On August 12, 2026, the Moon will pass directly between Earth and the Sun, creating one of the most impressive sights in astronomy: a total solar eclipse.
But there is a catch for people in the United States. Even though the eclipse is a total solar eclipse, Americans will not see totality. The U.S. will be outside the narrow path where the Moon completely covers the Sun. Instead, parts of the country will see a partial solar eclipse, with the Moon appearing to take a small bite out of the Sun.
That may sound less exciting than totality, but it is still a pretty cool event and millions of people across North America will have a chance to watch the Moon move across the face of the Sun.
The August 12 eclipse will be visible in different forms across a huge area of the Northern Hemisphere. Totality will cross Greenland, Iceland, northern Russia, the Atlantic Ocean, Spain and a small part of Portugal. A partial solar eclipse will be visible across much larger areas, including parts of the northern United States and Canada.
Where Will the August 12 Total Solar Eclipse Be Visible?
The first thing to understand is that there is a big difference between seeing a total solar eclipse and seeing a partial solar eclipse.
During a total eclipse, the Moon completely covers the bright surface of the Sun. For a few brief moments, the sky can become noticeably darker and the Sun’s outer atmosphere, called the corona, becomes visible.
But totality only happens inside a very narrow path created by the Moon’s darkest shadow, called the umbra.
On August 12, that path will move across northern Russia, Greenland, Iceland and parts of the Iberian Peninsula. NASA’s eclipse map shows the path stretching across the high northern latitudes before reaching Europe.
For most people in those areas, totality will last less than two minutes. Near the center of the eclipse path, however, totality can last a little longer, with the maximum duration reaching a little over two minutes. NASA’s calculations put the central duration at about 2 minutes and 18 seconds.
That might not sound like much time, but anyone who has experienced a total solar eclipse will tell you that those couple of minutes can feel much shorter than expected.
5
Can You See the Eclipse From the United States?
Yes, but it will be a partial solar eclipse.
NASA says parts of the northern United States will see the Moon cover part of the Sun on August 12. The partial eclipse will be visible from Alaska and across portions of the northern contiguous United States, with the eclipse reaching as far east as North Carolina.
The amount of the Sun that gets covered will depend on exactly where you are.
Someone in Alaska will see the eclipse at a different time and with different coverage than someone in Minnesota, Michigan or North Carolina. The farther north you are, generally speaking, the more noticeable the eclipse can be.
For example, in Alaska the partial eclipse begins in the morning and ends later that morning. In North Carolina, the eclipse occurs in the early afternoon, with the partial phase lasting for roughly an hour.
So if you’re somewhere in the northern U.S., it’s worth checking the exact eclipse time for your city instead of relying on a national schedule.
The eclipse will not be total anywhere in the United States.
That is probably the most important detail for American skywatchers. Headlines may say “total solar eclipse,” but that describes the global eclipse. It does not mean every location where the eclipse can be seen will experience totality.
What Will the Eclipse Look Like?
If you’re watching from the United States, don’t expect the entire sky to suddenly turn dark.
Instead, you’ll see the Moon slowly move in front of the Sun. At the maximum point of the eclipse for your location, part of the Sun’s bright disk will be hidden.
With the right solar viewing equipment, the Sun can look like a bright circle with a dark curved section missing from one side.
The exact shape changes minute by minute as the Moon moves across the Sun.
Even a relatively small amount of coverage can make for some interesting sights. If you have clear skies, you may notice shadows becoming sharper and unusual crescent-shaped patterns appearing underneath trees as sunlight passes through gaps between the leaves.
But the dramatic darkness associated with a total solar eclipse is something Americans won’t experience during this particular event.
That part belongs to viewers inside the path of totality.
6
Why Is a Total Solar Eclipse So Rare?
Solar eclipses aren’t actually as rare as many people think. There are several solar eclipses somewhere on Earth every year.
The rare part is seeing a total solar eclipse from a specific location.
The Moon is much smaller than the Sun, but it also happens to be much closer to Earth. Because of this unusual combination, the Moon can appear almost exactly the same size as the Sun in our sky.
When the geometry is just right, the Moon blocks the Sun’s bright surface while leaving the much fainter corona visible around it.
The Moon’s shadow then creates a relatively narrow path across Earth’s surface.
That’s why someone standing a few hundred miles away from another observer could have a completely different experience. One person may see totality while the other sees only a partial eclipse.
The August 12, 2026 eclipse is a good example of this. Totality will pass through a relatively narrow part of the world while a partial eclipse covers a much larger region.
How Should Americans Watch the August Eclipse?
This is where you really don’t want to take shortcuts.
During a partial solar eclipse, it is not safe to look directly at the Sun with your naked eyes.
Regular sunglasses are not enough. It doesn’t matter if they are very dark or expensive sunglasses. They are not designed to block the amount of solar radiation needed for safe eclipse viewing.
NASA recommends using proper solar viewing glasses or a handheld solar viewer that meets the appropriate safety standard.
And there is another mistake people sometimes make.
Do not put eclipse glasses on and then look through a regular camera, binoculars or telescope at the Sun. Those optical devices concentrate sunlight and can cause serious eye injury.
If you’re using a telescope, binoculars or a camera to photograph the eclipse, the equipment needs a proper solar filter designed for that device, installed at the front of the optical system.
If you don’t have eclipse glasses, an indirect viewing method such as a simple pinhole projector is another option. It lets you see an image of the Sun without looking directly at it.
And honestly, this is one event where it’s better to be a little boring about safety than to take a chance with your eyesight.
What Time Will the Eclipse Happen?
There isn’t one single eclipse time for the entire United States.
The Moon’s shadow moves across Earth, so the start, maximum and end of the partial eclipse will change depending on your location.
In Alaska, for example, the partial eclipse begins around 7:34 a.m. local time and ends around 9:31 a.m. in the area covered by the state-wide calculation. In North Carolina, the partial eclipse runs from about 1:30 p.m. to 2:28 p.m. local time.
Other cities will have their own times.
So before August 12, check the eclipse circumstances for your exact location. A difference of even a few hundred miles can change how much of the Sun is covered and when the event reaches its maximum.
Weather matters too.
A perfect eclipse behind a thick layer of clouds is, well, not much of an eclipse to watch.
What Will People See During Totality?
For people lucky enough to be inside the path of totality, August 12 will be a completely different experience.
As the Moon moves in front of the Sun, the sky gradually becomes darker. Then, when the last bright portion of the Sun disappears, the solar corona can suddenly become visible around the black disk of the Moon.
The corona is the Sun’s extremely hot outer atmosphere. Under normal conditions it is overwhelmed by the brightness of the Sun’s surface, but during totality it becomes visible to the naked eye.
This is the moment that makes total solar eclipses so memorable.
5
There can also be bright points of sunlight around the edge of the Moon, known as Baily’s beads, along with solar prominences that can sometimes be seen around the Moon’s silhouette.
But totality is extremely short.
For this eclipse, NASA says most locations along the path will experience totality for less than two minutes, with the longest periods lasting a little more than two minutes.
That short window is one reason eclipse chasers travel thousands of miles for these events.
The August 12 Eclipse Is Still Worth Watching From the U.S.
Even without totality, the August 12 solar eclipse is worth paying attention to if you live in an area where it can be seen.
A partial eclipse gives you the chance to watch the Moon slowly move across the Sun in real time. You don’t need a telescope or an expensive camera. You mainly need clear weather, a good view of the sky and proper solar eye protection.
For Americans, the event will be more subtle than the total eclipse that crossed the United States in April 2024. During that event, a path of totality crossed several states and millions of people were able to experience the sudden darkness of totality.
August 12, 2026 will be different.
The U.S. will get a partial eclipse while totality happens thousands of miles away in parts of the North Atlantic, Greenland, Iceland, Russia and southern Europe.
Still, there is something pretty cool about knowing that while you’re watching a small piece of the Sun disappear from your backyard, people on the other side of the world may be standing under a completely darkened sky.
The Moon will be doing the same thing for all of us.
And for a few hours on August 12, the movement of the Moon, Earth and Sun will turn something that normally happens millions of miles away into a sky event you can actually see with your own eyes.
Eclipse, Meteors, and Six Planets: A Rare Astronomical Night This Wednesday