Total solar eclipse on Aug. 12 crosses Arctic and Spain

A total solar eclipse will sweep across the Northern Hemisphere on Wednesday, Aug. 12, tracing an unusual arc from far northern Russia across Greenland and Iceland before crossing the North Atlantic and reaching Spain and a small corner of northeastern Portugal. The Moon’s darkest shadow is narrow, so only places inside that band will experience totality. For most locations on the path, NASA says the Sun will be completely covered for less than two minutes. The maximum duration available from the ground is about two minutes and 18 seconds. Spain will provide some of the most accessible evening totality. NASA lists León at roughly 8:28–8:30 p.m., Zaragoza around 8:29–8:30 p.m. and Valencia around 8:32–8:33 p.m., all local time. Madrid and Barcelona reach roughly 99% coverage but remain partial at the city locations in NASA’s table. The partial eclipse extends far beyond the central shadow. Northern parts of the United States and most of Canada will see some coverage, while much of Europe will experience a deep partial eclipse near sunset. Safe solar viewing glasses are required for every partial phase; regular sunglasses are not safe, and optical devices need dedicated solar filters.