No, they have little in common. Last summer’s eclipse came late in the evening, with the Sun low, and its totality crossed the north of Spain: it reached 3,952 of the 8,132 municipalities, with a maximum of 110 s. The one on 2 August 2027 will be in mid-morning, with the Sun high, and its path crosses the south: 105 municipalities in the provinces of Cádiz, Málaga, Granada and Almería, plus Ceuta and Melilla, Spain’s two cities in North Africa, with up to 4 min 48 s in Ceuta. If you saw totality in Asturias, León or Zaragoza, this time you’ll get a partial eclipse; if you missed it in Cádiz or Málaga, it now comes to you.
The differences in one table
| Last summer’s eclipse | The eclipse of 2027 | |
|---|---|---|
| Time (mainland Spain) | maximum between 20:27 and 20:40 | totality between 10:46 and 10:51 |
| Sun’s altitude at maximum | 1.4 to 12.4° | 24.1 to 47.6° |
| Municipalities with totality | 3,952 | 105 |
| Where | 31 provinces, from Galicia and Asturias to Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands | southern Cádiz, Málaga, the coast of Granada and Almería, Ceuta and Melilla |
| Longest totality | 110 s, in western Asturias | 4 min 48 s, in Ceuta |
Both counts come from the same municipality index, with the verdict of the IGN (Spain’s National Geographic Institute) for each year. Last summer’s longest totality was shared by El Franco, Navia, Salas and Villayón, all four in Asturias.
City by city
Time of maximum in mainland Spanish time (CEST, UTC+2), except Las Palmas (Canary Islands time, one hour behind). “Total” means the city had or will have totality.
| City | % last summer | Maximum last summer | Sun last summer | % in 2027 | Maximum in 2027 | Sun in 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madrid | 99.9% | 20:32 | 7.2° | 86.1% | 10:51 | 39.8° |
| Barcelona | 99.8% | 20:29 | 3.7° | 81.6% | 10:58 | 45.1° |
| Valencia | 100% (total) | 20:33 | 4.3° | 90.4% | 10:54 | 43.2° |
| Zaragoza | 100% (total) | 20:29 | 5.9° | 80.9% | 10:54 | 42.2° |
| Bilbao | 100% (total) | 20:27 | 8.1° | 74.4% | 10:53 | 40.1° |
| Oviedo | 100% (total) | 20:28 | 10.2° | 73.8% | 10:50 | 37.5° |
| A Coruña | 100% (total) | 20:28 | 11.9° | 73.4% | 10:48 | 35.2° |
| Palma (Mallorca) | 100% (total) | 20:31 | 2.3° | 89.3% | 10:58 | 46.2° |
| Seville | 94.7% | 20:37 | 7.2° | 98.4% | 10:47 | 37.8° |
| Almería | 96.1% | 20:37 | 4.3° | 99.9% | 10:51 | 41.4° |
| Cádiz | 93.0% | 20:39 | 7.0° | 100% (total) | 10:46 | 37.4° |
| Málaga | 94.7% | 20:38 | 5.8° | 100% (total) | 10:49 | 39.4° |
| Ceuta | 92.6% | 20:39 | 5.9° | 100% (total) | 10:47 | 38.4° |
| Melilla | 93.0% | 20:40 | 3.9° | 100% (total) | 10:50 | 41.0° |
| Las Palmas de Gran Canaria | 69.7% | 19:53 | 9.7° | 77.2% | 09:34 | 26.9° |
The places that had totality a year ago, how long it lasted and, in brackets, how much of the Sun will be covered this time:
- 1 min 48 s in Oviedo (73.8% in 2027).
- 1 min 45 s in León (77.0%).
- 1 min 36 s in Palma (89.3%).
- 1 min 23 s in Zaragoza (80.9%).
- 1 min 18 s in A Coruña (73.4%).
- 1 min 01 s in Valencia (90.4%).
- 27 s in Bilbao (74.4%).
The south goes the other way, from partial to total: Cádiz, from 93.0% a year ago to 2 min 54 s; Málaga, from 94.7% to 1 min 49 s; Ceuta, from 92.6% to 4 min 48 s. Seville and Almería miss out on totality both times, although Almería gets as far as 99.9% in 2027.
The time of day and the Sun
Last summer’s eclipse was a low-Sun eclipse: at maximum the Sun was between 1.4 and 12.4° above the horizon, depending on the municipality, and at that height a building or a hill in that direction was enough to hide it. The light was also already fading because of the hour.
The 2027 eclipse is a high-Sun one: between 34.5 and 47.6° on the mainland, the Balearic Islands, Ceuta and Melilla, and between 24.1 and 29.2° in the Canary Islands, towards the east-south-east. At that height the horizon stops mattering. What decides things is being inside the path, and the time: the partial eclipse begins at 09:40 in Ayamonte, on the Portuguese border, and ends at 12:15 in es Castell (Menorca), and totality, in the south, fits between 10:46 and 10:51.
What doesn’t change
The safety rule is the same: an EN ISO 12312-2 filter during all the partial phases, and no filter only during strict totality, from the last flash to the first. Outside the path, the filter never comes off. If you kept your glasses from a year ago, they will do if they are in good condition: our glasses guide explains how to check them.
If you saw totality in the north a year ago, this time you need to head south: the map shows the whole path, and the eclipse in Cádiz (in Spanish) covers one of the areas with the most seconds.
Sources: IGN — eclipses.ign.es (in Spanish: the totality verdict and duration for each municipality, last summer and in 2027, and the safe-viewing rule); eclipseando data (index of 8,132 municipalities with the IGN’s verdict for each year; times, percentages and the Sun’s altitude from the skyfield + DE440s engine).
If you would like something to keep from the eclipse, the shop prints T-shirts, mugs and posters with the name of your town, the time of its maximum and its seconds of totality. See the merchandise →
Remember: never look at the Sun without proper eye protection (filters made to EN ISO 12312-2). The official reference for safe viewing in Spain is the IGN (in Spanish): eclipses.ign.es.