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Edinburgh to witness Britain's biggest solar eclipse in 16 years on March 20

Written by
Niki Boyle
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Put the date in your diary and set an alarm - the biggest solar eclipse in 16 years is set to take place at between 8.30am and 10.44am on Fri Mar 20 (peaking at 9.35am). The celestial phenomenon will be visible all over Europe, with those further north - ie us lot - in an especially good position to witness it. The Faroe Islands will be one of the few places that witness what's referred to as a 'total phase' solar eclipse; those of us in the north of the UK will still get a pretty good show though.

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Earth and the sun. It's not an entirely freak occurrence - it's no Halley's comet, which passes every 75-76 years - but nor is it entirely commonplace: the last major eclipse to be seen from the UK took place in August 1999, while the next is forecast for 12 Aug 2026.

While some news sources are slightly panicking about the country being 'plunged into darkness' (come on guys, it's just like wearing sunglasses), we're actually quite excited about it. We'll give you some pointers on the best places to watch it in the near future - for the time being, just keep your fingers crossed for clear skies on the morning of the 20th.

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