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Switzerland watches spectacular solar eclipse

Thursday, 13 August 2026 09:44

Photo sent by a WRS listener.

Switzerland watched a rare partial solar eclipse on Wednesday evening, with the Moon covering more than 92% of the Sun above Geneva and Lausanne at its peak.

Thousands gathered along Lake Geneva and on Alpine summits, from the beach at Vidy to the top of the Moléson, where around 3,000 people packed the Fribourg peak. Roads to Chasseral in the Jura had to be closed after being overrun by cars, while some 200 observers followed the eclipse from the St-Luc observatory in the Val d'Anniviers.

It was the most significant partial eclipse over Switzerland since 1999, and viewers will now have to wait until 2075 for anything comparable.

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