The only thing cooler than an eclipse or a sunset is when both happen at the same time.
Joe is a freelance journalist. It all started with a lifelong passion for building his own PCs, which he first did as a teenager. It has become a permanent pleasure to put words on the subject on the Internet. He has written for CNET, PCMag, Mashable and SlashGear as a freelance writer and worked as a senior editor at Android Authority for 10 years. When he’s not writing about tech and science, he’s learning the ins and outs of home repair, gaming, bass, and posting PC building help and gaming subreddits. He firmly believes that orange juice should contain pulp.
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It’s been two years since the last total solar eclipsebut another one is coming next month – and with it, a special addition that doesn’t come around very often. Some people will be able to see the solar eclipse at sunset, giving them an extraordinary view. The only problem is that you might have to go on summer vacation to see it.
The total eclipse will only reach the shores of a few countries. According to NASA, the total eclipse on August 12 will affect Greenland, Iceland, the northern half of Spain and part of Portugal. Spain is at the end of the eclipse and as such it will occur later today, around sunset, giving Spanish viewers a spectacular show.
Other countries in Europe and Africa will also be treated to quite a spectacle. Most of Europe and a significant part of North Africa are still experiencing a partial solar eclipse, which will occur at sunset. This means tens of millions of people will be in the right place to view a partial or total solar eclipse at sunset.
This time, Russia is the luckiest country. The eclipse begins at sunrise near the uninhabited Taimyr Peninsula, travels across the globe all day, and then Russians on the other side of the country are in the path of the partial solar eclipse at sunset, making Russia the only country that will see the eclipse at sunrise and sunset.
How often do sunset eclipses occur?
Sunset eclipses don’t happen very often, at least not where people can see them. There are two reasons for this.
The first is that solar eclipses usually only last a few hours, and the timing of them occurring right around sunset is not very common.
The other reason is that solar eclipses have long paths, and sometimes those paths cross the ocean or places where people don’t live. Over the past 15 years, only a handful of total eclipses appear in this Venn diagram, occurring late enough in the day to occur at sunset, yet occurring where humans can see them.
The most recent solar eclipse in North America occurred in 2014, but it was only a partial eclipse. The most recent solar eclipse in South America took place in July 2019, where people in Chile and Argentina had the best view of a total solar eclipse occurring at sunset, while most of the rest of the country had a partial view. The most recent in Asia dates back to December 2019.
In short, this is a once-a-decade event for most countries in the world.
The path of this year’s solar eclipse passes through the northern parts of Earth before ending in Europe. North Americans won’t see much.
NASAWill this eclipse be visible in North America?
North America is quite far from the main scope, but a few states are on the way. The math is a bit complicated, but if you look at a map of the United States and draw a line from Alaska to North Carolina, all states north of that line will experience a small eclipse (less than 20% coverage), and all states south of that line will stay away.
If you live on the way and want to check it out, be sure to respect proper safety protocols for viewing solar eclipses so as not to hurt your eyes.
Joe is a freelance journalist. It all started with a lifelong passion for building his own PCs, which he first did as a teenager. It has become a permanent pleasure to put words on the subject on the Internet. He has written for CNET, PCMag, Mashable, and SlashGear as a freelance writer and worked as a senior editor at Android Authority for 10 years. When he’s not writing about tech and science, he’s learning the ins and outs of home repair, gaming, bass, and posting PC building help and gaming subreddits. He firmly believes that orange juice should contain pulp. See full bio
