Total solar eclipse to cross Spain, Iceland on Aug. 12

A total solar eclipse will sweep across Greenland, Iceland, and northern Spain on Wednesday, August 12, delivering Europe's first totality in 27 years while treating the UK and Ireland to a partial eclipse covering up to 96% of the sun — the most dramatic solar event visible from the region since 1999.

Path of Totality

The moon's shadow will produce a full total eclipse only along a narrow corridor crossing the Arctic, Greenland, Iceland, and Spain, with a small sliver of far northeastern Portugal also included. The longest stretch of totality, about 2 minutes and 18 seconds, will occur off Iceland's west coast, while Reykjavik will experience roughly a minute of full darkness. In Spain, cities including A Coruña, Valencia, Zaragoza, Bilbao, and Palma will fall within the path of totality, though both Madrid and Barcelona will sit just outside it.rollingout+1

UK and Ireland: A Near-Total Spectacle

For viewers in the UK and Ireland, the moon will obscure between 90% and 96% of the sun depending on location — the most coverage visible in the region since the total eclipse of August 11, 1999, according to the Royal Museums Greenwich. Cornwall in southwest England will see approximately 95% obscuration, with Land's End reaching as high as 95.6%. Neighbouring Devon and Pembrokeshire in Wales are expected to see up to 94%. In Ireland, the southwestern tip near counties Cork and Kerry may witness nearly 97.5% coverage.time+1

The eclipse will begin at approximately 6:12 p.m. BST in Ireland and 6:17 p.m. in London, with peak eclipse falling between 7:05 and 7:16 p.m. BST across major UK cities. Because the event occurs close to sunset, astronomers advise finding locations with a clear western horizon free of obstructions.bbc+1

Catherine Muller, an astronomer at Royal Observatory Greenwich, told TIME it will "almost look like there's a crescent of the sun left behind, the rest will be blocked by the moon".time

Safety and Viewing Options

Experts stress that ISO 12312-2 certified eclipse glasses are essential throughout the partial eclipse, as the sun's disk is never fully blocked outside the path of totality. NASA will livestream the eclipse beginning at 1:15 p.m. Eastern time on August 12 across Amazon Amazon.com, Inc. ↗ 0.82% Prime, Facebook Meta Platforms, Inc. ↗ 0.37%, YouTube Alphabet Inc. ↘ 0.88%, Twitch, NASA+, and X.bbc+2

Hours after the eclipse, the Perseid meteor shower will peak under near-ideal conditions. With a new moon coinciding with the shower's maximum overnight into August 13, skywatchers in dark locations could spot 60 to 100 meteors per hour. "The best way to observe it is to lie on the ground or get in a comfy chair and fill your view with as much of the sky as possible," Muller advised.rollingout+2