Total solar eclipse over Arctic, Greenland — August 12
August 12 · 2m18s of totality · best from Arctic, Greenland
The Moon covers the Sun completely along a track running from the Arctic across Greenland and Iceland into northern Spain — the first total solar eclipse visible from mainland Europe since 1999. Everyone else across northern North America, western Africa and Europe sees a partial bite taken out of the Sun. A partial eclipse is visible more widely across northern North America, western Africa, Europe. Never look at the Sun without certified eclipse glasses or a proper solar filter — not during a partial phase, and not through a camera, binoculars, or a telescope. Only during the brief total phase, and only from inside the path of totality, is it safe to look with the naked eye.
Why this is worth stepping outside for
Bright comets, eclipses, and close planetary conjunctions are the sky’s scheduled spectacles — predictable years in advance, yet each one a configuration that won’t repeat for years or decades. Unlike deep-sky observing, these events are usually visible from cities with no equipment: the hard part isn’t seeing them, it’s knowing when and where to look. That’s the job of this page.
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What’s passing, what’s visible, what hit.