PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSELondon, United KingdomWednesday 12 August 2026 · times in BST (UTC+1)
91.3%
OF THE SUN COVERED
Almost all of the Sun went. The light weakened and cooled noticeably, shadows sharpened, and the temperature dropped — but it did not get dark, and the remaining sliver was still blinding.
02 · TIMING
When did it happen?
The whole eclipse ran 1h 49m. All times are local, in BST.
18:17 MAX 19:13 20:06
| Phase | LOCAL TIME | SUN |
|---|---|---|
| First contactthe Moon touches the Sun's edge | 18:17 | 19° W |
| Maximumthe deepest point | 19:13 | 10° W |
| Last contactthe Sun is whole again | 20:06 | 2° WNW |
03 · DIRECTION
Where was it in the sky?
At maximum the Sun was only 10° above the horizon to the west, so an open view in that direction was needed.
The Sun's height and bearing at maximum, from London. The horizon is at 0°.
THE EXPERIENCE
What it was actually like
With 91.3% of the Sun covered the light noticeably weakened and cooled, shadows grew sharp-edged, and the temperature dropped. Gaps between leaves projected rows of crescents onto the ground. The Sun stayed dangerous to look at throughout.
04 · POSITION
Where was it seen?
The path passed 963 km to the south-west of London and was 316 km wide. Only inside it was the Sun covered completely.
THE DAY
- SUNRISE
- 05:41
- SUNSET
- 20:28
- DAY LENGTH
- 14h 48m
- CIVIL DUSK
- 21:06
REFERENCE FIGURES
- OBSCURATION
- 91.3%
- COORDINATES
- 51.507° N, 0.128° W
- PATH WIDTH
- 316 km
- SHADOW SPEED
- 3,415 km/h
- SAROS
- 126 · no. 54
- MAGNITUDE
- 0.9249
- GAMMA
- 0.8977
Contact times are accurate to a couple of seconds at the coordinates above. Altitudes are geometric — unrefracted, on the WGS 84 ellipsoid.
NEXT FROM LONDON
What else is coming here?
The rest of what the sky over London has coming, soonest first.