05/08/2026
West Cornwall is due to be the ideal place to view from
Cornwall could be the perfect place to see the eclipse 👀
The South West is set to enjoy the best views anywhere in mainland Britain when the UK's most dramatic solar eclipse since 1999 takes place next week.
On Wednesday, August 12, the Moon will pass directly between the Earth and the Sun, blocking out much of its light and creating a spectacular partial solar eclipse across the UK and Ireland.
While a total eclipse will only be visible from a narrow path stretching across Greenland, Iceland, northern Spain, northern Russia and a small area of Portugal, people in the South West will see more of the Sun covered than anywhere else in the UK.
The eclipse will be the deepest visible from Britain since August 11, 1999, when a total eclipse crossed parts of Cornwall and Devon.
According to astronomers, the Isles of Scilly and western Cornwall will offer the very best views, with between 95.8% and 96.5% of the Sun obscured at the eclipse's peak. This is the highest coverage expected anywhere in mainland Britain, with only south-west Ireland seeing a deeper eclipse.
A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon moves directly between the Sun and the Earth, causing the Earth to pass through the Moon's shadow. Because the Moon's shadow covers only a small part of the planet, eclipses are visible from specific locations.
There are usually between two and five solar eclipses every year, while a total solar eclipse occurs somewhere on Earth roughly every 18 months.
The South West eclipse will begin shortly after 6.15pm on August 12, reaching maximum coverage at around 7.14pm before ending just after 8pm. Because the event takes place close to sunset, the Sun will sit only around 12 degrees above the horizon at peak eclipse, making an unobstructed west-facing view essential.
