People all around the Earth witnessed a spectacular solar eclipse on Friday. Its range began in Canada, and then continued northeast across Greenland and the Arctic, then southeast through central Russia, Mongolia, and China.

People from northeastern North America and the ones from most of Europe and Asia saw a partial solar eclipse that was said to be quite spectacular as well.

The city of Nadym, the third largest city in Russia, was the first to experience the eclipse, at its peak length of 2 minutes and 27 seconds of darkness.

The Moon crosses the Earth once a month in its movement, during the new moon. But for an eclipse to occur the moon has to go straight between the Sun and the Earth.

An average eclipse is about three minutes long although some may last up to seven minutes. When it reaches its full point, the sky darkens enough to allow the stars to be seen.

Apparently, eclipse watching is only safe during the few moments of a total eclipse, not during a partial one. By doing so one may suffer serious eye damage. Special eclipse glasses must be worn.

Eclipses are believed to have the incredible ability to change things around. This is the second of an 18-month series of eclipses. On Friday evening the eclipse was favorably received in China, being considered to be a good omen before the Olympic Games.

The last total solar eclipse visible from the United States was in 1979. The next solar eclipse will occur on July 22, 2009.