Total Solar Eclipse for First Time in 121 Years Thrills Europe

[Anchor]

A total solar eclipse, where the moon completely blocks the sun, has been observed in Europe for the first time in 121 years, drawing millions of tourists.

Correspondent Kwon Yeongin reports from Paris.

[Reporter]

As the final sliver of the sun disappears behind the moon, cheers and applause erupt.

A total solar eclipse took place in northern Spain, with the sun being completely obscured by the moon.

[Tomasz Czarnecki / Polish tourist: It was a truly amazing experience. Driving 2,700 kilometers all the way from Poland here was worth it, as I was able to witness the eclipse in person. It was a truly wonderful experience.]

In particular, as Spain experienced its first total solar eclipse since 1905, 121 years ago, more than 5 million tourists flocked to the country.

[Patty Jefferson / American tourist: Coming from Texas, I couldn't imagine a better scenery than here on a Spanish beach.]

While the most perfect total solar eclipses occurred in parts of Spain and Iceland, other European regions such as France and the UK also experienced eclipses where over 90% of the sun was blocked, causing a buzz across Europe.

In Paris, as public interest in the total solar eclipse surged, special glasses designed for safely viewing the sun directly became nearly impossible to find on the market.

[Michael / Paris resident: There was no inventory of glasses, so everyone had a really hard time finding them. Masks... No, I mean a glasses craze broke out. So everyone was at a loss.]

Spectacular scenes unfolded against the backdrop of major tourist attractions such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and Big Ben in London. Such an eclipse will not be visible again in the UK and France until after 2080.

[Kristina Danielski / Swedish tourist: It was truly fantastic. The sun was so beautiful. I have genuinely never seen a scene like this. It was a truly astonishing sight.]

Amid recent power shortages in Europe, concerns had been raised over potential limitations to solar power generation caused by this total solar eclipse, but it was estimated that the actual impact was not significant.

(Camera Reporter: Kim Si-nae, Video Editor: Cho Mu-hwan)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.