WATCH: A map of the total solar eclipse in August 2026

For the first time in more than a century, a total solar eclipse is coming to mainland Spain, with an even longer encore next summer. Daytime darkness will descend Aug. 12 across the Iberian Peninsula close to sunset — plus slivers of Greenland and Iceland — as the sun, moon and Earth align perfectly in the sky. Starting near the North Pole before tracking south, totality will last up to 2 minutes and 18 seconds. It will take 1 ½ hours for the umbra, or the moon’s sun-blocking shadow, to race along the 5,130-mile course, most of it over an empty Atlantic. Maximum totality will occur off Iceland’s west coast. By the time it reaches a small patch of Portugal and then Spain with its massive crowds, totality will have dwindled to a minute or so. The spectacle will end in the Mediterranean. Copyright © 2026 The Washington Times, LLC. Story Topics