IT is the birthplace of astronomy in Scotland’s capital.
Now for a partial solar eclipse on Tuesday, astronomers will put a historic telescope in the Calton Hill Observatory in Edinburgh to use for the first time in over a decade.
The president of the Astronomical Society of Edinburgh said the last time the "great" Cooke telescope within the observatory was in 2008.
Mark Phillips said: "We used it a lot at the time, we were up there on Calton Hill all the time but by 2008 the building had become in such a bad state – there were pests and vandalism – so we couldn’t hold our meetings up there and couldn’t use the telescope.
"We couldn’t really have people up there full stop, so we had to leave."
The building has been brought back to standard after it was taken over by Collective and reopened as an art gallery in 2018.
READ MORE: Partial solar eclipse expected to be seen in Scotland's skies on Tuesday
At 10.03am on October 25, the Moon is expected to move in front of the Sun before reaching a peak of its coverage in Scotland around 10.55am.
It will give the appearance of a "bite" being taken from the celestial body as the moon is expected to cover just under a fifth of the star.
Views from the Cooke telescope will be streamed to the society's YouTube page but Scots are also invited to gather outside the dome where smaller telescopes with eclipse glasses will be set up for the public.
Speaking on the historic tool which has been housed on Calton Hill since 1896, Mr Phillips said: "It is a great instrument. The optics still stand the test of time.
"There were a couple parts that needed to be manufactured again.
"Another member and I have been pushing to get it back in operation again because the telescope was donated to the city observatory for the people of the city. It's exciting to get that happening again."
The next partial solar eclipse which will be readily visible from the UK is not expected until March 29, 2025.
Another eclipse is due to happen on April 8, 2024 but as it will take place "when the sun is right on the horizon" it may not be very visible.
The astronomer also issued a warning to not "mess around with your eyesight" when trying to observe an eclipse as there is a "danger of blinding yourself permanently" without the right equipment.
"There is no safe way to look directly at it unless you've got properly certified equipment," Mr Phillips said.
However, there is a solution for those keen to see the event.
He said: "The simplest way is to poke a little hole into a piece of card and that will project an image of the shadow behind that card."
Alternatively, you can tune into the Astronomical Scoiety of Edinburgh's live stream or join members on Calton Hill where they will have solar telescopes and eclipse glasses.
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