Experiencing totality a real physical experience, says eclipse chaserpublished at 10:27 BST
10:27 BST
Ben Hatton
Live reporter
Image source, Ryan Milligan
Ryan Milligan is travelling from Northern Ireland, where about 93% of the Sun will be blocked out, to northern Spain, where the Sun will be completely hidden behind the Moon, so he can experience the moment of totality.
I ask him if those few extra percentage points of eclipse cover worth the trip – but he doesn’t even let me get to the end of the question.
“Yes, 100%” he says.
An eclipse chaser, Milligan has travelled the world to experience that fleeting moment – including trips to Chile, China, Indonesia and Australia.
“Getting into the path of totality is always the challenge,” he says.
“That path, which is essentially the Moon’s shadow being cast onto the Earth, is usually about 100 miles wide. So you need to get to wherever that is on the Earth. It will only be there for a matter of moments usually.”
He describes the moment of totality as “a real physical experience because the temperature drops, the light becomes all weird, and your brain is trying to process all this new information”.
Milligan adds: “It does become highly addictive because it is such a unique experience that cannot be replicated by any other event in nature in my experience.”