Solar eclipse watchers rejoice as Moon slides in front of Sun for once-in-a-lifetime celestial display

Thousands of people across the UK and Europe were left in awe today after the continent's first total solar eclipse in nearly three decades blotted out the sun and doused searing temperatures. Crowds fell silent across the country and beyond, including in Land's End, the UK's most southerly point, this evening as the moon moved in front of the sun, switching a bright evening to near-complete nighttime for just over a minute. Locals were treated to some of the best views in the country as 98.5 percent of the sun was covered by the earth's natural satellite. Hundreds excitedly gathered on a cliff top overlooking the Channel and Celtic sea ahead of the phenomenon, while millions of others across Spain, France and other nations in western Europe were treated to even more dramatic displays. Many people had travelled from far and wide to catch a glimpse of the first eclipse, which is set to be the last on British shores for another nearly 70 years. Susan Carpenter, 70, was among them. She drove down to Cornwall from Newbury, Berkshire, on Wednesday morning with her husband, daughter and grandson. She told the Mirror: “For the last eclipse in 1999, we took our children to Devon and we’ve brought our grandson so he can experience an eclipse. The last one [eclipse] was phenomenal —it was at 11 in the morning." “Everything went black and the birds went to sleep and as it went over the birds started to wake and you get the dawn chorus. The children couldn’t believe it. It’s a really good experience.” Steve Lipscombe, from Mitcham, South London, watched the 1999 eclipse from Devon, but last minute cloud cover obscured his view. He said: “I was in Penzance with the Radio 1 roadshow they did back then. It was a lovely day like today, but it went cloudy just as the eclipse was starting to happen, so we basically missed it, which was terrible — I’d travelled 300 miles there and back, so I’m back again today for take two." “I like celestial things, I’ve seen many shooting star showers - but there’s not another eclipse for 65 years in this country.” Shop Judy’s Body Art, a shack next to the infamous Land’s End sign, had sold more than 140 pairs of eclipse glasses in just two hours. Owner Judith Dyulaine Buskas, who sold our reporter one of her last pairs, said: “We have been very busy today, and only have a few pairs left." “We are very excited for tonight - it will be the last eclipse in my lifetime.” The atmosphere was just as palpable in western Europe, with beaches in northern France, one of the best viewing points on the continent, crammed with both locals and holidaymakers. On the Baie de Somme hundreds sat enjoying picnics as the eclipse edged nearer. In the Picardy village of Le Crotoy people took to the huge beach for the best view. Northern Spain and Iceland were among the nations that received a totality this evening - meaning the moon covered nearly 100 percent of the sun's surface. The display was received by whoops and cheers in Reykjavic, Iceland's caputal, and in Burgos, Spain, with some people left dumbstruck. Dhara Patel, who is a space expert at the National Space Centre, said some people may be overcome by emotion while watching the eclipse. Speaking at the UK’s largest space attraction in Leicester, she said: “For a lot of people, it can be a little bit of an emotional event. I’ve seen previously people being drawn to tears or just have a really good moment within themselves where they realise they’re seeing or witnessing something… you’ve never seen before in your life." She described it as “incredible” to be able to witness this eclipse, adding: “We’ve had solar eclipses over the last couple of years, about 30% coverage." “They’ve been good, but this is definitely a different scale. And what’s really nice is it’s a way for lots of people to come together and connect with nature – looking up at the sky at objects that we typically tend to take for granted.” The display left onlookers literally starstruck, including 12-year-old Benjamin Firmager-Lee, who wants to work for Nasa when he is older. He was one of nearly 400 people who gathered at the National Space Centre, a planetarium in Leicester, to see the eclipse during a special event. He said: “It’s like a once in a lifetime thing to see, so it was quite exciting to see how it changed over time. It’s really quite rare so it’s quite cool to see. Looking through all the telescopes was really interesting to see how it changed position over time.” He added: “I do like learning about stuff like space.” The crowd of people erupted into cheers after counting down from 10 until the eclipse reached its maximum coverage. Will O’Grady, 36, who is studying physics at Cardiff University, brought a telescope to Cardiff Bay and shared it with dozens of people passing by. The masters student said: “Loads of kids loved it. It’s nice for people who are clearly visiting from another country as well, their English is not great, but you get the idea of ‘have a look’. "The community, for two hours everyone gets together and does the same thing, I think is really quite nice. It doesn’t matter whether or not you’re really into it, whether you know anything about it, or whether you’re a geek like me. That’s what I love about things like this.” Abdul Othman, 28, who only found out about the solar eclipse event at the National Space Centre a few hours before it began, described it as “surreal”. Speaking after queuing at the venue for one of the last two tickets, he said: “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity. “You hear about it all the time in your life, and then to see it with your own eyes and actually see the moon go across the sky and turning the sun into just a little crescent, it’s kind of surreal." “And then when you see the sky getting darker, that’s also quite amazing to see.” Mr Othman said he has never seen anything “on this scale” before, adding: “I can understand why people are into it now, how people make so many sacrifices just to see (it) once in a lifetime.” In Greenwich Park, southeast London, the home of Greenwich Mean Time and the Greenwich Observatory, hundreds of people gathered. Kim Rebecca, 26, of Canada Water, south east London, said “you could definitely notice it getting darker”. The city asset management worker added: “I have never seen an eclipse before and it is an amazing phenomenon. It is still hot but it is noticeably cooler than it was. “You would normally think it would be quieter when it happened but, maybe because it is south east London, there was champagne corks popping." “It has also been good because it has been a real community thing and got a lot of people together.” Van Sabellina, 31, from Truro, watched the eclipse with her husband and their baby. She said: “It was amazing — it’s a once in a lifetime. We were very lucky with the weather and being able to witness it in Land’s End was just spectacular. “It was a bit eerie - you feel the change in temperature from hot to refreshing and cold. I feel very lucky to have watched it in this life of mine - we don’t know when there will be another one.” Plenty of people weren't quite as fortunate, however, as cloud cover prevented them from being able to enjoy the full majesty of the eclipse on the day. Una Eggertsdóttir in Hafnarfjörður, a community 15 minutes outside of Iceland's capital Reykjavik, said it was "extremelt grey" before the eclipse materialised. She told the BBC: "It is extremely grey, cloudy and rainy so we’re not seeing much yet, and it's supposed to just get worse". She added the heartbreaking conditions were a far cry from those of just two days earlier, which would have perfectly staged the event. She said: "But our expectations were realistic. No one was expecting clear skies, but people are still excited for what happens later." While it was Iceland, Spain, France and their neighbours all being treated to the total solar eclipse, a partial eclipse - where a smaller portion of the sun was covered by the moon - was seen across other continents. Hundreds of millions more people watched the sun being partially covered from North America, including in Alaska and Siberia. Canadians also got a glimpse of the eclipse, as were residents of parts of West and northern Africa, including in the nations of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.