The historic total solar eclipse of August 12, 2026, which was the first for the continental part of Western Europe in decades, captivated the eyes of millions of viewers around the world.
The phenomenon turned the day into a mystical twilight within a spectacular 8,300-kilometer corridor crossing the Arctic, Greenland, Iceland, the Atlantic Ocean and the Iberian Peninsula.
According to official data published by the World Science Platform for Time and Astronomy (source: timeanddate.com), The maximum phase of the total eclipse lasted exactly 2 minutes and 18 seconds in the North Atlantic region. For mainland Spain, the event had an exceptional historical value - a similar phenomenon had not been observed there since 1905. Nearly 6 million astrotourists occupied the northern parts of the country around Bilbao, Zaragoza and Valencia to see the unique eclipse just before sunset. The authorities there imposed unprecedented security measures in mountainous areas due to a high risk of forest fires (source: nova.bg).
In parallel with the mass observations, scientists conducted large-scale research. The US National Space Agency tracked the moon's shadow at high altitude with a specialized WB-57 aircraft to capture images of the solar corona in nine different wavelengths (source: mediapool.bg). The European Space Agency also broadcast live from the Teruel Observatory about people who remained outside the range of the total shadow (source: esa.int).
In our country, the phenomenon was more of a symbolic nature. The Institute of Astronomy at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences confirmed that the partial eclipse with a minimum phase was captured for a few minutes from the most northwestern parts of Bulgaria, and in Vidin it began at around 8:27 p.m. immediately before sunset (source: bta.bg).
The cosmic spectacle from last night turned out to be double. Immediately after the eclipse ended, skywatchers also witnessed the peak of the traditional Perseid meteor shower (source: btvnovinite.bg). Due to the new moon phase, the sky remained completely dark, which provided perfect conditions for observing dozens of “shooting stars“ per hour until dawn on August 13.
The next total solar eclipse, which will affect southern Europe and North Africa, will occur very soon - on August 2, 2027, and scientists define it as the longest for the rest of our century.