Total solar eclipse 2024: Live updates and latest news

It’s always worth remembering that eye safety is very important when it comes to looking at the Sun, even when the Moon is partially in the way. If not, the Sun’s rays can permanently damage your eyesight.

This is something former US president Donald Trump seemed to forget during the last solar eclipse over the US in 2017. The reality TV star stared directly at the Sun with no protection over his eyes.

Not one to miss an opportunity for a shot at his rival, President Joe Biden shared a video on Instagram and X showing him in the same spot Trump stood seven years ago.

“An eclipse is worth marveling at,” he wrote. “But don’t be silly, folks – play it safe and wear protective eyewear.”

We’ve heard from astrophysicist Jonathan Blazek from Northeastern University in the US, who says that even those not directly beneath the path of totality will have the opportunity to gain a few minutes of “cosmic perspective” during Monday’s eclipse.

Professor Blazek tells The Independent that he is organising a viewing event on Northeastern’s Boston campus, which will see about 93 per cent totality.

The UK Met Office has helpfully provided a graphic showing the weather forecast for the path of totality in the US for today’s solar eclipse.

There is heavy rain across much of the southern US, with both Austin and Nashville potentially facing at least partial cloud cover. Luckily, most other spots look like they will get clear skies.

“For many along the optimal path with weather will allow a good view,” the Met Office says.

Unfortunately for those in the UK and Ireland, the weather forecast is not looking so favourable.

A reminder that it is not only in North America that the solar eclipse will be visible. Partial obscuration of the Sun will take place as far away as the UK and Ireland – thousands of kilometres away from the path of totality.

There will be a brief moment to witness it before sunset at around 8pm, with the partial solar eclipse crossing over the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the west of England.

The best place to see it in the British Isles will be the west coast of Ireland. More than a third of the Sun will be covered in Galway, while Cork and Limerick will see around 20 per cent obscuration.

In England, just a tiny slice of less than one per cent of the Sun will be covered by the Moon in Liverpool and Manchester.

You don’t need Nasa to tell you where in the US is going to get a total eclipse – you can just look at bookings on Airbnb.

Data gathered by AirDNA shows a massive spike in short-term rentals on platforms like Airbnb on 7 April and 9 April, as tourists hopeful of getting the best view of the solar eclipse flocking to the path of totality.

We’ll have an update of the latest weather forecast soon, but it looks like many of those making the bookings will be disappointed.

Roughly 44 million people live under the path of totality, with hundreds of millions more getting a chance to see a partial solar eclipse today.

We have a map showing the full path of the total solar eclipse, which crosses over some major metropolitan areas in its journey from the west coast of Mexico to the east coast of Canada.

Major cities beneath the path of totality include Durango, Austin, Dallas, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Toronto and Montreal.

You can read more about the eclipse’s path here.

Dr John Mason, who has led astronomical tours to view total solar eclipses for three decades, says:  “You can’t observe all the wonders of totality unless you’ve got 100 per cent.

When deciding where to lead his eclipse disciples, Dr Mason studies decades of weather records to maximise the chances of clear skies. But, he warns: “The statistics for the weather are only a guide.

“On the day, it could be totally different. You could find that there could be a cloudy day in Texas, and it could be clear up in the Northeast, in Maine. It’s only a guide.”

The location Dr Mason believes may attract the most viewers: Niagara Fall, on the US-Canada border.

“I could imagine huge numbers of people making their way to Niagara Falls because it’s got its cachet of an amazing view and and the total eclipse as well.”

For anyone who misses the 8 April 2024 total solar eclipse, the next will be on 12 August 2026, with northern Spain and the Balearic islands in the zone of totality.

Simon Calder, travel correspondent of The Independent, arrived in Montreal late last night after buying the last economy class seat on the “Eclipse express”: British Airways flight 95, which arrived in the Canadian city at 9.05pm, local time.

Over breakfast at Eggspectation, a restaurant in downtown Montreal, he performs an exclusive interpretive prediction of the scenes later in the day – using only the Quebecois speciality, poutine.

Montreal is the only big city on the path of totality with near-certain clear skies. The Canadian government is predicting unbroken sunshine until at least 6pm, local time, with the eclipse passing over for 90 seconds at 3.27pm. The temperature is expected to reach 16C. The weather is unusual for early April. Montreal experiences extreme cold, and is only slowly emerging from winter.

Snow is piled high on some city streets, and weather records for the corresponding date in earlier years showing a high of –2C in 1977 and, the following year, three inches of snow.

The Royal Institution – the centuries old organisation that has fostered some of the greatest scientific minds in history – has a joke for you: