Finland is set to experience a partial solar eclipse on Tuesday.
The eclipse is forecast to start at around 12:10pm and end at about 3:30pm, and will be at its peak at 1:20pm, depending on the area.
The astronomical society Ursa predicted that the eclipse will be at its strongest in the Lapland municipality of Utsjoki, where the moon will cover 69 percent of the sun at 1:18pm. In Mariehamn, on the Åland islands off the country's southern coastline, the eclipse will reach its maximum coverage of 59 percent at 1:16pm.
According to Ursa, Helsinki will experience the peak of the eclipse at 1:21pm when the moon will cover 63 percent of the sun.
A solar eclipse is when the moon passes in front of the sun in its orbit, as seen from Earth. The moon orbits the Earth in a slightly tilted orbit, so eclipses do not occur every month, but the moon usually passes either above or below the sun's orbit in the sky.
The next partial solar eclipse is expected in March 2025 while the next total eclipse over Finland will occur in October 2126.
Finland's last total eclipse occurred in 1990, while the last partial eclipse over Finnish skies was observed in June 2021, when the moon covered up to 61 percent of the sun at Utsjoki, the country's northernmost municipality near the Norwegian border.
Tuesday's partial eclipse will be at its strongest in Siberia, reaching 86 percent coverage, according to Ursa.
The society also urged people not to look directly at the eclipse without glasses and to protect camera, binocular and telescope lenses with a suitable filter.
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