What Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and the north will see
The whole of Spain sees a partial solar eclipse on 2 August 2027. Only the far south, from the Costa de la Luz through the Strait to the Costa Tropical, plus Ceuta and Melilla, sees totality. Everywhere else the moon takes a bite out of the sun and then gives it back.
How big a bite depends almost entirely on how far north you are. Andalusia gets 96 to 99%, Madrid 86%, Barcelona 82%, and the Cantabrian coast around 73%.
| City | Eclipse | Duration / coverage | Maximum | Sun altitude |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seville | Partial | 98.35% | 10:47 | 38° |
| Huelva | Partial | 98.65% | 10:46 | 37° |
| Granada | Partial | 99.22% | 10:50 | 40° |
| Jaén | Partial | 97.14% | 10:50 | 40° |
| Córdoba | Partial | 96.66% | 10:49 | 39° |
| Cartagena | Partial | 97.68% | 10:53 | 43° |
| Murcia | Partial | 96.30% | 10:53 | 43° |
| Alicante | Partial | 94.85% | 10:54 | 43° |
| Madrid | Partial | 86.30% | 10:51 | 40° |
| Valencia | Partial | 90.19% | 10:54 | 43° |
| Palma de Mallorca | Partial | 89.22% | 10:58 | 46° |
| Barcelona | Partial | 81.63% | 10:58 | 45° |
| Bilbao | Partial | 74.32% | 10:53 | 40° |
| A Coruña | Partial | 73.35% | 10:48 | 35° |
Spanish mainland times, CEST. Percentages are the fraction of the sun’s disc covered at maximum eclipse.
This is the single most important thing on this page. Outside the path of totality there is no moment when it is safe to look at the sun without certified eye protection. Not at 99%, not at 86%, not at any point. Use glasses that carry the ISO 12312-2 marking, check them for scratches or pinholes before use, and do not use them with binoculars, a telescope or a camera unless the filter is fitted over the front of the instrument.
Somewhere between 80% and 99% coverage, a partial eclipse stops being a curiosity you have to look for and starts being something you notice without being told. The light goes flat and slightly metallic. Shadows get unusually crisp, because the sun has become a thin crescent rather than a disc. Gaps between leaves act as pinhole cameras and scatter hundreds of little crescents across the ground. The temperature falls by a few degrees. Birds quieten down.
What does not happen is the thing people come for. The sky stays daylight blue, the corona stays hidden, and no stars appear. Those belong to totality alone, and totality on 2 August 2027 stops at a line running across southern Andalusia.
The eclipse happens mid morning everywhere in Spain, roughly between 09:40 and 12:10 depending on where you are. Maximum eclipse falls between about 10:46 in Huelva and 10:59 in Barcelona. The sun is high, between 35 and 46 degrees above the horizon, so you do not need a clear horizon anywhere. A patch of open sky to the east or south east is enough.
If you have ever wanted to see a total solar eclipse, yes, without reservation. Madrid to Cádiz is about six hours by road or under four by train. Spain has just had a run of luck: a total eclipse on 12 August 2026, another on 2 August 2027, and an annular eclipse on 26 January 2028. After that the run ends, and for most of the country the wait for the next total eclipse is measured in generations rather than years.
Palma de Mallorca gets 89.22% and Menorca and Ibiza are similar, all comfortably outside the path. The Canary Islands, far to the south west, see a much smaller partial eclipse in the middle of the morning, because the shadow passes well to the north east of the archipelago.