Solar eclipse event to take place at observatory

An observatory in Staffordshire is set to host a free-of-charge event for the public to safely see a partial solar eclipse this weekend.

Keele University will host the event on Saturday, where more than a third of the sun's rays will be obscured by the Moon at the height of the eclipse.

A partial eclipse involves the Moon partly passing between the Sun and the Earth. For observers in the eclipse's path, the sun will appear like a crescent.

The event, at which families are welcome, will get under way at 10:00 GMT, with the partial eclipse beginning at 10:06 and maximum coverage expected at 11:04, before the spectacle ends at 12.03.

The university said there would be free parking, and regular shuttle buses from the campus to Newcastle-under-Lyme and Stoke-on-Trent.

They held a similar event for the solar eclipse in 2015, which was attended by hundreds of people.

Dr Jacco van Loon, director of Keele Observatory, said that as well as the spectacle of the eclipse, people would also be able to see sunspots and eruptions taking place.

"Hopefully we get lucky with the weather on the day but if we don't, we will aim to stream the eclipse inside the observatory, where we can explain and talk about what is happening," he said.

Visitors would be welcome to stay afterwards and explore the observatory, he added.

"Although eclipses no longer herald doom or strengthen royal power, and their mysteries have long been removed by scientific understanding, it still is an unfamiliar and remarkable sight, Dr van Loon said.

"While we won't see a total eclipse, it is still amazing that the Sun and the Moon look almost the same size on the sky to us, despite the Sun being so much larger and more distant than the Moon."

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