Solar eclipse - live: Can you watch eclipse through phone? See exact timings

Solar eclipse - live: Can you watch eclipse through phone? See exact timings The first near-total solar eclipse visible from the UK since 1999 will occur tonight - and experts are warning Brits not to use sunglasses or their phones to watch it Brits are counting down to a spectacular celestial show today as the Moon slides in front of the Sun in the UK's first near-total solar eclipse in more than half a century. The rare event will see daylight dim as the Moon blocks out more than 90% of the Sun in Britain, creating a fascinating crescent-shape in the evening sky. Exact timings will depend on where you're located and can be seen in full here, but the event will begin shortly after 6pm, with the maximum eclipse occurring at shortly after 7pm before the Sun gradually re-emerges. In London, the eclipse will sweep in at 6.17pm, peak at 7.13pm and end at 8.06pm. Experts have warned that looking directly at the Sun without proper protection can cause permanent eye damage and ordinary sunglasses are not enough. Only special solar eclipse glasses that are ISO 12312-2 certified should be used. Experts say you should also not use your phone to view it, as this too can damage your eyes and the device. A pinhole viewer can be put together at home with just a cardboard box, kitchen foil and scissors as quick an easy alternative for viewing this evening's spectacle. Key Events Britain’s electricity grid operator has cancelled its call to the industry to generate more power during Wednesday evening’s solar eclipse. The National Energy System Operator (Neso) had issued the notice in the early hours of Wednesday, saying it was taking the “precautionary measure” to make sure it has a “greater safety cushion” between demand and energy supply. It indicated it was forecasting a potentially tight period for electricity margins between 6pm and 8pm on Wednesday. However, Neso – the body which is tasked with making sure the supply of electricity matches demand for it – cancelled the notice shortly after 2pm on Wednesday. It is the latest in a number of so-called electricity margin notices issued by Neso this year, with previous notices coming during the summer’s heatwaves. Director of optical practice for Boots Opticians, Kyla Black, told Metro that eclipse chasers shouldn’t watch through their phone screens. "You should not watch the eclipse directly through your camera or phone camera due to the lenses not having specially designed solar filters," she says. "While it’s tempting to look up and enjoy the moment, it’s important to remember that viewing a solar eclipse incorrectly can cause serious and permanent damage to your eyes." Pointing either the back or front-facing phone camera at the sun for an extended period can also damage the device. As hundreds have queued at shops across the UK to get their hands on a last-minute pair of eclipse glasses, one man has shared the experience took him three hours. A queue appearing to snake around multiple buildings is pictured, with user Tony Bhai explaining that he eventually managed to buy three pairs of glasses after waiting for three hours. Shoppers have so far been spotted lining the streets in Weymouth, London, Wrexham and Kent. If you will be driving during the eclipse tonight and your car doesn't have automatic lights, make sure to turn them on. The RAC said this might be necessary to boost visibility to other road users amid the twilight conditions. More than 90 per cent of the sun will be obscured by the moon between 6.17pm and 8.06pm today across the UK. RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: "While total darkness is unlikely, those with vehicles that don’t have automatic headlights or daylight running lights may need to switch on their dipped beams to ensure they are easily visible to other road users. "The best advice to enjoy this rare event is to pull over somewhere safe and watch with specialist glasses." Mr Williams urged anyone driving in a westerly direction around the time of the eclipse to avoid being distracted. A number of issues have been issued by eye specialists about how to safely watch the eclipse tonight in order to avoid serious and permanent eye damage. Moorfields Eye Hospital has listed potential symptoms to be aware of after looking at the sun, including: - Eye pain - Redness - Grittiness or irritation - Blurred vision - Distorted vision - New dark spots in your vision - Sudden changes in sight Alex Ionides, consultant ophthalmic surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital and Moorfields Private, said: "If someone has looked at the sun and subsequently develops any of (these) symptoms, they should seek urgent medical attention." Only special solar eclipse glasses that are ISO 12312-2 certified for the safest eye protection should be used to view the eclipse, experts said. Sunglasses do not offer sufficient protection. The rush to get to northern Spain and Portugal to experience the eclipse has pushed up prices massively, writes Mirror deputy travel editor Milo Boyd. When I checked a month ago, staying anywhere in Spain’s path of totality was virtually impossible. Remaining budget hotel rooms had been jacked up to £1,000 a night, campsites were at full capacity and typically affordable hostels had long sold out despite charging an eclipse premium. If you’re desperate to experience the full darkness of a solar eclipse, but didn’t make it to Spain, Portugal or Iceland this time, the bad news is that the next total solar eclipse in the UK isn’t until September 2090 (I’ll be 98 and five days old). The good news is that it’s happening again, much sooner, in Spain. Not just once, but twice. On August 2, 2027, southern Spain will be bathed in eclipse darkness, before an annular eclipse on January 26, 2028. During an annular eclipse a ring of Sun can be seen burning around the Moon’s edge, due to the Moon’s positioning closer to the Earth than during a total solar eclipse. A camera shop in Wales has sold 500 pairs of special eclipse glasses within a few hours. Joel Longbone, who owns Cambrian Photography in Colwyn Bay, said the store has been overwhelmed by demand this morning. "We could never have expected this in a month of Sundays," he told the BBC. Joel said fifty pairs of the glasses sold out in three minutes yesterday, and another 500 were gone by 11am this morning. "We were limiting it to two pairs a customer," he said. A video shows a massive queue of people lining the streets in Whitechapel, east London, as the hunt for solar eclipse glasses continues. People were spotted queueing for several hours - even throughout the night - to get their hands on the specialist glasses from a convenience store. The Mirror's Deputy Travel Editor Milo Boyd is in Bilbao, Spain, where excitement is mounting as the country awaits a spectacular total solar eclipse. The eclipse will begin its partial phases around 7:30pm local time (6:30pm UK time), with totality occurring across northern and eastern regions shortly before sunset between 8:26pm and 8:33pm. Every single train, bus and coach heading south from Spain's north coast is sold out today as eclipse fans head towards the centre of the path of totality, writes Milo in Bilbao. The majority are on the way to Burgos, a city of 176,000 which will be plunged into darkness for 1 minute 44 seconds at 8.29pm local time. Smaller towns and villages nearby, such as Lerma, have been swamped by visitors looking for a perfect eclipse viewing point. Travel firm Intrepid has ferried 200 eclipse seekers to a field outside of Burgos it believes will be the best for unobstructed viewing this evening. Heading to the hills is key, as the late hour of the moment of totality means the Sun will be low in the sky and potentially dipping behind hills and trees for those closer to sea level. A frantic rush is ongoing for protective glasses ahead of this evening's partial solar eclipse. Stock is running low at high street stores across the country, with several businesses sold out entirely. Unless you have genuine eclipse glasses (which have widely sold out), viewing the eclipse indirectly with your back to the Sun is the safest way to enjoy this rare occurrence in all its glory. Fortunately, you don't need expensive astronomical gear to experience the magic, making this a perfect summer holiday craft project for young space enthusiasts. What you'll need: - Two sheets of white card - Scissors - Sticky tape - Aluminium foil - A pushpin Cut the window: Fold one sheet of white card in half, then cut a small square out along the fold line. Unfold it to reveal a small central window. Attach the foil: Cut a piece of foil slightly larger than the square, lay it over the window, and tape it down tightly on all four sides. Make the pinhole: Gently pierce a single hole through the centre of the foil with your pin. (Adult supervision is recommended for little hands!) Full story: How to make a safe DIY viewer for the 2026 UK solar eclipse Using old glasses to watch the solar eclipse could pose health risks and damage your eyes, experts say. Jake Foster, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, said glasses made before 2015 could have deteriorated since the last eclipse. "Many solar eclipse glasses manufactured before 2015 were made from materials that degrade over time, compromising the safety of their use," he said. "As a rule of thumb, it is safest to avoid using eclipse glasses that are more than 10 years old to view the upcoming eclipse." Skygazers are being urged to take extra caution during today's solar eclipse as viewing without the proper protection could lead to serious eye damage - or even blindness. It's advised to wear specialised solar viewing glasses to look safely, which are "thousands of times darker" than sunglasses, according to NASA. Ordinary sunglasses are never safe for viewing an eclipse, even while the Sun is being blocked out. Experts say the darkening light of a partial eclipse means people can view it much longer without the normal pain response. Viewing without the right protection may permanently burn the light-sensitive cells in your retina - the tissue in the back of the eye that sends signals to your brain. You could even suffer "sunburned eyes" with symptoms including pain, redness, tearing and a feeling of sand in your eyes - which could take anywhere from four to 48 hours to develop. The biggest solar eclipse visible from the UK since 1999 is now just hours away, with the best time to see the stunning astronomical event in each postcode now revealed. Most of the UK will come close to a total solar eclipse, with the Isles of Scilly getting the most coverage - more than 96 per cent. The rest of the country will see more than 90 per cent of the Sun obscured, as the Moon will come in between it and the Earth tomorrow evening. Across the UK, the eclipse will start around 6pm and reach peak obstruction about an hour later, with the event ending just after 8pm in most places. It will take just 15 minutes for the peak moment to sweep from the very north of Scotland down to Land’s End in Cornwall, which means the moon shadow will sweep over the surface of Britain at a speed of nearly 2,500 miles per hour. You can enter your postcode into our interactive tool to find the right moment when it passes your home. Britain's electricity system operator has issued a plea for more power during this evening's solar eclipse. The National Energy System Operator (Neso) said there would be a shortage of spare capacity between 6pm and 10pm. NESO issued an "electricity margin notice" for between 6pm and 8pm on Wednesday, when there is an expected shortfall of 1,200 megawatts compared with the amount it would like to be available. The move is an alert to other energy generators to activate any additional capacity they have. On Tuesday evening, NESO had warned the shortfall could last from 5pm to 8pm, saying the buffer against an electricity shortage could end 1,760 megawatts below the desired amount. A partial eclipse will be visible from much of Europe, including the UK, parts of Africa, North America, the Atlantic Ocean, the Arctic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. A total eclipse will sweep across parts of northern Spain, eastern Greenland, western Iceland, northern Russia, the Atlantic Ocean and the north-east corner of Portugal. Hundreds of Brits have been stuck in queues for hours in a desperate hunt for special eclipse glasses. With only six hours to go until the spectacle, queues have formed up and down the country. Shoppers have so far been spotted lining the streets in Weymouth, London, Wrexham and Kent. Specialised solar viewing glasses are "thousands of times darker" than sunglasses, according to NASA. Experts have warned that viewing the eclipse without the proper protection could lead to permanent eye damage or blindness. With specilaised eclipse glasses selling out acorss the country today, Brits will be relieved to know there's a quick an easy alternative for viewing this evening's spectacle. A pinhole viewer can be put together at home with no specialist equipment needed. You only need three basic items to get started: a cardboard box, a sheet of kitchen foil and a pair of scissors. Educational platform Twinkl Resources shared a step-by-step video guide on TikTok showing exactly how to assemble your own pinhole projector. You want to begin by opening up your cardboard box and taping a strip of white paper down one side of it. It doesn't matter which side, but the opposite side must be suitable for cutting holes into. Once your paper is secured, you need to cut out two squares from the opposite side of the cardboard box. Cover one square with a sheet of kitchen foil, and secure it with tape. Then, use a pin to make a small hole in the centre of the foil. Make sure the box is completely sealed at the top, so the only gaps are the pin hole and the empty square. Your pinhole projector is now complete and ready to use so that you can enjoy the eclipse safely. Read our full guide on how to make a pinhole viewer here. If you couldn't get your hands on the special eclipse glasses quickly enough, you can still watch the solar eclipse safely by using indirect projection methods. The safest and easiest ways are pinhole projectors (without looking directly at the sun through the pinhole), household objects with small holes like colanders, or welding helmets for direct viewing. Experts have warned that sunglasses are never safe for looking at the sun. While the UK falls outside the path of the total eclipse and won't experience full totality today, some areas could see up to 95% coverage. For many, the eclipse will begin shortly after 6pm, with the maximum occurring at around 7:10pm before the Sun gradually re-emerges - but exact timings will depend on your location. According to the Royal Observatory Greenwich, the timings for today's solar eclipse are as follows: - Edinburgh and Glasgow - Begins at 6.08pm, eclipse maximum at 7.05pm and ends at 8pm. - Galway and Dublin - Begins at 6.12pm, eclipse maximum at 7.10pm and ends at 8.05-06pm. - Manchester and Liverpool - Begins at 6.13pm, eclipse maximum at 7.10pm and ends at 8.03-04pm. - Norwich - Begins at 6.15pm, eclipse maximum at 7:11pm and ends at 8.04pm. - London, Bristol and Cardiff - Begins at 6.17pm, eclipse maximum at 7.12pm and ends at 8.06pm. - Truro, Cornwall - Begins at 6.18pm, eclipse maximum at 7.16pm and ends at 8.10pm. Read our full guide on the exact solar eclipse timings across the UK.