Supermoon solar eclipse thrills sky gazers

People across Europe and other parts of the world gazed with awe skywards on Friday to see a rare type of solar eclipse, which has coincided with other celestial events such as the spring equinox and a supermoon.

Only those in parts of the Artic and the north of Europe were lucky enough to witness the eclipse in its totality. But millions were able to see a partial eclipse in other parts of Europe, North Africa and West Asia.

The rare coincidence of the solar eclipse and the vernal equinox is not expected to occur until the year 2034. The supermoon is a phenomenon, which sees the moon’s position closer to Earth than usual.

Did you get to see #eclipse2015? http://t.co/j2TGDx24Cq (Courtesy ESA/ROB via Reuters) https://t.co/44YqClWoxX

— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) March 20, 2015

However, some viewers of the rare celestial show were disappointed as clouds obscured the sky over Torshavn, the capital of the Faroe Islands. “It was overcast, there was rain and wind. You could see nothing. It was a disappointment for everybody,”Gabor Lantos, a Hungarian tourist, told Reuters. “Some tourists were so irritated, they argued with tour operators, demanding their money back.” Others were more thrilled despite the cloudy weather. “It was worth coming here from Australia, probably not as good as the 2012 eclipse we saw in Cairns, but still worth coming,” said Australian visitor Michael Tonks. Street lights came on automatically as the sky blackened.  

Astronomers and onlookers also gathered on Norway’s Svalbard archipelago to watch the eclipse: the sun became almost completely obscured there. “We couldn’t ask for more. It was stunning,” Ronny Brunvoll, head of the Visit Svalbard organization told Reuters.

Today’s Solar Eclipse in 22 Stellar Photos http://t.co/MMKJ0EXdge

— VU DINH LONG (@longvdit) March 20, 2015

Maginificent photo of today’s solar eclipse from a plane! pic.twitter.com/EnzdLs8nxR

— World and Science (@WorldAndScience) March 20, 2015

RT contributed to this report and content reprinted with permission.