NASA Forecasts 6-Minute-23-Second Total Solar Eclipse in 2027

NASA says a total solar eclipse expected on August 2, 2027, will last about 6 minutes and 23 seconds, making it one of the longest astronomical events of the century. The Moon will completely cover the Sun along the path of totality. The eclipse’s duration will be the longest since July 2009, when a similar event lasted 6 minutes and 39 seconds.

Although the 2009 eclipse holds the duration record, NASA calculations indicate that the 2027 event is expected to be the longest for the next 87 years. It is not projected to be surpassed until June 3, 2114, when an eclipse is expected to last about 6 minutes and 32 seconds.

A total eclipse occurs when the Moon’s darkest shadow crosses Earth and the Moon is close enough to fully obscure the Sun. NASA projections place the 2027 eclipse’s peak over Egypt. It will also be visible in Spain, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and Somalia, but not in Brazil.

Astronomer Marcelo Domingues, a member of the Brazilian Meteor Observation Network (Bramon), said the area under the shadow will become dark, but not as dark as the middle of the night. “The Sun really disappears in that dark band on the ‘Eclipse Sky’ map, but it does not become completely dark, like it would in the middle of the night. It gets dark enough to see some stars, but it is more like twilight about four minutes after sunset,” he said.

Brazil will instead see an annular eclipse on February 6, 2027, which is expected to last 7 minutes and 51 seconds. During an annular eclipse, the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun while farther from Earth in its orbit. The event will appear as a partial eclipse across nearly all of Brazil; at the country’s southern tip in Chuí, it will be annular. Domingues said the ring-shaped phase at Barra do Chuí should last about 4 minutes and 40 seconds.

The next annular eclipse visible in Brazil is expected on January 26, 2028, and will be observable in the country’s Northern Region.