Crowds gather in Wales to watch the solar eclipse

Nation.Cymru staff

Millions of Britons turned their eyes to the skies for the best solar eclipse in decades – with crowds flocking to viewing events and shops selling out of protective glasses.

More than 90% of the Sun was obscured by the Moon, the most it has been blocked above UK skies since the total eclipse in 1999.

Crowds of people could be seen at viewing spots in different locations – including hundreds of people at Cardiff Bay barrage with heavy traffic in the Penarth area as people tried to make it in time for the peak of the event.

Many people could be spotted using eclipse glasses, which they were happy to share with those less fortunate to secure a pair, and others could be seen with colanders or repurposed cereal boxes that they used in the hopes of viewing the spectacle safely.

Others brought their own chairs, while photographers could be seen with cameras.

Will O’Grady, 36, who is studying physics at Cardiff University, brought a telescope to Cardiff Bay and shared it with dozens of people passing by.

The masters student said: “Loads of kids loved it. It’s nice for people who are clearly visiting from another country as well, their English is not great, but you get the idea of ‘have a look’.”

“The community, for two hours everyone gets together and does the same thing, I think is really quite nice.

“It doesn’t matter whether or not you’re really into it, whether you know anything about it, or whether you’re a geek like me.

“That’s what I love about things like this.”

Following the eclipse, there was a 650% increase in the number of people searching “sore eyes” on Google in the UK, compared to the same time on Tuesday.

It came after experts warned people only to view the spectacle with ISO 12312-2 solar eclipse glasses for the safest eye protection, as sunglasses would be insufficient.

John Lewis said colander sales increased nearly 40% compared to last year, with Nasa recommending the kitchen item as a way to watch an eclipse by viewing the shadows it casts on the ground.

Following the 1999 total solar eclipse, the Royal College of Ophthalmologists reported around 70 cases of people experiencing vision problems after watching the eclipse.

Around 40% had looked at it for less than a minute.

In an added bonus for stargazers, the annual Perseid meteor shower is set to reach its peak on the night of August 12-13, hours after the eclipse.

The shower is produced as Earth ploughs through a stream of dust left behind by Comet Swift–Tuttle.

Each tiny grain strikes Earth’s atmosphere at about 60 kilometres per second, burning up in a brief flash that takes the appearance of a shooting star.

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