Remarkable images have revealed the incredible moment that the sun is blocked by the moon in this evening’s solar eclipse.
In the UK, first contact – the moment the moon’s shadow first appears on the sun – occurred at 18:08 in Scotland, with the last glimpse ending just after 20.00.
Spectators in Europe had to wait a little longer for the moon’s orbit to cover the sun, although large parts of northern and central Spain, a section of Portugal and areas in Greenland and Iceland experienced the rare total eclipse.
In the UK however, it will have reached its peak of 96 per cent after about an hour of its first glimpse, although the specific moment of peak coverage will depend on where a viewer is in the UK.
At the eclipse’s peak, the country descended into relative darkness and the temperature dropped, with many viewers taking in the rare spectacle at popular lookout points.
If you missed this eclipse, the next chance to see such a significant natural phenomenon won’t come to the UK until 2050, and you’ll have to wait until 2090 for the next totality.
Meanwhile, take in the extraordinary moment from this evening with a selection of the most striking pictures…
A view of the total eclipse, as the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun, as seen from on board the Ambassador cruise ship Ambition, off the coast of Greenland
A view of the Solar Eclipse at 93 per cent in Blackwood, Wales – the next full solar eclipse in the UK is not expected for another 66 years
The Eiffel Tower is silhouetted as the moon partially covers the sun during a solar eclipse, as seen from Paris, France
The moon completely covers the sun during a total solar eclipse as seen from the Javalambre Astrophysical Observatory in in Arcos de las Salinas, near Teruel, Spain
A composite image of seven separate photographs taken with a single fixed camera shows stages of a solar eclipse before, during and after totality, as seen from Arija, Spain
The Moon passes in between the Earth and the Sun 7.13pm, during the solar eclipse as seen from King’s Stairs Gardens in Bermondsey, south London
The International Space Station, with a crew of seven onboard, is seen in silhouette as it transits at roughly five miles per second across the backdrop of the sun being partially blocked by the moon and some clouds
The partial solar eclipse in Katowice, southern Poland
People observe a partial solar eclipse at Northala Fields in London
People watch the solar eclipse during the European Athletics Championships Birmingham 2026
A partial solar eclipse is seen above Wetstraat / Rue de la Loi from the EU district in Brussels, Belgium
A plane flies during a partial solar eclipse in Prague, Czech Republic
People watching the solar eclipse at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, London
A family gathers on the moor to watch the solar Eclipse through home made welding glasses in Blackwood, Wales
Passengers on board the Ambassador cruise ship Ambition watching the start of the total solar eclipse off the coast of Greenland
Meanwhile, holidaymakers test their protective glasses ahead of a solar eclipse, at El Arenal beach in Mallorca
People gathering to watch the solar eclipse on Calton Hill, Edinburgh, the first total solar eclipse visible over mainland Europe since 1999
Hundreds of residents and tourists pack the steep, grassy slopes of the historic Krakus Mound during the late afternoon to watch a solar eclipse in Krakow, Poland
