Dundee will bear witness to a partial solar eclipse on 29 March – here is everything you need to know!
When and what?
A partial solar eclipse will be visible on Saturday 29 March from Dundee with a 40% visibility rate.
The eclipse will begin at 10:09, with maximum eclipse being reached roughly an hour later at 11:08, before the eclipse comes to an end at 12:07.
In total, the eclipse will last 1 hour and 58 minutes.
A partial solar eclipse occurs when the Moon covers a portion of the sun, whilst a total solar eclipse covers all of the sun.
Where can I watch the eclipse?
Anywhere in Dundee.
The best place to watch the eclipse is Mills Observatory, quite literally, with 40.93% of the eclipse, which has a better visibility rate than the rest of Dundee mostly!
What events are being held?
Mills Observatory will be hosting a special event for the eclipse on the morning of the 29th. The observatory will open early at 9.30am and will close at 12.30pm before reopening for its last session of the season at 6.30pm!
It is a great send off to what has been a truly unbelievable season for the observatory!
Another great spot to watch the eclipse is the other hill in town, the Dundee Law which is higher than Mills Observatory.
Dundee Culture will also be hosting live updates on the morning of the 29th!
Where can I buy eclipse glasses?
You can buy eclipse glasses from online, or in shops. If you’re planning on visiting the observatory, you can buy eclipse glasses for £1 from the observatory shop!
What will the weather be like?
It is still yet to be seen what the weather will be like on the day. There isn’t an accurate picture just yet.
14 day forecasts reveal that the weather will be cloudy with a 50% chance of rain. However, weather forecasts this far out tend to be inaccurate and do change based on more accurate weather patterns nearer the time.
So we’ll just have to wait and see – and hope for the best!
But even so, you can still catch glimpses of the eclipse through broken clouds - as was the case during the October 2022 eclipse visible in Dundee.
When will the next total solar eclipse be visible in Dundee?
Not for a long time unfortunately! The next total solar eclipse to be visible in Dundee won’t be until 7 October 2135.
And if you had to go back to when the last total solar eclipse to take place in Dundee was on 7 March 1598, so a very long time ago!
During the October 2135 eclipse, Dundee will be one of the first cities to hit totality which is pretty cool. Scotland’s sunniest city will become Scotland’s eclipse city!
And on the subject of Mills Observatory, if it is still around at that time, which we all hope it will, then what a spectacular gift it would be for its 200th birthday as it opened in October 1935.
When is the next major solar eclipse?
Next year.
Dundee will have an eclipse with a 90% totality rate on 12 August 2026, which just so happens to also be Dundee Culture’s anniversary!
Comentarios