UK to witness its deepest total solar eclipse in decades

The UK will not see a total solar eclipse until Sept. 23, 2090, but millions across Britain and Ireland are about to get the next best thing.

On August 12, 2026, a deep partial solar eclipse will sweep across the country as the moon's path of totality passes just north, tracking from Iceland to northern Spain instead.

There will be variations depending on location, but they are dramatic in almost all cases. London, Manchester, and Glasgow will have about 91% of the sun blocked out, while Cardiff will achieve about 93% and Belfast will have slightly more than 93%.

The darkest view of the eclipse in the UK will occur in County Kerry in Ireland at Great Skellig, where there will be almost 98% obscuration of the sun. This eclipse is going to be Britain’s most dramatic one since 1999.

This is an eclipse that takes place late in the day when the sun is near the lower end of its cycle, happening around 6 pm to 8 pm BST, where the maximum eclipse occurs between 7:05 pm and 7:13 pm based on location. The eclipsed sun will be close to the horizon in the west-northwest as a crescent shape.

Everyone who watches will have to wear eclipse glasses all the way through because it is never safe to watch a partial eclipse by the naked eye.