Air passengers treated to special view of solar eclipse above the clouds
Droves of sky-watchers stepped out and peered upward across Europe and parts of Asia and Africa Friday as a solar eclipse swept across the northern part of the continent.
The thousands of tourists who traveled north of Norway to the remote island of Svalbard were treated to the best views of a total eclipse, millions of others in the rest of the region had a chance to see a partially blocked sun.
But the handful of folks who climbed aboard a special chartered flight were treated to a once-in-a-lifetime moment.
Marina from St. Petersburg was one of the lucky few to join the trip.
"I have seen a solar eclipse. It is awesome. There are no words to express what I was feeling. Because it is just unimaginable happiness, shared by everybody here at the same moment. Everybody at the same moment, the whole plane was in ecstasy," she told Reuters.
Related coverage on AOL.com
Ring of light: Total eclipse over Svalbard islands in Arctic
Polar bear attacks tent in Norway's Arctic, injures tourist
Faeroes invaded by total eclipse seekers
Solar storm brings dazzling Northern Lights further south
