible from certain parts of the planet.

North America was treated to a total solar eclipse on Monday, plunging into darkness during the daytime.

The rare occurrence saw many flocking to catch a glimpse of the Moon completely covering the Sun as they stood in the darkest part of the Moon’s shadow.

The total solar eclipse was not visible from the UK and Ireland. However, a partial solar eclipse – where a little bit of the Sun is covered, and a small percentage is blocked out by the Moon – was visible close to sunset, between about 7.50pm and 8.50pm

The next total eclipse of the Sun visible from the UK is in September 2090, and nearby there will be another one in 2026 that is visible in northern Spain, tracking up to Iceland.

The last time a total solar eclipse was seen from the UK was in 1999, although the only place to witness totality was Cornwall.

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