TOURISTS will be heading north later this month — not to soak up the sun but to watch it disappear.
A total eclipse will take place on March 20 over the Faroe Islands and Svalbard in Norway.
Britain will experience a partial eclipse with parts of northern Scotland seeing more than 98% of the sun blocked out by the moon. London and the southeast can expect an eclipse of about 85%.
A booming tourist trade has grown up around spectacular natural events such as eclipses and volcanic activity.
A four-day trip to the Faroes is being offered by one travel company for £2,400 and a 12-day cruise to the islands in time for the eclipse begins at £1,299 per traveller.
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In Svalbard, an Arctic total solar eclipse tour costing about £3,800 has already sold out.
Dr John Mason, an “eclipse chaser”, warned that the weather was a crucial factor to those wanting to see the “totality”.
“The key to success in the Faroes would appear to be mobility and a willingness to choose a suitable observing site . . . based on the weather conditions and wind direction,” he said on the Astronomy Now website.
“Quick thinking and an element of luck will be needed. Although nowhere in the British Isles will witness totality, a very significant partial eclipse will be seen right across the region. An obvious partial eclipse will be visible from every country in Europe.”
In Britain the best place to see the eclipse — if it is not cloudy — will be on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis, near Aird Uig, where there will be a 98% eclipse at 9.36am.
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Those watching on the Isle of Skye and the Orkneys could see about 97% of the sun covered. In London the eclipse will reach its peak of about 85% coverage at 9.31am.
Anyone thinking of travelling to the frozen north should bear in mind that the total eclipse lasts just under three minutes.