In a total solar eclipse, the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth. It blocks the face of the Sun. During a total solar eclipse, the daytime sky gets dark, as if it were dawn or dusk. A solar eclipse happens at the new moon, when the Moon moves between Earth and the Sun. In a partial eclipse, the Moon covers only part of the Sun. A solar eclipse can be seen from only a small part of Earth at a time. On Earth, the narrow line where a total solar eclipse can be seen is called the path of totality. During totality, some stars and planets become visible, and the air temperature drops.

Never look at the Sun, even in an eclipse, without eclipse glasses that a grown-up gives you. During a partial eclipse it is never safe to look straight at the Sun without proper eye protection. Eclipse glasses are special glasses made for looking at the Sun safely. Regular sunglasses are not safe for looking at the Sun. Look at an eclipse glasses filter first. Scratched, punctured or torn eclipse glasses should be thrown away. Put your eclipse glasses on before you look up at the Sun, and keep your eyeglasses on under them. Always watch children who are using eclipse glasses or other solar filters.

The Moon has no light of its own. It shines because its surface reflects sunlight. In a lunar eclipse, Earth's shadow falls on the Moon. A lunar eclipse happens at the full moon. There are three types of lunar eclipse: total, partial and penumbral. The Moon in a total lunar eclipse often looks a dull red or orange. Unlike a solar eclipse, a lunar eclipse is always safe to look at with your eyes alone. The Sun is different. It is never safe to look straight at the Sun without proper eye protection.

There are four types of solar eclipse: total, partial, hybrid and annular. In an annular eclipse the Moon is too far from Earth to cover the whole Sun, so it looks smaller than the Sun. A hybrid eclipse is a rare kind that shifts between annular and total along its path. Fewer than 5% of solar eclipses are hybrid. In most places, a total, annular or hybrid eclipse looks like a partial eclipse. Eclipses are very useful to scientists, as well as beautiful. The corona is the Sun's outer atmosphere. We cannot normally see it because the Sun's bright surface is in the way, but it shows in a total eclipse.

Here are some eclipses from the past. The earliest writings showing that people paid official attention to eclipses are around 5,000 years old. The total solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 crossed the United States from Oregon to South Carolina. Its path was about 70 miles wide. The April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse had its longest totality, 4 minutes 28 seconds, at Nazas, Durango, Mexico. The path of totality of the August 12, 2026 total solar eclipse crossed Greenland, Iceland, the Atlantic Ocean and northern Spain, with a small part of Portugal. Fully eclipsed totality on August 12, 2026 was forecast to last less than two minutes for most people in the path.

Outside the path of totality, much of the Northern Hemisphere saw a partial solar eclipse on August 12, 2026. As of November 2026, the next total solar eclipse that can be seen from the contiguous United States is on August 23, 2044. As of November 2026, an annular solar eclipse is due on February 6, 2027, visible in parts of South America and Africa. As of November 2026, a total solar eclipse is due on August 2, 2027, visible in southern Spain and North Africa. For each of these solar eclipses, put your eclipse glasses on before you look up at the Sun.

Words to know

• corona: Sun's outer atmosphere
• hybrid: shifting eclipse kind
• penumbral: faint shadow type
• annular: Moon looks smaller