There are few celestial phenomena more breathtaking and eerie than a solar eclipse and Scotland will boast some of the best views as the moon obscures the sun in dramatic fashion later this week

Billed as the most spectacular partial eclipse of the sun for decades, it is set to see the country experience twilight-like conditions for close to two hours on Friday.

The rare astronomical alignment will see the moon pass directly between the sun and the earth, blocking out most of the light between 8.30am and 10.42am, reaching its peak around 9.34am.

Northern Scotland will have the best view of the partial eclipse with the likes of Shetland and Orkney seeing almost 98 per cent of the sun covered. For London and the south-east of England it will be around 84 per cent.

But anyone wishing to view a total solar eclipse will have to visit the Faroe Islands where the sun will be completely covered for roughly two minutes.

According to Steve Owens, an astronomer and science education co-ordinator for Glasgow Science Centre in Glasgow, the event will still be well worth viewing here.

"This will be the best partial eclipse visible in Scotland for decades," he says. "The last partial eclipse people might remember was in 1999 when here in Scotland we saw 70% or so depending on how far south you were.

"This time round in Glasgow we are going to see 94% of the sun eclipsed, while people in Shetland will see 98% eclipsed. It won't get to total eclipse but there will be only a tiny slither of sun visible."

Owens said we shouldn't be too concerned about being plunged into complete darkness. "The part of the sun still visible is hundreds of thousands of times brighter than the full moon," he says. "It will still feel like daytime but at dusk.

"If there are clear skies you will certainly notice a difference. There are very few places in Scotland where you wouldn't see the effect of the eclipse. Even if it is blanket cloud cover you would still notice the environment darkening but it wouldn't be quite as dramatic."

There can be other kooky natural occurrences too. "People often talk about the birds thinking it is dusk when an eclipse happens. I remember a uniquely Scottish version of that back in 1999 when the last eclipse happened and all the midges came up out of the grass," says Owens. "It was beautiful sunshine but as soon as it went dusky we started getting bitten. We didn't expect the attack of the midges which happened at the point of maximum eclipse."

Throughout history solar eclipses have variously been viewed as omens of impending doom, the wrath of the Gods or the demise of a ruling dynasty. One of the earliest recorded, the Ugarit eclipse in 1374BC, saw Mesopotamian historians in Northern Syria write that the sun was "put to shame".

Three of the four canonical gospels state that the sky grew dark after the crucifixion of Jesus. Some historians have tied this to a total solar eclipse that occurred in the year 29AD. King Henry I died two years after an eclipse in 1133AD, cementing superstition that they were an ominous portent for rulers.

"Up until fairly recently, within the last few hundred years, eclipses weren't widely understood," says Owens. "These dramatic events would appear to come out of nowhere or were predicted by priests because they were the only ones who had the knowledge to understand when they were going to happen.

"It's probably one of the few instances where we can easily engage with an incredibly dramatic natural phenomenon. The other astronomical events on a similar scale are meteor showers or displays of the Northern Lights, but even those pale in comparison to the sun being obscured."

Almost 400 school children will descend on the Glasgow Science Centre to watch the eclipse and enjoy a day of themed activities including the Our Place in Space star show at the planetarium, Hidden Universe 3D in the IMAX and Mission X:Train Like An Astronaut workshops.

There will be other events held across Scotland. At the Scottish Dark Sky Observatory at Dalmellington, Ayrshire, visitors will be able to view the eclipse from 8am, and at Coats Observatory, Paisley, from 8.30am.

The next total solar eclipse over the UK won't take place until September 23, 2090. "There will be some partial eclipses between now and then but it is unlikely that any partial eclipse will be as complete as this one because we are getting between 93-98 per cent in Scotland," says Owens. "Unless you travel to see a solar eclipse, this is about the best anyone will see in their lifetime."

For more information, visit glasgowsciencecentre.org

Steve Owen's Top Five Tips for Viewing a Solar Eclipse

1. Never look at the sun directly, even during an eclipse. It's still bright enough to permanently damage your eyesight. Never use binoculars or a telescope to view the sun.

2. Use eclipse viewing glasses that have filters that block out enough of the sun's light to allow you to safely watch an eclipse.

3. An even safer way of viewing an eclipse is to make a pinhole projector. Use a drawing pin to poke a small hole in a sheet of card. Let the sun's light pass through this hole onto another sheet of white card, and you'll see an image of the eclipse

4. Head somewhere with good open views, away from tall buildings. During this eclipse the Sun will be 25 degrees above the south east horizon.

5. Keep an eye on your local weather. If clouds are forecast where you are, think about heading somewhere with clearer skies.