IN PICTURES: Thousands turn out in France to watch eclipse
On beaches, mountains, parks and streets, tens of thousands of people in France turned their eyes to the sky on Wednesday to watch the solar eclipse - with long queues for glasses in the hours before the celestial events.
Thousands flocked to various locations across France to witness the solar eclipse on Wednesday, with long lines forming for eclipse glasses in the hours leading up to the celestial event. This marked the first time mainland Europe experienced a solar eclipse since 2006, as the shadow of the Moon traversed Greenland, swept south to Iceland's capital Reykjavik, and then continued across the Atlantic towards northern Spain.
In France, the eclipse was only partial, with the sun obscured by 99 percent in the Basque Country, 92 percent in Paris, and 90 percent in northeastern France. Despite the less-than-total nature of the eclipse, the spectacle still drew sizable crowds, with people gathering in parks and designated viewing spots throughout the country to marvel at the phenomenon.
The partial eclipse created a festival-like atmosphere, as people from towns like Paris, Marseille, and numerous other French locations came together to observe the rare event. The shadow, or umbra, of the Moon caused a brief twilight effect, with temperatures dropping, shadows appearing at unusual angles, and some animals even going to sleep during the fleeting event.
Lasting only around one hour and 45 minutes, the eclipse provided scientists with a unique opportunity to study the Sun's atmosphere and its outermost layer, aiding their quest to understand solar winds and the star's magnetic field. Another total solar eclipse is expected to cross southern Spain and northern Africa in August 2027, while an annular eclipse, where the Moon is too small to completely cover the Sun and creates a "ring of fire" effect, will visit the Iberian Peninsula in 2028.
Written by urgent.news from The Local France's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
