Saturday 29th March 2025 brought one of those rare UK mornings where the sky was completely clear no clouds, no haze, just pure blue. Perfect timing, because that was the day of the partial solar eclipse, and I wasn’t going to miss it.

 I set everything up right in my back garden in Southsea. So I could sit back and relax.  I used my SeeStar S50, fitted with a solar filter, to safely observe and film the event. I had it tracking from just after 10:00am, ready to create a time-lapse as the eclipse unfolded.

Here in Portsmouth, the eclipse reached its peak around 11:03am, with roughly 35–40% of the Sun obscured by the Moon.  

Eclipse Facts – Portsmouth (Southsea), UK

• Date: Saturday, 29 March 2025

• Type: Partial Solar Eclipse

• Eclipse begins (first contact): 10:07am GMT

• Maximum eclipse: 11:03am GMT – approx. 36–38% of the Sun covered

• Eclipse ends (last contact): 12:01pm GMT

• Total duration: ~1 hour 54 minutes