Overview
- The eclipse, which swept across Europe on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026, produced a narrow path of totality from Arctic Russia through Greenland and Iceland to northern Spain while much of the UK experienced a very deep partial eclipse with more than 90% coverage.
- Spanish authorities mobilised large deployments of police and prepared hundreds of viewing sites as millions travelled for eclipse tourism and local services faced surges in demand and brief shortages of certified solar viewers.
- Public-health bodies and eye specialists warned repeatedly that only ISO 12312-2 certified eclipse glasses or indirect projection methods protect the retina, and many retailers and opticians sold out or saw long queues before the event.
- NASA and European agencies ran coordinated science and broadcast operations, including a WB-57 chase jet to extend totality for measurements, dozens of high-altitude balloon launches, and live feeds that captured coronal images and atmospheric data.
- For most observers this was a rare experience that will not repeat locally for decades, with Spain seeing its first mainland totality in more than a century and the UK not expected to see another total eclipse until 2090.