PHOTOS: Millions in Europe view eclipse with odd devices
A solar eclipse briefly darkened the sky over northern Europe on Friday, and millions used sun viewers ranging from a welder's mask to a dental X-ray to watch the cosmic phenomenon.
While the best spot to view the rare total eclipse was in the remote Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, possibly the worst was in murky and damp London. But that didn't stop schoolchildren wearing protective glasses from looking up at the thick cloud cover over the Royal Observatory in Greenwich Park.
And a dog owner even put shielding eyewear on his pooch in London's Regent's Park.
Spectators were creative in trying to get a glimpse of the eclipse. The welder's mask was held up to the sky by a woman in Ukraine, while a man in Kosovo used a dental X-ray to better observe the wonder. Others used makeshift pinhole projectors, while one viewer used a dark glass plate in Bosnia's capital.
The Dutch royals got in the mood, with King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima watching the eclipse at the Fish Market in Hamburg, Germany. The queen, dressed from head to toe in red, smiled as her husband pointed up to the sky in delight.
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A woman use a welders mask to watch the solar eclipse in Kiev, Ukraine, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) -
The total solar eclipse seen from Svalbard, Norway Friday March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Haakon Mosvold Larsen, NTB Scanpix) NORWAY OUT -
On this photo taken through a solar filter material, the moon blocks part of the sun during a solar eclipse as seen over Moscow Kremlin's Troitskaya (Trinity) tower, in Russia, on Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade.(AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin) -
A solar eclipse is seen through a dark glass plate in Sarajevo, Bosnia , on Friday , March 20, 2015. Solar eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade.(AP Photo/Amel Emric) -
The solar eclipse is reflected on the sunglasses of a man in Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias) -
A solar eclipse is seen through a dark glass plate in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on Friday, March 20, 2015. Solar eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade.(AP Photo/Amel Emric) -
A spot of sunlight breaks through the clouds and shines on a vessel on the sea during the partial phase of a solar eclipse before totality as seen from a hill beside a hotel on the edge of the city overlooking Torshavn, the capital of the Faeroe Islands, Friday, March 20, 2015. A blanket of clouds in the Faeroe Islands blocked thousands of people there from experiencing the full effect of the total eclipse. The clouds then cleared after totality. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) -
The sun is seen during an eclipse between two statues of the Duomo gothic cathedral in Milan, Italy, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni) -
Sister Mira from Albania looks at a solar eclipse in St.Peter's Square at the Vatican, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) -
People view the total solar eclipse in Svalbard, Norway Friday March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Haakon Mosvold Larsen, NTB Scanpix) NORWAY OUT -
The moon starts to block the sun during a solar eclipse over a statue of the Duomo gothic cathedral in Milan, Italy, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) -
A woman stops to watch a solar eclipse outside a shopping mall in Bucharest, Romania, Friday, March 20, 2015. Clouds obscured the sun for most of the time the eclipse took place. Sign reads "Don't look directly at the sun, danger of blindness" . (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda) -
Schoolchildren pose for photographers at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich Park, as people gather to try to see the solar eclipse in London, Friday, March 20, 2015. In the capital, thick cloud cover obscured a view of the sun. (AP Photo/Tim Ireland) -
People watch in darkness during the totality of a solar eclipse on as seen from a hill beside a hotel on the edge of the city overlooking Torshavn, the capital city of the Faeroe Islands, Friday, March 20, 2015. For months, even years, accommodation on the remote Faeroe Islands has been booked out by fans who don't want to miss an almost three-minute-long astronomical sensation. Now they just have to hope the clouds will blow away so they can fully experience Friday's brief total solar eclipse. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) -
A man uses a dental X-ray to better observe the solar eclipse in Kosovo capital Pristina on Friday, March 20, 2015. Clouds moving over the country allowed only brief views of the eclipse which in southern Europe was partial. (AP Photo/Visar Kryeziu) -
Amanda, from Italy, runs as she looks up to the sun wearing protective goggles during a solar eclipse in Barcelona, Spain, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti) -
A total solar eclipse is visible through the clouds as seen from Vagar on the Faeroe Islands, Friday, March 20, 2015. Apart from a few small breaks, a blanket of clouds in the Faeroe Islands blocked thousands of people there from experiencing the full effect of the total eclipse. (AP Photo/Eric Adams) -
The moon starts to block the sun during a solar eclipse seen through clouds, in Skopje, Macedonia, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse, a rare solar event, is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in the last total solar eclipse in Europe for over a decade (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) -
The moon blocks part of the sun during a solar eclipse as seen over a statue at the one of the city landmarks, the General Staff Headquarters in St.Petersburg, Russia, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky) -
Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands watch the solar eclipse through special glasses at the Fish Market in Hamburg, Germany, Friday March 20, 2015. The royal couple is on a two-day visit of Northern Germany. An eclipse is darkening parts of Europe on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/dpa, Christian Charisius) -
A dog is given protective glasses by its owner prior to the solar eclipse in Regent's Park in London, Friday, March 20, 2015. Unfortunately due to heavy cloud cover, the eclipse was not visible in London. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) -
The Tunisian flag flies as the sun is seen during an eclipse in Tunis, Tunisia, Friday, March 20, 2015. An eclipse is darkening parts of the world on Friday in a rare solar event that won't be repeated for more than a decade. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) -
A man uses a piece of tinted glass to observe a solar eclipse in Belgrade, Serbia, Friday, March 20, 2015. Astronomy lovers and sky gazers in Serbia were treated to a clear blue sky as they observed a solar eclipse in Belgrade on Friday. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
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PHOTOS: Millions in Europe view eclipse with odd devices (2015, March 20)
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