Annular Solar Eclipse 2028: Path, Times and Safety
On Wednesday 26 January 2028 the Moon leaves a ring of sunlight for up to 10 minutes 27 seconds, from Ecuador and Peru across northern Brazil, then Madeira, southern Portugal, northern Morocco and southern Spain. The UK and the eastern US see a partial eclipse only.
Annular solar eclipse 2028 at a glance
The eclipse is annular because the Moon is too far from Earth to cover the Sun. NASA gives a magnitude of 0.921, meaning the Moon covers about 92% of the Sun's diameter, and an obscuration of 0.848, about 85% of its area (Espenak, EclipseWise). A bright ring remains around the Moon. The greatest eclipse falls over northern Brazil, at 3.0°N 51.5°W, with the Sun 67° high.
The ring lasts 10 min 27 s at the point of greatest eclipse and 10 min 30.6 s at the point of greatest duration (EclipseWise). No other central eclipse between 2027 and 2030 comes close (see the table of neighbouring eclipses). In Europe the same eclipse is a short event at the end of the afternoon, with the Sun close to the horizon.
Path of the January 2028 eclipse and ring times by place
The track starts in the Pacific off Ecuador, crosses Ecuador, Peru and northern Brazil, and runs over the Guianas before it reaches the Atlantic. The sources differ on which: NASA lists Suriname, Wikipedia and the National Solar Observatory name French Guiana, and Spain's Instituto Geográfico Nacional names both and adds southern Colombia. After the ocean, the path ends over Madeira, southern Portugal, northern Morocco and southern Spain.
| Place | Ring begins (local clock) | Ring lasts | Sun covered at maximum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Galápagos, Ecuador | 07:22:42 | 5 min 35 s | 83.34% |
| Piura, Peru | 08:33:08 | 3 min 18 s | 83.84% |
| Iquitos, Peru | 08:45:50 | 8 min 38 s | 84.21% |
| Tefé, Brazil | 10:08:20 | 9 min 58 s | 84.61% |
| Manaus, Brazil | 10:24:33 | 7 min 13 s | 84.79% |
| Funchal, Madeira | 16:46:43 | 7 min 01 s | 83.28% |
| Albufeira, Portugal | 16:51:44 | 6 min 43 s | 82.87% |
| Seville, Spain | 17:52:20 | 7 min 15 s | 82.79% |
| Gibraltar | 17:54:31 | 4 min 02 s | 82.79% |
Figures are from timeanddate, as reproduced on Wikipedia. Clocks are local: Ecuador and Peru UTC-5, Galápagos UTC-6, Amazonas UTC-4, Madeira and Portugal UTC+0, Spain and Gibraltar UTC+1. The Moon's uneven edge can move these times by a few seconds, and refraction near the horizon is not modelled, so treat the last digit as approximate.
Can you see the 2028 annular eclipse from the UK or the US?
United Kingdom and Ireland: a partial eclipse at sunset
Yes, as a partial eclipse. In London it starts at 15:36 GMT and is still under way when the Sun sets at about 16:38, with 50 to 53% of the Sun covered depending on the source and where the horizon is set (timeanddate lists 50.38% at 16:34). Dublin peaks at 16:45 with 46.6%. The Sun is almost on the horizon, so a clear, low western view matters more than the percentage.
| Place | Maximum (local clock) | Sun covered |
|---|---|---|
| London | 16:34 | 50.38% |
| Dublin | 16:45 | 46.60% |
| Paris | 17:33 | 53.97% |
| Madrid | 17:55 | 82.41% |
| Lisbon | 16:54 | 81.28% |
Madrid and Lisbon are outside the path, which is why they stay below a full ring despite covering more than 80%. Source: timeanddate via Wikipedia.
United States and Canada: partial, and small
NASA and EclipseWise list eastern North America in the partial zone. The coverage is small and falls in the morning. Orbital Radar, a third-party calculator, gives about 3% in New York, with the maximum at 10:01 EST and the Sun 24° high. Havana reaches 20.8% at 09:05 (timeanddate). Check your own coordinates in a local prediction tool before planning anything, and remember that glasses are needed even for a thin bite.
Annular eclipse in Spain and Portugal: where the ring is low
Spain: about half the country
Spain's Instituto Geográfico Nacional says the band covers about half of Spain: nearly all of Andalusia, southern Extremadura, Castilla-La Mancha, parts of the Community of Madrid, Aragón, Murcia, the Valencian Community, part of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. The ESA map shows the shadow crossing the peninsula between 17:52 and 18:00 CET, running from the southwest to Catalonia.
The ring lasts more than 7 minutes in Seville, Córdoba and Albacete, and about 5 minutes in Málaga, Granada, Alicante, Palma and Girona (ESA). The Sun is low: Eclipsophile puts it only 2° above the horizon at Valencia. Treseclipses.es advises checking for an open western view, because terrain makes a large difference between nearby points. The next total eclipse visible from Spain is in 2053 (IGN). Voir aussi : Wholesale Eclipse Glasses: ISO 12312-2 Supply for Schools, Events, and. Voir aussi : When Is the Next Solar Eclipse?.
Madeira, southern Portugal and Morocco
Funchal on Madeira gets a ring of 7 min 01 s, with the maximum at 16:50 GMT. Beja gets 4 min 20 s, but its partial phase ends at sunset. Lisbon stays partial. In northern Morocco the ring is short, 2 min 45 s in Tangier, and Gibraltar sees 4 min 02 s. Ceuta is also inside the band (Treseclipses.es).
Cloud: where a clear sky is most likely in January
| Region | January cloud (Eclipsophile) |
|---|---|
| Gulf of Cádiz, Spain | About 45% on the centreline, the lowest in Iberia |
| Atlantic coast of Portugal | About 55%, roughly 5% less than inland |
| Iberia overall | 50 to 75%, by monthly average |
| Peruvian and Ecuadorian coast | About 55 to 60% near Piura and Tumbes |
| Galápagos | Just over 50% on west Isabela, over 80% at Puerto Ayora |
| Amazon Basin | 80 to 90% along most of the path |
| Madeira | About a 50% chance of viewing skies at Funchal |
At Gibraltar the easterly Levanter piles up cloud, and a westerly after a cold front may bring clearer skies. In eastern Spain the low Sun means high cloud 170 to 200 km away can block the view. Madeira's Pico do Arieiro, at 1,800 m, can sit above low cloud, but the drive is long.
Eye safety: glasses stay on for the whole eclipse
NASA states that partial and annular eclipses have no totality, so it is never safe to look at them without eye protection. The only unfiltered viewing is during totality of a total eclipse, which this eclipse does not have. The ring is direct sunlight, and ordinary sunglasses, however dark, are not safe.
Before you look up
- 1Use glasses or a handheld viewer that meet ISO 12312-2, bought from a known manufacturer or its authorised dealer (AAS).
- 2Inspect them every time. Discard any pair that is scratched, punctured, torn or loose in the frame (AAS).
- 3The AAS allows reuse of compliant, undamaged glasses under 10 years old, and calls the old "3 years" printed warning outdated.
- 4Never use a filter that threads into a telescope eyepiece. Filters go over the front of the optics (AAS).
Spain has its own supplier check, Eclipse Seguro, run by the OVAE and noted on the AAS site. Our eclipse glasses guide covers the label checks and what a CE or UKCA mark does and does not prove.
Eclipses before and after 26 January 2028
| Date | Type | Longest central phase |
|---|---|---|
| 6 Feb 2027 | Annular | 7 min 51 s |
| 2 Aug 2027 | Total | 6 min 23 s |
| 26 Jan 2028 | Annular | 10 min 27 s |
| 22 Jul 2028 | Total | 5 min 10 s |
| 1 Jun 2030 | Annular | 5 min 21 s |
| 25 Nov 2030 | Total | 3 min 44 s |
Source: NASA's yearly eclipse pages. 2029 has four partial eclipses and no central one. The total eclipses of 2 August 2027, 22 July 2028 and 25 November 2030 are the only ones in this list where glasses can come off, and only during totality. Dates for every country are in our next solar eclipse calendar.
Sources: NASA, EclipseWise, Wikipedia (timeanddate data), Instituto Geográfico Nacional, ESA, National Solar Observatory, Eclipsophile, Treseclipses.es, Orbital Radar, NASA safety, AAS.
Frequently asked questions
What time is the annular solar eclipse on 26 January 2028?
The greatest eclipse is at 15:08 UTC, over northern Brazil. In Madeira the ring runs from 16:46 to 16:53 GMT at Funchal, and in Seville from 17:52 to 17:59 CET. Times are local and depend on the place, so use the table above.
Which countries are in the path of the 2028 annular eclipse?
Ecuador, Peru and Brazil, then Suriname and French Guiana (sources differ on which; Spain's IGN names both and adds southern Colombia), followed by Madeira, southern Portugal, northern Morocco and southern Spain. Gibraltar is inside the band.
Can you see the 2028 annular eclipse from the UK?
Only as a partial eclipse near sunset. London has about 50% of the Sun covered when it sets at around 16:38 GMT (timeanddate lists 50.38% at 16:34; a calculation from NASA data gives 53%).
Is the January 2028 eclipse visible from the United States?
Eastern North America is in the partial zone, with a small bite in the morning. Orbital Radar estimates about 3% for New York. No part of the US is on the path of the ring.
What does annular eclipse mean?
The Moon is near the far point of its orbit and looks too small to cover the Sun. A ring of sunlight stays around it. On 26 January 2028 the magnitude is 0.921.
Is it safe to look at the ring without glasses?
No. NASA and the AAS both say annular eclipses have no safe unfiltered phase. Use ISO 12312-2 glasses throughout, as covered in our eclipse glasses guide.