The Total Solar Eclipse of 2 August 2027: Where and When

On Monday 2 August 2027, the Moon will pass directly in front of the Sun. Along a narrow track that runs from the Atlantic, through southern Spain and North Africa, to Arabia and the Horn of Africa, day will briefly turn to twilight. The temperature will drop, the brightest stars and planets will come out, and the Sun's pearly outer atmosphere, the corona, will appear around a black disc. Near Luxor in Egypt, this total eclipse will last up to 6 minutes 23 seconds. That makes it the longest total solar eclipse visible from land between 1991 and 2114.

In the UK we're outside the path, but we still get a good partial eclipse. Here's where and when to look, and how to do it safely.

What's actually happening?

A solar eclipse can only happen at New Moon, when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun. Most months the Moon slips just above or below the Sun, because its orbit is tilted by about 5°. On 2 August 2027 the alignment is almost perfect. The Moon's dark inner shadow, the umbra, touches down on Earth's surface, and anyone inside that shadow sees a total eclipse. A much wider area in the Moon's outer shadow, the penumbra, sees a partial eclipse, with the Moon taking a bite out of the Sun.

Why is this one so long? The Moon is near perigee, the closest point of its orbit, so it looks slightly bigger than usual. Earth is only a month past aphelion, its farthest point from the Sun, so the Sun looks slightly smaller. As a result, the Moon covers the Sun with room to spare.

Greatest eclipse comes at about 10:07 UTC (11:07 BST). The path of totality is up to about 258 km (160 miles) wide.

Where is the eclipse total?

From west to east, these are the main places the path of totality crosses:

  • Southern Spain and Gibraltar. Totality lasts roughly 4½ minutes at Gibraltar and Tarifa, around 3 minutes in Cádiz and about 2 minutes in Málaga. It comes at around 10:45 am local time.
  • Morocco. Around Tangier, totality lasts close to 5 minutes.
  • Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. Totality grows longer as the shadow heads east, passing 6 minutes near Benghazi.
  • Egypt. This is the heart of the eclipse. Luxor, with its temples and the Valley of the Kings, gets a little over 6 minutes of totality in the early afternoon, with the Sun almost overhead.
  • Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Jeddah and Mecca both see totality of more than 5 minutes.
  • Somalia. Here the shadow leaves the African mainland and heads out over the Indian Ocean.

Outside the path, a partial eclipse can be seen across Europe, much of Africa, the Middle East and western and southern Asia.

What will we see from the UK?

From the UK the Moon will cover part of the Sun, not all of it. The Sun will be well up in the east-south-east, about 40° high from London, so you won't need a perfect horizon.

  • London: the eclipse begins at about 09:03 BST, is greatest at about 10:00 BST with roughly 42% of the Sun's disc covered, and ends at about 10:59 BST.
  • Edinburgh: from about 09:11 to 10:51 BST, greatest at about 10:00 BST.
  • Elsewhere: the further south you are, the bigger the bite. Southampton gets about 44%, Birmingham about 39%, Liverpool about 36% and Glasgow about 28%.

Don't expect the sky to get dark. With well under half the Sun covered, you may not notice much change in the daylight, and that's exactly what makes it risky. The uncovered part of the Sun is just as bright and just as harmful to your eyes as on any other day.

How to watch safely

Never look directly at the Sun without proper eye protection, even during a partial eclipse. Looking at it can permanently damage your eyesight.

  • Use proper eclipse glasses or solar viewers. They should meet the international safety standard ISO 12312-2 and come from a reputable supplier. Check them before you use them. If the filter is scratched, punctured, torn or coming away from the frame, throw them away.
  • Ordinary sunglasses are not safe, however dark they are.
  • Never use eclipse glasses with binoculars, a telescope or a camera. The concentrated sunlight can destroy the filter and reach your eye. Optics need a proper solar filter fitted securely over the front, and if you're not sure how to do that, ask an experienced astronomer or a local astronomical society.
  • Try pinhole projection. It's free and completely safe. Make a small hole in a piece of card, stand with your back to the Sun, and let the light fall through the hole onto a second sheet of card. You'll see a tiny image of the crescent Sun. A colander, a straw hat or the gaps between leaves work too. Never look at the Sun through the pinhole.
  • Keep an eye on children whenever they're watching the Sun.

The only time it's safe to look without a filter is during totality itself, when the Moon completely hides the Sun's bright face. That's only possible inside the path of totality. Put your glasses back on the moment the bright Sun starts to reappear. From the UK there is no totality, so your glasses stay on the whole time.

Thinking of travelling to see totality?

Lots of people are already planning trips. If you're tempted, here are a few things to think about:

  • Book early, but book flexibly. Hotels along the path, especially in southern Spain, Gibraltar and around Luxor, are likely to be in very high demand.
  • Weather and heat. Eclipse weather specialists rate eastern Libya and Egypt as having excellent odds of clear skies. In southern Spain the odds are less certain, and coastal cloud can form around Gibraltar. North Africa and Arabia can be extremely hot in August, so plan for shade, water and sun protection.
  • Check official travel advice. At the time of writing (November 2026), the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office advises against all travel to Yemen. For Libya and Somalia, it advises against all travel to most areas and against all but essential travel to the rest. Read the latest FCDO travel advice before you book and again before you go. Check that your travel insurance covers where you're going.
  • Pack your eclipse glasses. You'll need them for the partial phases before and after totality, which last more than an hour on each side.

And from North America?

This one mostly isn't for you, we're afraid. Only the far north-east, such as Newfoundland, sees a small partial eclipse, low in the sky just after sunrise. Elsewhere you'll need a livestream. If you're travelling to Europe or North Africa that summer, though, it could be worth timing your trip around it.

Mark the date

We've marked 2 August, with the time of greatest eclipse from the UK, in The Wizard's Sky Calendar 2027, along with the year's other eclipses, meteor showers and every night's Moon phase. Whether you're in Luxor or London, we hope the clouds stay away.

Sources

Back to blog