A total solar eclipse over the USA - the first since 1979 - takes place at 7.40pm (BST) tonight.

And while the moon won't obscure all of the sun in the UK you'll still be able to see a partial eclipse here.

In the USA from Oregon to South Carolina the eclipse will last three minutes with falling temperatures and a darkened sky.

Here we'll have to content ourselves with something less spectacular but nonetheless still impressive.

The moon will cover 10% of the visible surface of the sun and 2% of the sun's area.

But the partial eclipse will last around 40 minutes in the UK.

James Brook tweeted us his picture of the eclipse.

Solar eclipses occur because the moon orbits the Earth at an average of 239,000 miles - which is just the right distance for it to appear the same size in the sky as the much larger sun, which is 93 million miles away.

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, obscuring the sun from view.

When the disk of the moon appears to completely cover the disk of the sun in the sky, it's known as a total solar eclipse. If part of the sun is still visible, it's known as a partial solar eclipse.

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, obscuring the sun from view.

When the disk of the moon appears to completely cover the disk of the sun in the sky, it's known as a total solar eclipse. If part of the sun is still visible, it's known as a partial solar eclipse.

Why do you need special glasses?

Young eclipse watchers at Cumberworth CE First School

Looking directly at the sun can damage your eyes, so if you're planning to watch the solar eclipse, you'll need a pair of solar viewing glasses.

These have special-purpose solar filters, which filter out all of the harmful ultraviolet and infrared light and almost all of the intense visible light to allow you to view the eclipse safely.

A whole range of companies are offering solar eclipse glasses which have a filter to protect your eyes, but you need to make sure they're safety tested and CE approved.

If you can't find CE-approved glasses, don't rely on regular sunglasses - they won't protect you. Instead it's worth looking at other techniques, such as pinhole projection.

When was the last solar eclipse?

Solar eclipse. Workmen at Thongsbridge view the eclipse through welding masks.

The last solar eclipse that was visible in the UK was on March 20, 2015.

The eclipse was total across the north Atlantic including the Faroe Islands, resulting in a large partial eclipse across the UK - greater than 80% everywhere.

While the line of totality didn't touch land in the United Kingdom, it passed less than 10 kilometres to the north-west of the island of Rockall.

In the US, there hasn't been a total solar eclipse since 1979.

When is the next Solar Eclipse in the UK?

Solar eclipse viewed from Thongsbridge.

A very small partial eclipse will take place in the UK on August 11, 2018, but it'll only be visible on the northern coast of Scotland, Orkney and Shetland, and the moon will only cover about 2% of the sun.

The next really good eclipse will be on August 12, 2026, when there will be a very large partial eclipse across Britain, ranging from around 96% in Cornwall to 91% in Aberdeen.

The next total eclipse visible in the UK is not until September, 23, 2090.