Solar Eclipse witnessed by millions

By Philip Otuo,

 Experiencing a genuine total eclipse required a trip north of the British Isles - such as the flight taken by a BBC camera crew and Stargazing Live's Liz Bonnin, above the clouds in the Faroes.
"We have a pretty spectacular view," Bonnin said. "This is extraordinary."
That footage revealed interesting features of the eclipse, including a clear view of "Baily's beads". These are the sparkles of light seen at the very edge of the Moon, where its rugged landscape allows the last rays of sunlight to peak through before full obscuration.
Few land areas were directly in the path of the Moon's deepest shadow - its so-called umbra - and seabirds probably had the some of the most dramatic eclipse experiences.
The period of greatest darkness - nearly three minutes - occurred over a spot in the Norwegian Sea, a little below the Arctic Circle, at 09:46 GMT.

The European Space Agency's Proba-2 satellite caught this view of the eclipse

 

Eclipse watchers in southern England

Many professional and amateur astronomers positioned themselves in the Faroe Islands, where the capital city of Torshavn got totality for a full two minutes, beginning just before 09:41 GMT.
And those who could not book a flight or a hotel for the Faroes went to Svalbard, where the capital city of Longyearbyen witnessed two and a half minutes of totality, starting shortly after 10:10 GMT.
Shifting the wind Irrespective of the cloud cover, scientists said citizens could still help them with their research.
A University of Reading team wants to learn more about how the atmosphere behaves as the Moon's shadow runs over the Earth.

Protective glasses allowed many around the UK to try and catch a glimpse

This observer, on a beach in Spain, was plunged into relative darkness but still cast a shadow.

 BBC News