Eclipse 12 Aug 2026 · 20:29
León
42.600°, -5.570° · 844 m a.s.l.
1 min 41 s of night in broad daylight
Visible · score 96/100 Sun at +10° · 281° WNW
The Sun clears local terrain by 8.88° at C3.
Full totality was visible here. C3 — the end of totality — stayed above the horizon.
Total eclipse · 100% obscuration
C1 — Partial begins
19:33
☀ +20°
C2 — Totality begins
20:28
☀ +10°
Maximum
20:29
1m 41s · 281° WNW
C4 — Partial ends
21:22
☀ +1°
LEÓN · 42.600° N -5.570° W
Photo: David Jiménez Llanes · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
In León, day turned to night for 1 min 41 s.
At 20:29 local time, the Moon fully covered the Sun over León. For 1 min 41 s, the sky darkened as if it were night, leaving the Sun as a ring of light around a black disc.
The other two eclipses from here
Eclipse 2 Aug 2027
Score 50/ 100
Eclipse visible
The Sun will be 37-41° high, so terrain rules out no city at all: of the 560 assessed, 522 tie on the same score. What decides is being inside the path.
Eclipse 26 Jan 2028
Score 41/ 100
Eclipse visible
See the eclipse from León minute by minute
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About León
León is the capital of its namesake province in northwestern Castile and León, situated at the confluence of the Bernesga and Torío rivers at an altitude of 844 meters. With around 124,000 inhabitants, the city was founded as a camp of Legio VII Gemina around 28 BCE, an origin that gives the city its name. Its position on the southern edge of the Cantabrian Cordillera gives it a transitional climate between Atlantic and inland Spain.
For this eclipse
On August 12, 2026, León will lie within the path of totality of the solar eclipse. The Moon will completely cover the Sun's disk, and the phenomenon will be visible at the moment of maximum phase (C3) at 20:28, local time. With the Sun at 9.6° above the horizon and a topographic margin exceeding 9°, there is no geometric obstruction: conditions are favorable for witnessing totality from any open point in the city.
The weather in August
In August, León registers a low risk of thunderstorms, which sets it apart from other inland capitals of the peninsula that accumulate afternoon convective showers in the middle of summer. Being a city at considerable altitude and close to the foothills of the Cantabrian Cordillera, humid air masses from the north are largely blocked before reaching the León plain. These factors make August one of the driest and most stable months of the year for astronomical observation.
Past eclipses
The most recent total eclipse visible from León occurred on August 30, 1905, 121 years ago, with a totality lasting 3 minutes and 27 seconds. Before that event, an annular eclipse crossed the region on April 1, 1764. After the eclipses of 2026 and 2028, no total eclipse is expected over León for the remainder of the century; one must wait until February 27, 2082 to witness an annular eclipse, whose duration in the central band will exceed 6 minutes.
Direction and altitude of the Sun
At the moment of maximum phase, the Sun will be at 9.6° above the horizon, oriented nearly due west (281° azimuth), very close to the cardinal point of west. That direction means looking down a street oriented east to west or an open field with a clear view to the west. Although the height is moderate for an evening eclipse, the margin relative to the topographic horizon exceeds 9°, so any man-made obstacle lower down should be kept in mind when choosing the observation point.
Editorial text by eclipses.app · Data: Wikidata, AEMET, NASA and JPL planetary ephemerides.
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The eclipse from León
In León, totality began at 20:28 local time and lasted 1 min 41 s, until 20:30. The eclipse maximum fell at 20:29.
In León, the Sun was 10° above the horizon, toward the WNW. With that much margin above the horizon, any spot with open sky worked.
This area typically sees around 15% median cloud cover at that hour, based on ten years of historical data — not a forecast for this specific eclipse.
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Eclipse schedule in León
Local time · Europe/Madrid| Phase | Local time | UTC | Progress | Sun alt. | Sun az. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 — Partial begins | 19:32:46 | 17:32:46 UTC | +20.0° | 272.1° | |
| C2 — Totality begins | 20:28:21 | 18:28:21 UTC | +9.8° | 281.2° | |
| Maximum | 20:29:13 | 18:29:13 UTC | +9.7° | 281.3° | |
| C3 — Totality ends | 20:30:02 | 18:30:02 UTC | +9.5° | 281.5° | |
| C4 — Partial ends | 21:22:08 | 19:22:08 UTC | +0.7° | 290.1° |
C2/C3 times and duration corrected for the lunar limb (the Moon's real edge profile).
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Eclipse phases
Times in CEST local time
Oriented as seen with the naked eye, zenith up (official ephemerides usually draw it with celestial north up, rotated with respect to this).
Location
- Latitude
- 42.6000° N
- Longitude
- 5.5703° W
- Elevation
- 844 m
Eclipse phases
- Eclipse begins
- 19:32:46
- Totality begins
- 20:28:21
- Maximum
- 20:29:13
- Totality ends
- 20:30:02
- Eclipse ends
- 21:22:08
- Sunset (flat horizon)
- 21:27:59
Duration
- Eclipse
- 1h 49m 22s
- Totality
- 1m 41s
Values at maximum
- Obscuration
- 100%
- Sun altitude
- +9.7°
- Sun azimuth
- 281.3°
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Sun direction and altitude at maximum
It was toward WNW (281.3°)
281.3° WNW
Azimuth at maximum
9.69°
Sun altitude at maximum
0.66°
Terrain horizon
+8.88°
Sun−terrain margin
What the contact points (C1-C4) mean
A solar eclipse is described by four key moments, the contact points between the discs of the Sun and the Moon:
- C1First contact: the Moon touches the edge of the Sun and the partial eclipse begins.
- C2Second contact: the Moon fully covers the Sun and totality begins.
- C3Third contact: the Sun reappears and totality ends.
- C4Fourth contact: the Moon leaves the Sun's disc and the eclipse ends.
Where the eclipse is only partial, the Moon never fully covers the Sun: only C1 and C4 occur, with no totality in between.
Peaks near León
| Peak | Elevation | Distance | Azimuth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alto Santiago | 1374 m | 25.0 km | 341° NNW |
| Alto del Negrón | 1343 m | 23.9 km | 331° NNW |
| Sierros | 1330.5 m | 24.9 km | 355° N |
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The August sky
15%Historical average cloud cover
P25 — clearer days · 0%Median cloud cover · 15%P75 — cloudier days · 53%
10-year average over 70 samples: the 3 days before and after 12 August, at the same eclipse hour · Source: ERA5 (ECMWF)
Cloud forecast
Full cloud-cover forecast for eclipse day, including the hour-by-hour outlook toward the sun. Available with PRO.
See plansOther eclipses seen from León
- Last total eclipseAugust 12, 20260 years ago
- Last annular eclipseApril 1, 1764262 years ago
- Next annular eclipseFebruary 27, 2082
Solar eclipses computed from astronomical ephemerides for the city's coordinates.
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Frequently asked questions about the eclipse in León
Was the eclipse of August 12, 2026 visible from León?
Yes — León was inside the totality path and the horizon allowed the total phase to be fully visible.
What time was the eclipse maximum in León?
Maximum occurred at 20:29 local time (18:29 UTC) in León.
Which direction was the Sun in during the eclipse from León?
The Sun was toward the WNW (azimuth 281°), 10° above the horizon at maximum from León.
How long did totality last in León?
Totality lasted 1 min 41 s in León (C2 to C3). (corrected for the Moon's limb profile)
Was León a good place to watch the eclipse?
Yes, León was an excellent choice (score 96/100): favorable geometry, clear horizon, and good August climatology.
Do I need special glasses to watch the eclipse?
Yes, you need ISO 12312-2 certified eclipse glasses during every partial phase. Regular sunglasses do NOT protect. Glasses can only be removed during the totality phase (when the Sun is fully covered); never during annular or partial eclipses. Pages flagged "visible" assume a clear horizon, not a viewing recommendation.
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