How does the August 12, 2026 eclipse look from your location?
Updated August 9, 2026
On 12 August 2026, the Moon's shadow crosses eastern Greenland, western Iceland, and northern Spain: the first total solar eclipse over western mainland Europe since 1999, Spain's first since 1905, and Iceland's first since 1954. Totality lasts up to 2 minutes 18 seconds. Most of Europe sees a deep partial eclipse low in the evening sky; the northeastern United States and eastern Canada get a small partial around midday. Enter your location and azmth computes your exact times, in your browser, to the second.
What time is the eclipse where you are?
Am I in the path of totality?
The path of totality is a band about 294 km wide at its greatest. It begins at sunrise over Siberia's Taymyr Peninsula, crosses the Arctic Ocean and eastern Greenland (the Scoresby Sund region), then western Iceland including Reykjavík, sweeps across the North Atlantic, clips a tiny corner of northeastern Portugal near Bragança, and crosses northern Spain from Galicia to the Mediterranean, ending near the Balearic Islands almost at sunset. The greatest eclipse, 2 minutes 18 seconds of totality, happens in the ocean just off western Iceland at 17:46 UTC.
Inside the band in Spain: A Coruña, Oviedo, Gijón, Santander, Bilbao, León, Valladolid, Palencia, Burgos, Soria, Zaragoza, Teruel, Lleida, Tarragona, València, Castelló, and Palma de Mallorca, among others. Just outside it: Madrid and Barcelona, which see a 99.9% and 99.8% partial eclipse. The difference matters enormously: at 99.9% the sky never goes dark and you never see the corona. If you are close, travel into the band. The tool above tells you how far you are from it.
Eclipse times city by city
Local clock times at each place, computed with the same engine as the tool above (cross-checked against published predictions; they agree within seconds). "Covered" is the share of the Sun's disc area hidden at maximum.
| Location | Eclipse | Covered | Begins | Maximum | Totality | Sun height |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reykjavík · IS | Total | 100% | 16:47 GMT | 17:49 GMT | 1 min 5 s | 25° |
| Ittoqqortoormiit · GL | Partial | 99.6% | 15:36 GMT-1 | 16:37 GMT-1 | · | 24° |
| A Coruña · ES | Total | 100% | 19:31 CEST | 20:28 CEST | 1 min 20 s | 12° |
| Oviedo · ES | Total | 100% | 19:31 CEST | 20:28 CEST | 1 min 51 s | 10° |
| Santander · ES | Total | 100% | 19:31 CEST | 20:27 CEST | 1 min 7 s | 9° |
| Bilbao · ES | Total | 100% | 19:32 CEST | 20:27 CEST | 36 s | 8° |
| León · ES | Total | 100% | 19:33 CEST | 20:29 CEST | 1 min 48 s | 10° |
| Valladolid · ES | Total | 100% | 19:34 CEST | 20:30 CEST | 1 min 31 s | 9° |
| Burgos · ES | Total | 100% | 19:33 CEST | 20:29 CEST | 1 min 47 s | 8° |
| Zaragoza · ES | Total | 100% | 19:35 CEST | 20:30 CEST | 1 min 27 s | 6° |
| València · ES | Total | 100% | 19:38 CEST | 20:33 CEST | 1 min 6 s | 5° |
| Palma de Mallorca · ES | Total | 100% | 19:38 CEST | 20:32 CEST | 1 min 39 s | 3° |
| Madrid · ES | Partial | 99.9% | 19:37 CEST | 20:32 CEST | · | 7° |
| Barcelona · ES | Partial | 99.8% | 19:35 CEST | 20:29 CEST | · | 4° |
| Bragança · PT | Partial | 99.9% | 18:34 WEST | 19:31 WEST | · | 10° |
| Lisbon · PT | Partial | 94.4% | 18:39 WEST | 19:36 WEST | · | 10° |
| London · GB | Partial | 91.3% | 18:17 BST | 19:13 BST | · | 10° |
| Dublin · IE | Partial | 93.9% | 18:13 GMT+1 | 19:11 GMT+1 | · | 15° |
| Paris · FR | Partial | 92% | 19:22 CEST | 20:17 CEST | · | 8° |
| Berlin · DE | Partial | 84.8% | 19:15 CEST | 20:08 CEST | · | 4° |
| Rome · IT | Partial | 76.7% at sunset | 19:33 CEST | 20:15 CEST (sunset) | · | on the horizon |
| New York · US | Partial | 9.4% | 13:08 GMT-4 | 13:54 GMT-4 | · | 62° |
| Boston · US | Partial | 15.9% | 13:02 GMT-4 | 13:55 GMT-4 | · | 59° |
| Montreal · CA | Partial | 18.3% | 12:50 GMT-4 | 13:45 GMT-4 | · | 58° |
In Spain and much of Europe the Sun sets before the partial phase fully ends. In Rome the maximum itself happens after sunset, so the table shows what is covered as the Sun goes down. In UTC, totality crosses Iceland around 17:48 and northern Spain between 18:26 and 18:33.
Why the Sun's height matters this time
This is a sunset eclipse for Spain. At totality the Sun stands only about 12° above the horizon in A Coruña, 10° in Oviedo, 8° in Burgos, 6° in Zaragoza, 5° in València, and barely 3° in Palma de Mallorca. At those heights, any building, tree line, or hill to the west hides the whole show. Pick your spot in advance: you need a completely open view to the west-northwest, like a west-facing coastline, a hilltop, a wide plain, or a high rooftop. Iceland has it easier: in Reykjavík totality happens with the Sun about 25° up.
The low Sun is also why this eclipse can be spectacular: totality with the darkened Sun hanging just above the horizon, twilight colours all around, and in the Balearics the eclipsed Sun almost touching the sea.
Will it be cloudy? Where the odds are best
Climatology, from long-term August satellite records: Iceland averages 70 to 80% cloud cover in mid August, so clear skies there are the exception. Spain isthe expert pick: roughly 35% average cloud along the eclipse centreline across the central plateau, dropping below 30% in the Ebro valley around Zaragoza, which in one 21-year study would have been clear on 18 of 21 eclipse days. The trade-off: Spain's better skies come with that very low Sun, while Iceland offers a higher Sun through likelier clouds. In eastern Greenland, the inner Scoresby Sund fjords do surprisingly well thanks to dry föhn winds off the ice sheet.
Climatology is history, not a forecast. The tool above shows the actual hourly cloud forecast for your location at your exact eclipse time, and it keeps updating through eclipse day. If your forecast looks bad and you can drive an hour, check a few towns along the path and chase the gap.
Is it safe to look at the eclipse?
The one rule: never look at the partially eclipsed Sun without eclipse glasses certified to the ISO 12312-2 standard. Ordinary sunglasses, even the darkest, are not remotely enough: certified filters are thousands of times darker. Buy from reputable sellers (the American Astronomical Society keeps a list of vetted suppliers) and discard any filter that is scratched or damaged.
99% covered is still dangerous. Even when only a sliver of the Sun remains, it is intense enough to burn the retina, and the injury is painless while it happens. This matters especially in Madrid and Barcelona, where the eclipse reaches 99.9% but never totality: glasses stay on the whole time. The same goes for the low evening Sun in Spain. Dim and comfortable does not mean safe; the only safe unaided view is during totality itself, inside the path, for those one or two minutes. The moment the Sun reappears, glasses go back on.
No improvised filters. Smoked glass, CDs, X-ray film, and phone or camera lenses do not protect you. Never look at the Sun through binoculars, a telescope, or a camera viewfinder without a proper solar filter mounted on the front of the optics; concentrated sunlight burns through eclipse glasses instantly. The safe no-equipment option is pinhole projection: let sunlight pass through a small hole in a card and watch the crescent image it casts on the ground or a wall, with your back to the Sun. Supervise children with filters at all times.
Can't see it? Watch live
If you are clouded out or outside the visibility zone, ESA broadcasts totality live from Spain on 12 August (19:30 to 20:45 CEST), plus a telescope-only feed from the Javalambre observatory in Teruel. The Royal Observatory Greenwich streams the partial eclipse from London.
When is the next total solar eclipse?
Less than a year later: on 2 August 2027, totality crosses southern Spain, North Africa, and the Middle East, lasting up to about 6 minutes near Luxor, one of the longest totalities of the century. For the UK, the next total solar eclipse is not until 2090; for Iceland, not until 2196. If the 2026 weather cooperates where you are, you get two European totalities in twelve months.
Frequently asked
What time is the eclipse on August 12, 2026?
The partial eclipse runs from 15:34 to 19:58 UTC on August 12, 2026. Totality sweeps from Siberia across Greenland and Iceland to Spain between 16:58 and 18:34 UTC. In Reykjavik totality is at 17:48 local time (GMT); in northern Spain it falls between 20:27 and 20:33 CEST. Enter your location in the tool at azmth.space/eclipse for times exact to the second where you are.
Where will the 2026 total solar eclipse be visible?
The path of totality starts at sunrise over Siberia, crosses the Arctic, eastern Greenland, western Iceland (including Reykjavik) and the North Atlantic, touches a small corner of northeastern Portugal, then crosses northern Spain from Galicia to the Mediterranean, ending near the Balearic Islands at sunset. Everywhere else in Europe, plus North Africa, Greenland, and northeastern North America, sees a partial eclipse.
Is the August 2026 eclipse visible in the United States?
Only as a small partial eclipse around midday. New York sees about 9% of the Sun covered at 1:54 p.m. EDT, Boston about 16%, Montreal about 18%. The best US coverage is roughly 29% in northern Maine. There is no totality anywhere in the Americas.
Is Madrid in the path of totality?
No. Madrid is just outside the southern edge of the path and sees a 99.9% partial eclipse at 20:32 CEST. Even at 99.9%, the remaining sliver of Sun keeps the sky from going truly dark and is still dangerous to look at unprotected. Totality is a short drive north: Valladolid, Palencia, Burgos, and Zaragoza are all inside the path.
How long does totality last?
The maximum is 2 minutes 18 seconds, in the North Atlantic off western Iceland at 17:46 UTC. On land: up to about 2 minutes 13 seconds at the Latrabjarg cliffs in the Icelandic Westfjords, about 1 minute in central Reykjavik, and up to about 1 minute 51 seconds in Spain.
Can I look at the eclipse without glasses?
Only during totality, and only inside the path of totality, is it safe to look with bare eyes. At every other moment, including a 99% partial phase, you need eclipse glasses certified to ISO 12312-2. Ordinary sunglasses are never safe, no matter how dark.
When is the next total solar eclipse?
August 2, 2027: a total solar eclipse crosses southern Spain, North Africa, and the Middle East with up to about 6 minutes of totality, one of the longest of the century. After 2026, that is the next chance.
Sources and method
Local circumstances on this page and in the tool are computed in your browser with the open-source astronomy-engine library and validated for this eclipse against timeanddate.com city predictions: every contact time agreed within 8 to 13 seconds. Path, durations, climatology, and safety guidance are from the sources below. Cloud forecasts are from Open-Meteo; map coastlines are Natural Earth (public domain). If you spot an error, tell us and we will fix it.
- NASA: Total Solar Eclipse on August 12, 2026
- NASA GSFC eclipse catalog (Besselian elements, greatest eclipse)
- Instituto Geográfico Nacional (Spain): official eclipse page
- ESA: how to watch the eclipse live
- Eclipsophile: climatology and viewing strategy (Jay Anderson)
- American Astronomical Society: eye safety
- Spanish Ministry of Consumer Affairs: certified eclipse glasses
- BBVA: how to watch a solar eclipse safely and responsibly
- Royal Observatory Greenwich: the 2026 partial eclipse from the UK
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