Solar eclipse countdown and the full eclipse calendar to 2040
This solar eclipse countdown tells you how long until the next eclipse — solar or lunar, total, annular, hybrid, partial or penumbral — and lists all 69 eclipses from 2026 to 2040 with the date, the approximate time of greatest eclipse and a plain-language summary of where each one can be seen. Filter by kind, type and the part of the world you live in to find the next one you can actually watch.
The dates and types follow the NASA and US Naval Observatory eclipse canon, cross-checked against the saros cycle: the total solar eclipse over Spain on 12 August 2026, the six-minute totality across Spain, Egypt and Saudi Arabia on 2 August 2027, the annular eclipse over southern India and Sri Lanka on 21 May 2031, and the total eclipse over northern India on 20 March 2034 are all here. Four tiles summarise the next solar, lunar, total solar and total lunar eclipses from any date you pick.
How to use the Solar & Lunar Eclipse Countdown
- Choose Eclipse kind (solar, lunar or both) and optionally a Type such as Total or Annular.
- Set Visible from to your continent or ocean region to keep only eclipses you could see — a partial phase counts.
- Leave Countdown from at today, or pick another date to see what was next from then.
- Read the next eclipse, its countdown, the time of greatest eclipse and where it is visible in the panel; the four tiles give the next of each kind.
- Scroll the table: past eclipses are greyed, the next one is highlighted, and the “In” column counts down to each.
Solar & Lunar Eclipse Countdown features
Complete canon 2026–2040
34 solar and 35 lunar eclipses with type, date and approximate greatest-eclipse time in UTC.
Region filter
Eleven regions from Asia (including India and the Middle East) to Antarctica, based on where at least a partial phase is visible.
Type filter
Total, annular and hybrid solar eclipses; total, partial and penumbral lunar eclipses.
Four quick answers
Next solar, next lunar, next total solar and next total lunar (“blood moon”) eclipse from the chosen date.
No network needed
The table is embedded in the page.
Types of eclipse
| Type | What happens | What you see |
|---|---|---|
| Total solar | The Moon covers the whole Sun along a narrow path | Daytime darkness, the corona, stars and planets for up to 7½ minutes; a partial eclipse for thousands of km either side |
| Annular solar | The Moon is too far away to cover the Sun fully | A bright “ring of fire”; eclipse glasses needed throughout |
| Hybrid solar | Total along part of the path, annular elsewhere | Rare — 2031 is the only one in this period |
| Partial solar | Only part of the Sun is covered anywhere on Earth | A bite out of the Sun; glasses or a projection method needed |
| Total lunar | The full Moon passes through Earth’s umbra | A copper-red “blood moon” visible from the whole night side, no equipment needed |
| Partial lunar | Part of the Moon enters the umbra | A dark bite on the full Moon |
| Penumbral lunar | The Moon crosses only the faint outer shadow | A subtle dimming that most people never notice |
Why eclipses repeat: the saros
Eclipses happen only when a new or full moon falls close to one of the two points where the Moon’s tilted orbit crosses the Sun’s path. Those alignments recur every 6585.32 days — 18 years, 11 days and 8 hours — a cycle called the saros, known to Babylonian astronomers. Each eclipse in the table is therefore a repeat of one from 2008–2022, shifted a third of the way around the globe by those extra 8 hours: the total eclipse of 1 August 2008 over Russia and China returns as the eclipse of 12 August 2026 over Greenland, Iceland and Spain. The moon phase calculator shows the new and full moons themselves; only the ones listed here line up well enough to eclipse.
A calendar year has between two and five solar eclipses and up to three lunar ones. Any single place sees a total solar eclipse only about once every 375 years, while a total lunar eclipse is visible from an entire hemisphere — which is why most people have seen a blood moon and very few have stood in the Moon’s shadow.
Watching safely
- For any solar eclipse, use ISO 12312-2 eclipse glasses or a solar filter that covers the front of binoculars, a camera or a telescope. Sunglasses, smoked glass and exposed film are not safe.
- Only during the brief totality of a total eclipse is it safe to look without a filter; replace the glasses the instant the first bead of sunlight reappears.
- Lunar eclipses are completely safe to watch with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope, and need no equipment at all.
- Use the sun position calculator to check the Sun’s altitude at the eclipse time (the 2026 Spanish totality happens low in the west) and the moonrise and moonset calculator to see whether a lunar eclipse begins before moonrise at your location.
Solar & Lunar Eclipse Countdown FAQ
When is the next solar eclipse?
The “Next solar eclipse” tile shows it from today. As of late 2026 it is the annular eclipse of 6 February 2027 over Chile, Argentina and the Atlantic; the next total solar eclipse is 2 August 2027.
When is the next solar eclipse visible from India?
Set Eclipse kind to Solar and Visible from to Asia. India sees a partial phase of the 2 August 2027 eclipse, then 1 June 2030; the annular eclipse of 21 May 2031 crosses Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and totality on 20 March 2034 crosses Jammu and Kashmir.
When is the next blood moon?
Choose Lunar and Total. After the eclipses of 3 March and 28 August 2026, the next total lunar eclipse is on 31 December 2028, visible from Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.
How accurate are the times in the table?
The dates and types are exact; the greatest-eclipse times are approximate, generally within an hour, and are given in UTC. Local contact times depend on your position: the eclipse calculator by location gives them for your city.
What does “visible from” mean for a solar eclipse?
That at least a partial eclipse is visible somewhere in that region. The path of totality or annularity is always a narrow strip; the summary names the countries it crosses.
Why are there so many penumbral lunar eclipses?
The Moon’s orbit is tilted about 5°, so it often clips only the faint outer part of Earth’s shadow. They are hard to notice; filter by Total or Partial for the ones worth watching.