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Where the eclipse goes deepest in Ireland

This is the whole dataset, sorted honestly: 54 Irish towns and cities ranked by how much of the Sun the Moon will actually cover on Wednesday, 12 August 2026. The winner is Tralee in Co. Kerry with 97.1%; the tail of the list still manages 93.7%. And the single most important line on the page: none of them — not one — is inside the path of totality.

How this ranking is built

  • One criterion, applied to everything: percentage of the solar disc covered at maximum, computed for each locality’s own coordinates (JPL DE440s ephemerides). Ties are broken by the Sun’s altitude, then alphabetically.
  • No hidden rows: the top 10 get a full entry, the other 44 are in the complete table further down. Every one links to its own page.
  • No invented cloud statistics. Irish August weather cannot be forecast this far out, and this site does not pretend to: check Met Éireann, the national meteorological service, in the final days and have a second viewing spot in mind.
  • No fake totality. Ireland is outside the path. Where the real 100% is, with real distances, is at the bottom of this page.

How to read the “what you’ll get” column

A percentage on its own is misleading, because the Sun is so overwhelmingly bright that losing 90% of it barely changes the light. The honest bands, applied to the real numbers:

  • 94% and above — the light itself changes. A flat, cold, metallic dusk; shadows go razor-sharp; the temperature drops noticeably. 45 of the 54 localities we track are in this band.
  • 85–94% — an enormous bite, near-normal daylight. Spectacular through the glasses, but a passer-by who never looks up may not notice a thing. 9 Irish localities fall here.
  • 100% — a different phenomenon entirely. The corona, stars in the afternoon, and the only moment it is safe to look with the naked eye. Available in Ireland: nowhere.

One thing Ireland does not get, and some other countries do: the Sun setting mid-eclipse. In all 54 Irish localities the Moon clears the Sun before sunset — the last contact happens by 20:08.

The top 10

  1. Tralee

    Co. Kerry · Town · 26,079 people

    97.1%
    Sun covered
    97.1%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:12
    Sun’s altitude
    16.4°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 97.1% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Tralee →

  2. Killarney

    Co. Kerry · Town · 14,412 people

    97.1%
    Sun covered
    97.1%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:13
    Sun’s altitude
    16.2°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 97.1% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Killarney →

  3. Cork

    Co. Cork · City · 222,526 people

    96.5%
    Sun covered
    96.5%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:13
    Sun’s altitude
    15.5°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.5% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Cork →

  4. Carrigaline

    Co. Cork · Town · 18,239 people

    96.5%
    Sun covered
    96.5%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:13
    Sun’s altitude
    15.4°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.5% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Carrigaline →

  5. Mallow

    Co. Cork · Town · 13,456 people

    96.4%
    Sun covered
    96.4%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:12
    Sun’s altitude
    15.7°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.4% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Mallow →

  6. Cobh

    Co. Cork · Town · 14,148 people

    96.4%
    Sun covered
    96.4%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:13
    Sun’s altitude
    15.4°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.4% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Cobh →

  7. Midleton

    Co. Cork · Town · 13,906 people

    96.3%
    Sun covered
    96.3%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:13
    Sun’s altitude
    15.3°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.3% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Midleton →

  8. Ennis

    Co. Clare · Town · 27,923 people

    96.2%
    Sun covered
    96.2%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:11
    Sun’s altitude
    16.1°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.2% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Ennis →

  9. Shannon

    Co. Clare · Town · 10,256 people

    96.2%
    Sun covered
    96.2%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:11
    Sun’s altitude
    16.0°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.2% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Shannon →

  10. Limerick

    Cos. Limerick & Clare · City · 102,287 people

    96.1%
    Sun covered
    96.1%
    Maximum (Irish time)
    19:12
    Sun’s altitude
    15.9°
    Verdict
    Light visibly changes

    At 96.1% the daylight itself changes: an eerie, flat, metallic dusk, shadows with razor edges and a real drop in temperature — the strangest evening most people in Ireland will ever stand in, though still not darkness.

    Full timeline and viewing notes for Limerick →

The complete list (54 localities)

Positions 11–54, same criterion, same data. Times are Irish Standard Time (IST, UTC+1). A few settlements straddle two counties and appear as the dataset labels them.

Irish towns ranked 11 to 54 by percentage of the Sun covered
# Town County Sun covered Maximum Sun altitude What you’ll get
11 Galway Galway 96.0% 19:10 16.3° Light visibly changes
12 Castlebar Mayo 95.8% 19:09 16.6° Light visibly changes
13 Dungarvan Waterford 95.7% 19:13 15.0° Light visibly changes
14 Ballina Mayo 95.6% 19:09 16.6° Light visibly changes
15 Clonmel Tipperary & Waterford 95.6% 19:12 15.2° Light visibly changes
16 Tramore Waterford 95.4% 19:12 14.8° Light visibly changes
17 Waterford Waterford & Kilkenny 95.3% 19:12 14.8° Light visibly changes
18 Athlone Westmeath & Roscommon 95.1% 19:10 15.7° Light visibly changes
19 Kilkenny Kilkenny 95.1% 19:11 15.0° Light visibly changes
20 Sligo Sligo 95.0% 19:09 16.3° Light visibly changes
21 Tullamore Offaly 94.9% 19:10 15.4° Light visibly changes
22 Portlaoise Laois 94.9% 19:11 15.2° Light visibly changes
23 Longford Longford 94.8% 19:10 15.7° Light visibly changes
24 Carlow Carlow & Laois 94.8% 19:11 14.9° Light visibly changes
25 Wexford Wexford 94.8% 19:12 14.4° Light visibly changes
26 Athy Kildare 94.7% 19:11 15.0° Light visibly changes
27 Enniscorthy Wexford 94.7% 19:12 14.6° Light visibly changes
28 Mullingar Westmeath 94.6% 19:10 15.4° Light visibly changes
29 Kildare Kildare 94.6% 19:11 15.0° Light visibly changes
30 Newbridge Kildare 94.5% 19:11 14.9° Light visibly changes
31 Gorey Wexford 94.5% 19:11 14.5° Light visibly changes
32 Cavan Cavan 94.4% 19:09 15.6° Light visibly changes
33 Naas Kildare 94.4% 19:10 14.9° Light visibly changes
34 Arklow Wicklow 94.3% 19:11 14.4° Light visibly changes
35 Maynooth Kildare 94.2% 19:10 14.9° Light visibly changes
36 Celbridge Kildare 94.2% 19:10 14.8° Light visibly changes
37 Leixlip Kildare 94.2% 19:10 14.8° Light visibly changes
38 Letterkenny Donegal 94.1% 19:07 16.1° Light visibly changes
39 Navan Meath 94.1% 19:10 15.0° Light visibly changes
40 Ratoath Meath 94.1% 19:10 14.9° Light visibly changes
41 Wicklow Wicklow 94.1% 19:11 14.4° Light visibly changes
42 Ashbourne Meath 94.0% 19:10 14.8° Light visibly changes
43 Dublin Dublin & Meath 94.0% 19:10 14.7° Light visibly changes
44 Bray Wicklow & Dublin 94.0% 19:10 14.5° Light visibly changes
45 Greystones-Delgany Wicklow 94.0% 19:11 14.5° Light visibly changes
46 Drogheda Louth & Meath 93.9% 19:10 14.9° Huge bite, near-normal light
47 Malahide Dublin 93.9% 19:10 14.7° Huge bite, near-normal light
48 Swords Dublin 93.9% 19:10 14.7° Huge bite, near-normal light
49 Portmarnock Dublin 93.9% 19:10 14.6° Huge bite, near-normal light
50 Laytown-Bettystown-Mornington-Donacarney Meath 93.8% 19:10 14.8° Huge bite, near-normal light
51 Balbriggan Dublin 93.8% 19:10 14.7° Huge bite, near-normal light
52 Rush Dublin 93.8% 19:10 14.7° Huge bite, near-normal light
53 Skerries Dublin 93.8% 19:10 14.7° Huge bite, near-normal light
54 Dundalk Louth 93.7% 19:09 15.0° Huge bite, near-normal light

The ranking that actually matters: your horizon

Between the best and the worst place in this list there are 3.4 percentage points. Between a clear western horizon and a row of trees there is everything. At maximum the Sun stands only 14.4–16.6° above the horizon nationwide — roughly a hand’s width at arm’s length — low in the west-north-west.

So do not drive to Kerry for 3.1 extra points if you live in Dublin. Drive fifteen minutes to a west-facing beach, a pier, an exposed headland or a hilltop, get there well before 18:09, and check the sightline in daylight. The west coast has the double advantage of the deeper eclipse and an open Atlantic horizon; on the east coast, look for high ground or a wide field rather than the shoreline, which faces the wrong way.

Irish August weather cannot be forecast this far out, and this site does not pretend to: check Met Éireann, the national meteorological service, in the final days and have a second viewing spot in mind.

And if you want the real thing

Number one on this list is 97.1%. Number one on the list that counts is 100%, and it is not in Ireland. Two real options the same evening, with figures from our own datasets:

Straight-line distances computed from Dublin’s coordinates — not flight distances.

Before you pick your spot

  • Glasses on the whole time. Ireland never reaches totality, so there is no safe naked-eye moment at any point. Check your EN ISO 12312-2 pair → (and the AAS list of vetted filters).
  • Arrive before 18:09. First contact happens within six minutes of that time everywhere in the country, and the interesting part builds slowly for the next hour.
  • Check the forecast on Met Éireann. Have a plan B twenty minutes away.
  • The same night is the Perseid peak. If the sky clears after dark, stay out.

Circumstances computed for the coordinates of each Irish locality with JPL DE440s ephemerides — the same pipeline behind every other country on this site. All times are Irish Standard Time (IST, UTC+1), exactly as they appear on an Irish clock. No point in the Republic lies inside the path of totality: every figure on these pages is for a partial eclipse.