Live Updates: Europe Counts Down to a Total Solar Eclipse

BREAKING: A total solar eclipse is sweeping across Europe, from Iceland to Spain, as the moon completely blocks the sun in the continent's first total eclipse in decades.

The sun just went out over Europe, and it was on purpose.

A total solar eclipse is sweeping the continent right now, cutting a path from Iceland all the way down to Spain. The moon slides in front of the sun, day turns to twilight, temperatures drop, birds go quiet. Europe hasn't seen a total eclipse in decades, so for most people watching, this is a first.

And look at these crowds, thousands of faces in paper glasses all pointed at the same spot in the sky. In Reykjavik they got it early, and by the time the shadow reaches Spain, millions will have stood in the dark in the middle of the day.

Here's the part I love. No ticket, no subscription, no algorithm. The best show on Earth today was free, you just had to look up. The next one over Europe won't come for years, so if you caught it, you caught something rare.

This is Kateryna Kovalenko, reporting for HIT.

Source Read the original reporting at nytimes.com