The August 2, 2027 Total Eclipse: Official and Enthusiast Country Lists Do Not Match
NASA lists totality over southern Spain, North Africa, Saudi Arabia and Yemen for the August 2, 2027 eclipse. Enthusiast maps add Gibraltar, Sudan and Somalia, plus 6m23s totality.
★★The country list depends on which source you read
Both NASA and enthusiast mapping sites describe the same eclipse, ★**but they do not list the same countries.** NASA writes that totality ★**"will be visible in southern Spain, North Africa (including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt), Saudi Arabia, and Yemen."**[1]
★**NationalEclipse.com lists more places.** It adds ★**Gibraltar** in Europe and ★**Sudan and Somalia** in Africa to the path of totality, and notes that ★**a partial solar eclipse will occur in parts of Maine** in the U.S.[2]
★★**Neither list is presented here as the correction of the other.** ★**NASA's wording uses "including," which is not a closed list**, and its page is a short overview rather than a mapping product. ★**If a specific country matters to your plans, the safe move is to check a path map rather than either prose summary.**[1][2]
★NASA's page gives the where, not the how long
★**One figure is missing from the official page entirely.** ★**NASA does not state the duration of totality** for this eclipse, nor does it give specific timings or path maps for the eclipses it lists.[1]
The widely quoted number comes from elsewhere: NationalEclipse.com states that ★**the maximum duration of totality will be 6 minutes and 23 seconds.** ★**This document files that as a claim rather than a fact**, ★**because only one of the two sources carries it.**[2]
★**The distinction matters for a number that gets repeated a lot.** ★**"Maximum duration" is also a point on the path, not what everyone in the path sees** — ★**observers away from the centreline see less.**[2]
★★Searching for "the next eclipse" turns up ones that already happened
★**NASA's list of future eclipses begins with February 6, 2027.** ★**An August 12, 2026 eclipse does not appear on it** — ★**because that date has passed.**[1]
★★**Search results do not sort themselves this way.** Pages written before an eclipse stay online and keep describing it in the future tense, ★**so a query for the next eclipse can return a past one that reads as upcoming.** ★**Checking the date against today is the whole safeguard.**[1]
★What is genuinely ahead, per NASA: ★**an annular solar eclipse on February 6, 2027** (South America and Africa), ★**the total eclipse on August 2, 2027**, and penumbral lunar eclipses on ★**February 20-21** and ★**August 16-17, 2027**.[1]
Verified facts
Cross-checked against 2+ independent sourcesThis section contains facts cross-checked against multiple sources.
Reported, not confirmed
Not cross-checked — do not read as factFrom here on: claims and speculation that are not cross-checked.
NASA describes the August 2, 2027 eclipse as "A total solar eclipse will be visible in southern Spain, North Africa (including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt), Saudi Arabia, and Yemen."[1] single-source ×1 · NASA Science Future Eclipses page
NationalEclipse.com additionally lists Gibraltar in Europe, and Sudan and Somalia in Africa, within the path of totality, and states that a partial solar eclipse will occur in parts of Maine in the U.S.[2] single-source ×1 · NationalEclipse.com 2027 Total Solar Eclipse Maps page
NationalEclipse.com states that the maximum duration of totality for this eclipse will be 6 minutes and 23 seconds.[2] single-source ×1 · NationalEclipse.com 2027 Total Solar Eclipse Maps page
NASA's Future Eclipses page also lists an annular solar eclipse on February 6, 2027 visible in parts of South America and Africa, and penumbral lunar eclipses on February 20-21, 2027 and August 16-17, 2027.[1] single-source ×1 · NASA Science Future Eclipses page
NASA's Future Eclipses page does not give the duration of totality for the August 2, 2027 eclipse, nor specific timings or path maps for the eclipses it lists.[1] single-source ×1 · Observation of what the NASA page does and does not contain
Timeline
- Model
- claude-opus-5
- Time
- 09/13/2026, 10:40
- Tokens
- 26,000
- Sources
- 2 sources adopted
- Model
- claude-opus-5 (separate review pass)
- Time
- 09/13/2026, 10:40
- Tokens
- 0
- Verdict
- Passed
Show revision history (1)
| 09/13/2026, 10:40 | First authored (claude-opus-5) | Created |
Frequently asked
When is the next total solar eclipse?
NASA lists a total solar eclipse on August 2, 2027, visible in southern Spain, North Africa (including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt), Saudi Arabia and Yemen. An annular solar eclipse comes first, on February 6, 2027.[1]
Which countries will see totality?
The lists differ by source. NASA names southern Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. NationalEclipse.com additionally lists Gibraltar, Sudan and Somalia. NASA's phrasing uses "including," which is not a closed list, so a path map is more reliable than either prose summary.[1][2]
How long will totality last?
NationalEclipse.com states the maximum duration of totality will be 6 minutes and 23 seconds. NASA's page does not give a duration. Maximum duration applies at a point on the path; observers away from the centreline see less.[1][2]
What about the August 12, 2026 eclipse?
It does not appear on NASA's future eclipses page because that date has already passed. Pages written beforehand remain online in the future tense, so it is worth checking any eclipse date against the current date.[1]
Official links
Sources
- [1] Future Eclipses primary
- [2] 2027 Total Solar Eclipse Maps