Solar Eclipses in Spain – 2026, 2027 and 2028

For years now our colleagues have been hunting for the next Solar eclipse in the most remote places of the World. Please review our previous blog posts on AstroSolar.com, for example:

• 2015: Sonnenfinsternis auf Spitzbergen
• 2016: Sonnenfinsternis auf den Molukken
• 2017: “Great American Eclipse” in USA
• 2019: Sonnenfinsternins in Chile

Fortunately, we won’t have to travel far to witness a total Solar eclipse in the next years.

Until 2028, there will be three chances for observers in Europe to see the Moon pass in front of the Sun.

12 August 2026: Iceland & Spain

Almost exactly 27 years to the day after the last Solar eclipse was visible from Germany, the Moon’s shadow will skim across Western Iceland before sweeping all the way through Spain.

In Iceland, the Sun will be high in the afternoon sky and a few minutes before 6 p.m. local time, it will be completely eclipsed. Yet the island of “fire and ice” in the North Atlantic is not the first choice for eclipse chasers: In recent years, Iceland has become a major tourist hot spot, making summer visits both crowded and expensive. The Icelandic tourist board already warned last year that the eclipse could trigger a bad traffic chaos.

celand can provide excellent viewing conditions – at least if weather, geopgraphy and volcanic activity cooperate. All graphics were taken from Alexander Kerste’s book Sonne, Mond und Finsternisse and were generated with Stellarium.

 

Observing the eclipse is further being complicated by the island’s geography: The event will be visible only in the scarcely developed Westfjords, on the Snæfellsness and Reykjanes Peninsulae. In the Westfjords there are just a handful of villages; the remote region has not yet been overrun by mass tourism – so the gravel roads are demanding and parking spots are scarce. The situation is very different on the Reykjanes Peninsula: Two-thirds of all Icelanders live here and between the capital and the airport there are two highways running through the entire length of the peninsula – the southern route passes through Grindavík, which had been evacuated repeatedly past years, because the local volcanic system has resurged, with fresh lava flows threatening the Blue Lagoon and one of Iceland’s most important geothermal power plants. Even though Iceland is certainly worth the trip, eclipse chasers must add unstable weather conditions to the adventurous hunt for a viewing site. The island is better known for dramatic skies and storms than for clear blue horizons – although it did enjoy better weather conditions during the “Great American Eclipse” of 2024 than the United States themselves.

Along the Spanish North Atlantic coast the Sun will still be relatively high in the sky at the moment of totality…

Better viewing conditions can be found in Spain, a favorite midsummer destination for Sun-seekers. Unfortunately, the Sun sets there shortly after totality. Along the Northern coast, near Oviedo and A Coruña, it will still be about ten degrees above the horizon at maximum eclipse – high enough that the atmosphere does not interfere too much with longer focal-length photography, as long as the clouds above the Atlantic do not obscure the setting Sun. The farther Southeast you go, the better are your chances for clear skies, but the Sun will be closer to the mountains of Spain’s interior. From Mallorca’s steep West coast, for example, it will be only a little over two degrees above the horizon at about 8:30pm CET, sinking partially eclipsed below the horizon before fourth contact. Spain’s interior offers good odds of clear skies, but it is covered with some narrow, not always perfectly constructed roads – the densely populated capital of Madrid not too far away.

… while over Mallorca it is already almost setting.

 

Because the Sun will be sitting so low in the Spanish sky, a striking photo composition, in which the eclipsed Sun meets the landscape, is almost essential to have – much like in Svalbard in 2015. For long focal-length lenses and close-up shots of the Corona, however, atmospheric turbulences will likely be a problem and photographers will probably need to adjust their exposure times, as the Sun approaches the horizon.

You can find an interactive map of the eclipse path at http://xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/solar_eclipses/TSE_2026_GoogleMapFull.html

2 August 2027: Spain and North Africa

If next year’s weather is going to turn against you, if accommodation is scarce or you’ve simply caught the eclipse bug and want to see another one, the 2nd of August 2027 will offer the next chance – though this time the path of totality will only barely tip upon Spain’s southern coast. Late in the morning the Sun will be roughly 40 degrees above the horizon – too high for any landscape compositions, but fine for longer focal lengths and a clear view of the Solar Corona. Málaga sits just inside the eclipse track, while the far South of Spain has few roads and many tourists, so plan on choosing a good viewing spot there well in advance also. Ceuta lies deeper inside of the path, giving a longer total phase – although the Spanish enclave is already in North Africa. That makes it tempting to cross straight into Morocco, a favorite destination for off-road enthusiasts. If you pursue that plan, avoid travelling alone: Regardless of the general security situation, no one should venture into the desert all on his/her own. Current travel advisories are available on the German Federal Foreign Office’s website.

n Ceuta the Sun will be high in the sky, though not quite at the Zenith like in Egypt.

The remaining North African countries from which the eclipse can be seen are not well suited for independent travellers because of political conditions and limited infrastructure. Egypt is a better choice – but be sure to check the latest travel advisories and entry regulations so you don’t run into problems at customs with large optics or binoculars/telescopes. With the many Nile cruises that operate year-round, it is safe to assume some will adjust their itineraries and offer eclipse excursions – and that resourceful tour operators have already reserved allotments before they reach the open market. Because the eclipse will occur almost at the zenith and midsummer temperatures are extreme, observing in this desert nation will be a genuine climatic challenge: Both people and equipment must cope with intense heat.

An interactive map of the eclipse track is available at http://xjubier.free.fr/en/site_pages/solar_eclipses/TSE_2027_GoogleMapFull.html

26 January 2028: Spain

Early in 2028 Southern Spain offers another chance to see a solar eclipse just before sunset: At that moment the eclipsed Sun will sit only about five degrees above the horizon, so a clear western view is once again essential. What makes this event special is that it will be an annular eclipse – the Moon will be too small and too far from Earth to eclipse the Sun completely. The resulting “ring of fire” is still bright enough that you must use a solar filter the entire time – unless haze near the horizon dims the light sufficiently. In principle, the same rule applies as during partial phases: Never look at the Sun without proper filtration!

Shortly before sunset: The annular Solar eclipse in January 2028

Travel preparations

The general public has not yet begun planning for the upcoming Solar eclipses and with a year’s lead time you can not only pick out an ideal observing site but also ready your gear.

Spain has the major advantage of being inside the EU – meaning it is a safe destination with familiar regulations and can easily be reached by car, which is perfect if you want to bring a lot of equipment and observe the eclipse through a telescope.

Safe observing

If this will be your first total solar eclipse, don’t overload yourself—just enjoy the experience! All you really need are your own eyes and a pair of Solar / Eclipse Viewer AstroSolar® Silver/Gold (various Designs / Quantities) (various versions available)  – glasses” many people still remember from 1999 – which you simply put on like regular sunglasses. It blocks 99.999 % of the Sun’s light, so you can look at the Sun safely as long as it is not yet totally eclipsed. Only during totality may you take it off! The glasses also provide 100 % protection from UV and IR radiation, and the reverse side of the filter film is black to suppress reflections. If you have any concerns or questions about safely observing or imaging these events please contact one of our authorized Baader Planetarium dealers or ourselves.

If you want to see more and use binoculars, a spotting scope or even a telescope, you can easily build a few objective filters yourself using AstroSolar® Safety Film OD 5.0 (ECO-size, 20×29, 100×50, 117×117 cm) (various versions available) and some cardboard – or you can use ready-made ASBF: AstroSolar Binocular Filter OD 5.0 (50mm – 100mm) (various versions available) or ASSF: AstroSolar Spotting Scope Filter OD 5.0 (50mm – 150mm) (various versions available) , which are mounted onto the lenses and additionally secured with Velcro.

An interesting alternative are the Celestron EclipSmart binoculars, in which solar filters are permanently installed right from the factory. With these you can not lose the filters and accidentally look into the Sun without filters, but you also can’t remove them during totality.

If possible, use a sufficiently high tripod to observe in a relaxed manner: Through the solar filter you will only see black until you have the Sun in the field of view. Therefore, it is not easy to find the Sun in the sky! With a tripod, you can observe in a much more relaxed way and also have your hands free to protect your eyes against stray light. Ten times magnification is also about the limit to which you can hold binoculars steady in your hands.

For the best quality, you should use a ASTF: AstroSolar Telescope Filter OD 5.0 (80mm – 280mm) (various versions available) . Owners of lens telescopes can also use a Baader 2″ Cool-Ceramic Safety Herschel Prism (Visual / Photographic) (various versions available) .

On the Sun, the solar granules become visible at higher magnification in addition to the sunspots: a network of countless gas bubbles over 1000 km in size that rise from the boiling interior of the sun, much like in a pot of boiling water. It becomes even clearer with the Baader 7.5nm Solar Continuum Filter (540nm) (various versions available) in addition to the AstroSolar Filter; it raises the contrast even more.

Photography

You can also mount a solar filter in front of a camera lens; the same safety instructions apply as for observation with the naked eye or through binoculars/telescope. As long as you photograph the entire Sun, you can use the same film as for visual observation (i.e. filter factor ND5). The weaker AstroSolar Photo Film OD 3.8 (various versions available) is only for photographing details on the Sun with long focal lengths (usually with eyepiece projection or a Barlow lens) and a video module.

If you use manual mode, a low ISO and short exposure times, plus a medium aperture (around f/8), then most lenses will produce the sharpest images – at smaller apertures (f/16, f/32) the exposure times only increase unnecessarily and the image sharpness is no longer optimal; at open apertures (f/1.8, f/3.5 or similar) the lens will also not work at the best possible sharpness. A tripod is obligatory with these focal lengths, a remote shutter release (or the self-timer) is highly recommended.

Take a series of exposures and take a few test shots in advance, then you can also see when the lens is sharpest and which exposure times work best – you can then use these values directly during the eclipse. With a bit of luck, the autofocus will also work; you have the best chance if you can set the focus point manually. From 200-300mm focal length, the sun is imaged large enough to be interesting.

On telescopes with a focal length of 1-2m, the Sun fits best on the sensor, but for this you should start preparing early. You can find a lot of information about solar observation at https://astrosolar.com/en/information/