On Feb. 17, 2026, an annular photo voltaic eclipse will probably be seen from a distant a part of Antarctica, forming a “ring of fireside” for as much as 2 minutes, 20 seconds as 96% of the solar’s heart is eclipsed by the moon.
Few will witness that second, however observers in the remainder of Antarctica — together with these on cruise ships on late-season excursions — will see a partial photo voltaic eclipse, as will folks in elements of southern Africa and the southern tip of South America.
What’s particular in regards to the Feb. 17, 2026 annular photo voltaic eclipse?
The eclipse path for the Feb. 17, 2026, annular photo voltaic eclipse will probably be restricted to a distant area of Antarctica, so the occasion will probably be seen by nearly no people. In case you can handle to witness this occasion, bragging rights will probably be nicely deserved. Virtually talking, although, that will probably be troublesome except you occur to be working at some choose analysis stations in Antarctica.
“It is attainable that only some folks will view this eclipse from inside the annular zone,” eclipse meteorologist Jay Anderson wrote on his web site, Eclipsophile.com. “It is a problem to achieve and there are solely two inhabited places inside the annular shadow, neither of which is ready as much as welcome vacationers.”
Associated: What is the distinction between a complete photo voltaic eclipse and an annular photo voltaic eclipse?
Nonetheless, mid-February is towards the tip of the cruising season in Antarctica, and a well-timed cruise to places within the Antarctic Peninsula may provide you with a glimpse of a partial photo voltaic eclipse. A partial photo voltaic eclipse may even be seen from southeastern Africa.
Maybe the perfect place to be on Feb. 17, 2026, will probably be Concordia, a joint French-Italian analysis station that opened in 2005 and homes simply 16 scientists. It is considered one of solely three stations within the inside of the Antarctic continent. It may well get as chilly as minus 112 levels Fahrenheit (minus 80 levels Celsius) exterior; it is one of many coldest places on Earth. There, one of many tallest towers in Antarctica measures atmospheric information and helps calibrate Earth commentary satellites. There’s additionally an underground vault, two commentary platforms, telescopes and an airstrip.
If Concordia is the primary inhabited place to see the ring of fireside, Mirny Station would be the second and ultimate. Mirny was the primary Russian station in Antarctica, established in 1956 in Queen Mary Land on the Davis Beach. Its few dozen inhabitants research local weather, sea ice, cosmic rays, meteorology, glaciology and biodiversity.
Path of annularity for the Feb. 17, 2026 annular photo voltaic eclipse
The trail of annularity for the Feb. 17, 2026, annular photo voltaic eclipse — the place the “ring of fireside” will probably be seen — is 2,661 miles (4,282 kilometers) lengthy and 383 miles (616 km) large.
The eclipse will rise over mainland Antarctica and set off the Davis Beach of the Southern Ocean. The moon’s antumbral shadow — which creates the ring of fireside — will take round 59 minutes to cross Earth, from 11:42 to 12:41 UTC. The ring of fireside will probably be seen solely to these in Antarctica or the Southern Ocean.
The place and when can I see the Feb. 17, 2026 annular photo voltaic eclipse?
Listed below are the very restricted locations the ring of fireside could also be seen in the course of the annular photo voltaic eclipse on Feb. 17, 2026:
Location: Concordia Analysis Station (French-Italian)
Annularity period: 2 minutes, 1 second
Time: 11:46 UTC
Solar top: 5 levels above 241 levels azimuth
Location: Mirny Station; Queen Mary Land, Antarctica (Russia)
Annularity period: 1 minute, 52 seconds
Time: 12:07 UTC
Solar top: 10 levels above west 264 levels azimuth
What is going to the climate be like for the Feb. 17, 2026 annular photo voltaic eclipse?
The prospects for clear skies usually are not good for this eclipse.
As Anderson wrote on Eclipsophile, cloud cowl is probably going over the ocean and coasts. Mirny Station has about 65% cloud cowl that point of the yr. Mainland Antarctica has round 35% — so Concordia may have the best likelihood of seeing the ring of fireside — however will probably be extraordinarily chilly.
Nonetheless, there could be an “eclipse impact” with the cooling of the land by the moon’s shadow, which typically causes convective clouds to dissipate throughout the trail.
Within the wider partial eclipse zone, inland southern Africa is the place clear skies are most probably, in accordance with Time and Date, though will probably be lower than a 15% partial eclipse there.
The place to see the partial photo voltaic eclipse on Feb. 17, 2026
On Feb. 17, 2026, a partial photo voltaic eclipse will probably be seen throughout Antarctica; southeastern Africa; the southern tip of South America; and within the Pacific, Indian, Atlantic and Southern oceans. Here is what will probably be seen from analysis stations in Antarctica and numerous islands, cities and locations within the partial eclipse zone:
|
Location |
Share of the solar’s disk coated |
|---|---|
|
A.B. Dobrowolski Polar Station, Antarctica (Poland) |
92% |
|
Davis Station, Antarctica (Australia) |
91% |
|
Progress Station, Antarctica (Russia) |
91% |
|
Bharati Station, Antarctica (India) |
91% |
|
Heard and McDonald Islands, Australia |
88% |
|
French Southern and Antarctic Lands, France |
88% |
|
McMurdo Station, Antarctica (U.S.) |
86% |
|
Alfred Faure Station, Ile de la Possession, France |
64% |
|
Mascarene Islands, Mauritius/France |
35% |
|
Port Louis, Mauritius |
32% |
|
Saint-Denis, Reunion, France |
31% |
|
Rothera Station, Antarctica (U.Okay.) |
27% |
|
Lemaire Channel, Antarctica |
21% |
|
Antananarivo, Madagascar |
20% |
|
Durban, South Africa |
16% |
|
Maputo, Mozambique |
13% |
|
Mbabane, Eswatini |
12% |
|
Maseru, Lesotho |
11% |
|
Coronation Island, Weddell Sea |
10% |
|
Gaborone, Botswana |
4% |
|
Harare, Zimbabwe |
3% |
|
Ushuaia, Argentina |
3% |
After Feb. 17, 2026, when is the following annular photo voltaic eclipse?
After Feb. 17, 2026, these are the dates and places for the following annular photo voltaic eclipses:
Feb. 6, 2027: Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria
Jan. 26, 2028: Galápagos Islands, mainland Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Suriname, French Guiana, Morocco and Spain
June 1, 2030: Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Greece, Turkey, Russia, Kazakhstan, China and Japan
Might 21, 2031: Angola, Zambia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, India, Sri Lanka, the Nicobar Islands, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia
Might 9, 2032: Southern Ocean
Sept. 12, 2034: Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, and Gough Island
March 9, 2035: New Zealand and Reao Atoll (Tuamotos)
Further sources
You will discover a concise abstract of all photo voltaic eclipses out to 2030 on NASA’s eclipse web site. Learn extra about photo voltaic and lunar eclipses on EclipseWise.com, a web site devoted to predictions of eclipses, and discover lovely maps on eclipse cartographer Michael Zeiler’s EclipseAtlas.com and interactive Google Maps on Xavier Jubier’s eclipse web site. You will discover local weather and climate predictions by meteorologist Jay Anderson on eclipsophile.com.
