The Picture Show
The moon completely covers the sun during a total solar eclipse as seen from the Javalambre Astrophysical Observatory in Arcos de las Salinas, near Teruel, Spain, on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. Christian Hartmann/Reuters hide caption
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Christian Hartmann/Reuters
Millions of people across Europe stepped outside Wednesday to watch a spectacular sunset with a solar eclipse.
The path of totality passed through portions of Greenland, Iceland and Spain and Portugal. It was the first solar eclipse visible from Spain's mainland since 1905, according to the European Space Agency.
A partial eclipse was expected to be visible in the northern parts of the United States, including from Alaska to North Carolina. The next partial solar eclipse will be visible across parts of the U.S. on Aug. 2, 2027. The next total solar eclipse will be visible in the contiguous U.S. on Aug. 23, 2044.
People in Berlin record a video of the moon partially covering the sun during Wednesday's solar eclipse. Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters hide caption
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Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters
People wear protective glasses to observe a partial solar eclipse in Budapest, Hungary. Bernadett Szabo/Reuters hide caption
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Bernadett Szabo/Reuters
A fish jumps out of the water as the moon partially covers the sun and briefly dims the afternoon light along the coast of Fregene, Italy, near Rome. Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters hide caption
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Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters
A beachgoer wearing special eclipse glasses looks up during the beginning phase of a solar eclipse at Puerto de Sagunto beach near València, Spain. Alberto Saiz/AP hide caption
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Alberto Saiz/AP
The Hallgrímskirkja is seen in the dark during a total solar eclipse on a cloudy day in Reykjavík, Iceland. Marco di Marco/AP hide caption
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Marco di Marco/AP
A drone captures a picture of people wearing special protective glasses to observe a partial solar eclipse at the top of the St Mary's Church bell tower in Rickmansworth, Britain. Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters hide caption
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Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters
The sun's corona glows as the moon completely blocks the sun during the totality phase of a total solar eclipse as seen from Lodoso, Spain. Cesar Manso/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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Cesar Manso/AFP via Getty Images
Staff from the University of Toulouse prepare equipment ahead of observing a partial solar eclipse on the summit of the Pic du Midi, in southern France. Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images
A partial eclipse as seen from the Observatorielunden park in central Stockholm, Sweden. Fred