Partial eclipse will be visible from Northamptonshire on Tuesday - how and when to see the solar event

The only solar eclipse visible in Northamptonshire for the next three years is taking place on Tuesday (October 25).

Up to one-fifth of the Sun will be covered by the Moon for around two hours between 10am to midday with the moment of greatest eclipse at about 11am.

Experts say the Sun will look like it has had “a bite taken out of it” but issued stern warnings NOT to look directly at the eclipse.

Jake Foster astronomer at Royal Observatory Greenwichsaid: “The amount of obscuration you'll see will depend on where you are.

“Those viewing from the UK will see between 10 percent and 20 percent of the sun covered by the moon.

“Even though a portion of the sun's light will be blocked, it will not get noticeably darker in the UK during the eclipse.

“No matter where you are, do not look directly at the Sun to see the eclipse, not even with sunglasses as you will damage your eyes.

“Instead, we recommend using eclipse glasses or a safe pinhole camera projection.

“Our astronomers will be livestreaming the event onsite from our Annie Maunder Astrographic Telescope, so make sure to tune in live.”

An eclipse is when the Moon comes between the Earth and Sun, blocking out sunlight and casting a shadow over the earth.

The next partial solar eclipse visible in the UK will be in March 2025 while the next total eclipse is on September 23, 2090, lasting for just over two minutes.

Dr Robert Massey, of the Royal Astronomical Society, said the phenomenon will cause the moon to block the view of "some or all of the bright solar surface” and the sun will “appear to have a bite taken out of it”.

He added: “The simplest way to watch an eclipse is to use a pinhole in a piece of card.

“An image of the sun can then be projected on to another piece of card behind it (experiment with the distance between the two, but it will need to be at least 30cm.

“Under no circumstances should you look through the pinhole.”