Spanish
The duration of a total solar eclipse always varies. In April 2024, the eclipse that crossed North America lasted 4 minutes and 28 seconds. In contrast, the one that will reach Spain in August 2026 will only last 1 minute and 43 seconds. In less than five years, both will demonstrate their fleeting nature: NASA is already announcing the longest conjunction of the century.
The space agency's solar eclipse calendar indicates that the longest phenomenon in 100 years will occur on August 2, 2027. Its total phase will last 6 minutes and 23 seconds. During that time, regions of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East will be under the shadow of the Moon.
According to the NASA map, the eclipse will begin in Morocco and southern Spain. Then it will advance through Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, until culminating in Yemen and the coast of Somalia. Its maximum duration will be recorded in Egypt, specifically in Luxor and Aswan, famous for their funerary temples.
The longest-lasting eclipse of the century does not affect health nor does it have a physical impact on the planet. It is a natural and predictable astronomical phenomenon, the result of the interaction between the Sun, the Moon, and the Earth. Furthermore, solar eclipses are not exclusive to our planet: Mars and the Moon also experience them, and we were recently able to observe one clearly.
