How and when to watch total solar eclipse in Qld

A rare solar eclipse will be visible on Thursday, April 20. We have the guide on how and where to see it.

For the first time in 10 years you will be able to see a rare phenomenon known as a hybrid solar eclipse.

From 1:43pm to 3:41pm on Thursday, a solar eclipse will be visible in Queensland with the visibility increasing the further north you head.

Last spotted in 2013, the hybrid solar eclipse combines an annular and a total solar eclipse, creating a ‘ring of fire,’ an effect that unfortunately won’t be visible to Queenslanders … unless you catch a last-minute flight to Western Australia.

Despite this, Benjamin Pope, an astrophysics lecturer at the University of Queensland’s Faculty of Science, said the eclipse is going to be great to see.

“In Brisbane it’s going to be only about 16 per cent, which sounds like not very much,” he said.

“But I tell you, when you see 16 per cent of the sun, even that is quite impressive.”

Children look at the sky during a partial solar eclipse. Picture: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images/AFP

Dr Pope said it is expected the best time to view the eclipse will be at 2:44pm.

“At about 2:15 it should already be reasonably impressive and should steadily grow, until 2:45,” he said.

“I would say don’t bother after 3:30, you probably won’t see anything.”

Dr Pope stressed the importance of not looking directly into the sun.

“It is it is important not to look at the sun with the naked eye and certainly not through an unfiltered telescope,” he said.

“Provided the weather is good, the University of Queensland will have solar telescopes and eclipse glasses in the Great Court on campus and in King George Square in the city.”

King George Square is outside the Brisbane City Hall between Ann and Adelaide streets, while UQ’s Great Court is on Mansfield Place in St Lucia.

The next solar eclipse expected to be visible from Queensland won’t be until 2028, when Brisbane is predicted to have about 80 per cent visibility.