For the first time in more than a century, mainland Spain will be in the path of a total solar eclipse. The phenomenon will also pass over Iceland, Greenland, and a small part of Portugal.
The eclipse will become visible shortly before sunset, when the Moon will pass directly between the Earth and the Sun and completely cover the solar disk within a narrow band stretching from the North Atlantic to the Mediterranean.
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It will begin in Russia around 8:00 p.m. (Greek time), then it will cross the Northern Hemisphere and pass over Greenland before crossing the Atlantic Ocean.
The eclipse will be visible in part of Iceland, as well as along a strip crossing Spain, from Oviedo to Palma de Mallorca via Burgos, north of Madrid, before disappearing around 9:30 p.m. Outside this strip, the eclipse will be only partial.
The maximum duration of totality will reach 2 minutes and 18 seconds, with the longest period of total darkness occurring off the west coast of Iceland.
The European Space Agency (ESA) will broadcast the eclipse live from Spain, with the broadcast beginning at 7:30 p.m. Greek time. NASA will also broadcast the eclipse live, starting at 8:15 p.m. Greek time.
When will the sky darken?
The Moon’s shadow will travel approximately 8,260 kilometers in an hour and a half as it moves southward from the North Pole region.
Most of the path will be over the Atlantic Ocean. By the time the shadow reaches Spain, where large crowds are expected to gather, the duration of totality will have been reduced to about one minute.
The partial eclipse, however, will be visible over a much larger area. The phenomenon will be visible as far north as Alaska and Siberia, and will cover Canada, the northern United States, much of Europe, and parts of West Africa.
The totality will begin to be visible in Iceland shortly before 8:00 p.m. Greek time and will reach Spain around 8:27 p.m., depending on the region. For example, in Santander, totality begins at 8:26:57 p.m. Greek time and lasts about one minute, while in Bilbao it begins at 8:27:23 p.m. and lasts about 31 seconds.
In Dublin, approximately 94% of the Sun will be covered; in Oslo, 83%; in Montreal 18%, in New York 9%, and in Norfolk, Virginia, just 2%.
Source: ERT News
