A PARTIAL solar eclipse will grace our skies today, here is all you need to know about the lunar spectacle.

Anyone gazing into the sky this morning will be able to see almost a third of the sun being blocked by the moon in an annular eclipse.

But how can you see it and what will it look like?

Here is everything you need to know.

What is a partial eclipse?

A partial solar eclipse occurs when only a portion of the is Sun blocked by the Moon, exactly how much will depend on your location.

In Greenland 89 per cent of the Sun will be obscured causing the sun to appear as a very bright ring, often dubbed as the ‘ring of fire’.

Observers in the UK and Ireland will see a crescent sun instead of a ring, as this will be a partial eclipse.

How and when can I see it?

The partial solar eclipse will be visible across the skies over Britain on Thursday as the moon passes between the earth and the sun.

Dr Emily Drabek-Maunder, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, said: “From the UK, the annular solar eclipse will be a partial eclipse, meaning that we’ll only see the Moon pass in front of a small part of the Sun.”

She said the phenomenon will begin at 10.08am on June 10 in the UK, with the maximum eclipse occurring at 11.13am, when the Moon will cover close to one-third of the Sun.

The partial eclipse will end at 12.22pm.

Even though a large part of the solar disc will be covered, looking at the partially eclipsed Sun without appropriate protection can cause serious and permanent damage to the eyes.

Dr Drabek-Maunder said: “The eclipse from the UK will only be visible with certain techniques and optical aids.

“Never look at the Sun directly or use standard sunglasses, it can cause serious harm to your eyes.”

It is also not wise not to look at the Sun through binoculars, telescopes or a telephoto lens on an SLR camera.

Dr Drabek-Maunder suggests using a simple pinhole projector, solar eclipse viewing glasses – which can be purchased online, or special solar filters – which can fit on telescopes, to observe the eclipse.

She said: “You can make a projector by poking a small hole into a piece of card.

“Hold the card up to the Sun so that light shines through the hole and on to a piece of paper behind the card.

“You will be able to see the shape of the Sun projected on to the piece of paper and watch its shape change as the Moon passes in front of the Sun.”

The Royal Observatory Greenwich is also live-streaming the eclipse on its website and YouTube channel.