Forgot to pick up your eclipse glasses and didn’t have any cereal boxes around? Couldn’t get out of that meeting, or stuck in the subway?
If you missed this year’s solar eclipse — or are gutted you weren’t in the path of totality — you still have another chance to view the celestial event. You just have to wait a few… well, maybe more than a few… years.
When is the next solar eclipse?
Solar eclipses of some variety happen about twice a year, dispersed around the planet, but their exact regional timing is somewhat random. While the last total solar eclipse was a mere seven years ago, the one prior was decades in the past — and the next event of this magnitude won’t happen in our area for about the same, excruciatingly long, time.
According to NASA’s estimates, there will be a partial solar eclipse visible March 29, 2025. Other partial and annular eclipses (when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth but from very far away) will also occur in the next few years.
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When will I be able to see the next total eclipse in North America again?
Unless you’re willing to go for an international flight, you’ll have to wait. The next total solar eclipse, happening on Aug. 12, 2026, will only be visible to observers in Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia, and a small area of Portugal. The rest of us will once again get a partial eclipse viewing.
However, experts estimate that two future total solar eclipses will be visible from North America in 2044 and 2045. Twenty years isn’t too bad, right?
And don’t forget: It’s not just about the sun! The next total lunar eclipse will be on March 14, 2025, and will be visible in the Pacific and across the Americas, Western Europe, and Western Africa.