When the Sky Reminds Us We’re Part of Something Bigger

Wednesday 12 August 2026 brings one of those rare occasions when millions of people will stop what they are doing, look towards the sky and share the same extraordinary moment.

This evening, the Moon will pass between the Earth and the Sun, creating a solar eclipse.

For those fortunate enough to be within the narrow path of totality across Greenland, Iceland and parts of the Iberian Peninsula, the Sun will disappear completely for a brief period.

Here in Wales, we will experience a deep partial eclipse, with the vast majority of the Sun obscured.

It will begin shortly after 6pm, reaching its greatest extent at around 7.10–7.15pm before the Moon gradually moves away again.

And although Wales will remain outside the path of totality, this is still something rather special.

Perhaps part of its magic is its simplicity.

The Moon passes in front of the Sun.

Nothing has gone wrong.

Nothing needs fixing.

Nature is simply doing what nature does.

Looking upwards

Human beings have watched eclipses for thousands of years.

Long before we understood the mechanics of the Solar System, cultures around the world created stories and traditions to explain these extraordinary moments when daylight suddenly changed.

Today, we understand the astronomy considerably better.

The Moon’s apparent size in our sky happens to be similar to that of the vastly larger but much more distant Sun. When their paths align from our perspective on Earth, the Moon can obscure some or all of the solar disc.

Yet knowing the science somehow fails to remove the wonder.

Perhaps it actually adds to it.

We live on a planet travelling through space, orbiting a star approximately 150 million kilometres away, while a Moon roughly 384,000 kilometres from us moves around our world.

Every so often those movements align.

And suddenly we notice.

There is something powerful about awe

Psychologists have become increasingly interested in something humans have probably understood instinctively forever: awe.

Awe is the feeling we experience when confronted with something so vast, beautiful or extraordinary that our everyday concerns temporarily feel smaller.

Mountains can create it.

A spectacular night sky can create it.

Standing beside the sea can create it.

And eclipses certainly can.

Researchers Goldy, Jones and Piff examined almost 2.9 million social-media users during the 2017 American solar eclipse.

Their findings were fascinating.

People within the eclipse’s path expressed more awe and used language that was less self-focused and more associated with humility, connection and collective experience.

The researchers concluded that extraordinary astronomical events may help orient people towards the wider communities of which they are part.

For a few minutes, perhaps, life becomes a little less about me and a little more about us.

There is something rather beautiful about that.

Why this resonates with naturism

For many naturists in Wales, our relationship with the natural world is already an important part of how we experience life.

Naturism strips away many of the artificial distinctions we create between ourselves.

Clothing can communicate wealth, occupation, fashion, status and social identity. Remove those layers and something remarkably ordinary remains:

people.

Different bodies.

Different ages.

Different experiences.

Different stories.

Yet fundamentally human.

Nature can offer something similar.

Stand beneath an enormous Welsh sky, beside the sea or among the mountains and nature really does not care about your job title, waist measurement, bank balance or whether somebody approves of your appearance.

You simply belong there.

Research increasingly suggests that this feeling of connection with the natural world matters.

A major international investigation published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology examined 36,803 people across 75 countries and found nature connectedness to be a robust positive predictor of aspects of wellbeing including purpose in life, hope, mindfulness, life satisfaction and optimism.

Other research involving adults in England has similarly associated nature connectedness with wellbeing and pro-environmental behaviour.

And there is another connection particularly relevant to naturism.

Research published in Body Image found associations between exposure and connectedness to nature and greater body appreciation. A 2024 review of the wider evidence concluded that a growing body of research supports an association between experiencing natural environments and healthier body image.

Perhaps that should not surprise us.

Nature constantly reminds us that diversity is normal.

No two trees grow identically.

Every coastline is irregular.

Every mountain has its own shape.

Nothing needs to conform to an artificial template before we are capable of recognising its beauty.

Why should people be any different?

A very Welsh perspective

We are particularly fortunate here.

Wales gives us extraordinary places from which to experience the natural world: mountains, valleys, forests, fields, rivers and hundreds of miles of coastline.

For many within our naturist community, those landscapes are more than scenery.

They are places where we slow down.

Places where friendships grow.

Places where conversations happen.

Places where we remember that being comfortable with ourselves can be wonderfully uncomplicated.

The eclipse adds another dimension to that relationship.

For a short while on Wednesday evening, attention will move away from phones, deadlines, arguments and everything else demanding a piece of us.

People across Wales will simply look upwards.

Families, neighbours, astronomers, photographers, walkers, naturists and people who happened to wander outside at exactly the right moment will all be watching the same sky.

Different people sharing one experience.

That feels remarkably close to our own values of Kindness, Acceptance, Respect and Community.

Experience it safely

There is one important difference between enjoying a beautiful Welsh sunset and watching an eclipse.

Never look directly at the Sun without appropriate solar viewing protection.

Ordinary sunglasses are not sufficient.

Proper eclipse glasses should meet the ISO 12312-2 international safety standard and should be undamaged. Indirect methods, including pinhole projection, can also allow the eclipse to be enjoyed safely.

Even when most of the Sun is hidden by the Moon, the remaining visible portion is powerful enough to damage eyesight.

So enjoy the spectacle — safely.

For a moment, simply belong

Maybe that is the thought worth carrying into Wednesday evening.

An eclipse reminds us of scale.

The things consuming our attention today can feel enormous.

Then we look upwards.

There is the Sun.

There is the Moon.

There is our small corner of Wales beneath them.

And there we are amongst it all.

For naturists, perhaps there is an additional reminder.

We do not stand outside nature looking in.

We are part of it.

Different by design, imperfect by artificial standards perhaps, yet entirely natural.

For a few remarkable minutes this evening, the shadow of the Moon will travel across our world and millions of strangers will share essentially the same reaction:

Look at that.

Sometimes community really can begin with something as simple as looking in the same direction.

Where will you be watching the eclipse from this evening?

References

Goldy, S. P., Jones, N. M. & Piff, P. K. (2022). The Social Effects of an Awesome Solar Eclipse. Psychological Science, 33(9).

Pritchard, A., Richardson, M., Sheffield, D. & McEwan, K. (2020). The Relationship Between Nature Connectedness and Eudaimonic Well-Being: A Meta-analysis. Journal of Happiness Studies, 21, 1145–1167.

Swami, V., Barron, D., Weis, L. & Furnham, A. (2016). Bodies in nature: Associations between exposure to nature, connectedness to nature, and body image in US adults. Body Image, 18, 153–161.

Swami, V. (2024). Associations between nature exposure and body image: A critical, narrative review of the evidence. Acta Psychologica, 247, 104355.

White, M. P. et al. (2020). Nature contact, nature connectedness and associations with health, wellbeing and pro-environmental behaviours. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 68, 101389.

Nature connectedness and well-being: Evidence from a multi-national investigation across 75 countries. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 110 (2026), 102895.