When is the next solar eclipse the UK? Next total eclipse in 2024, partial eclipse - dates and locations

Solar eclipses are one of the most spectacular celestial phenomena we Earthlings get to experience, as the Moon obscures the Sun, casting a vast shadow upon our planet in cosmic ballet.

Eclipses aren't actually all that rare, with 224 occurring in the 21st century alone - an average of two (.24) every year.

So when exactly will the next solar eclipse take place? Will it be a total eclipse, and - perhaps most importantly - will it be visible from the UK? Here is everything you need to know.

How many solar eclipses will there be in 2024?

The world will see two solar eclipses during 2024. One of these will be a total solar eclipse, while the other will be annular, a type of partial eclipse in which the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun's, blocking most of the Sun's light and causing it to look like a ring.

The total eclipse comes first, occurring on Monday 8 April, while the annular eclipse will take place on Wednesday 2 October.

Will any of them be visible from the UK?

Unfortunately, neither of 2024's two solar eclipses will be visible from the UK. The total solar eclipse on 8 April will be visible across a vastly populated stretch of land in the US though, so it's likely to be an event widely covered in the media.

In fact, it's already being dubbed the "Great American Eclipse" by some, and if that sounds familiar, that's because we only relatively recently had another one of those, in 2017.

That was the total eclipse during which then-President Donald Trump famously removed his protective eyewear to stare directly at the sun. A widely known no-no.

2024's version crosses North American in an opposite direction to the eclipse seven years prior, beginning at the Pacific coast before cutting across mainland North America, ascending in a northeasterly direction through Mexico, the United States and Canada, before ending in the Atlantic Ocean.

It will be the first total solar eclipse to be visible in Canada since 1979, and the first in Mexico since 1991. Mainland America won't see another until 2044. It's also the only total solar eclipse of the 21st century to cross Mexico, the US and Canada.

Those in Mexico will see the greatest effects, with the town of Nazas expected to experience totality (the period of time in which the Sun is entirely "covered" by the Moon) of nearly four and a half minutes.

The annular eclipse of 2 October will be visible only from a small area of populated land; apart from Easter Island and a small portion of the southern tips of Argentina and Chile, the eclipse will take place entirely over the Pacific Ocean.

When is the next eclipse in the UK?

While 2024 may not be the year for eclipses in the UK, we don't have too long to wait, and the next such celestial event visible from Britain will be a partial solar eclipse on Saturday 29 March 2025.

In terms of the next total eclipse, the next one of those visible from the UK won't be visible until 2081, and even then, mainland Britain won't experience the full effect - only the islands of Guernsey and Jersey.

It won't be until 2090 that mainland UK sees a total eclipse, when places like Poole, Newquay, Plymouth, Southampton, and Isle of Wight will get to experience the phenomenon.