Mankind has always looked to the skies for celestial wonders and on Friday, that happened again, this time to witness one of the best solar eclipses in the northern hemisphere in years.
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Those in Britain, Svalbard, the Faroe Islands, Europe, northern Asia and Africa will be heading to work in darkness, with the eclipse starting about 8.25am and finishing at 10.40am, London time, with nearly 85 per cent of the sun covered at 9.30am as the moon moves in front of the sun.
In a solar eclipse, a path across the Earth's surface goes into darkness as the moon comes between Earth and the Sun.
The spectacle of the two celestial objects clashing will be best viewed in Faroe Islands, Greenland, and the remote islands of Norway, Svalbard. So anticipated was this eclipse that hotels in Svalbard have been sold out for years to fans of the rare total eclipse.
It's a rare occurrence for a solar eclipse to coincide with the 20 March equinox, which marks the start to spring for the northern hemisphere.
"I've seen aurora, I've seen some volcano eruptions, but the total eclipse is still the most spectacular thing I've ever seen. And each one is unique," retired NASA astrophysicist in Torshavn, capital of the Faroe Islands, Fred Espenak, said.
The period of greatest darkness - nearly three minutes - will occur over a spot in the Norwegian Sea, a little below the Arctic Circle, at about 9.46am London time.
Most astronomers have based themselves in the Faroe Islands, where capital city, Torshavn will get a total eclipse for two minutes.
Those who could not get to the Faroes have gone to Svalbard, where the capital city of Longyearbyen will get two-and-a-half minutes of the total eclipse.
So far, Svalbard punters are winning the chase with skies over Torshavn mostly cloudy early on Friday but clearer over Svalbard. Visitors have been told stay in the main village to keep away from polar bears and frostbite.
A polar bear mauled a Czech tourist on Thursday, breaking into his tent as he slept. Jakub Moravev, flown by helicopter to hospital, hopes to be well enough to see the eclipse after escaping with slight injuries to his face, chest and an arm.
Those in Europe, Russia, North Africa and Asia will only see a partial eclipse.
The last time a eclipse of this quality was seen was in 1999. The next similar eclipse will not be seen until 2026.
