August night sky has a rare double feature with eclipse, meteor shower
The first total solar eclipse since 2024 will be followed hours later by one of the most popular meteor showers of the year. Plus, an impressive lunar eclipse will wrap up the month.
This month of August will feature two eclipses and one of the best meteor showers of the year with the Perseids. A total solar eclipse will darken the sky over Spain, Portugal, Iceland and Greenland.
August will feature three major astronomical events, including the first total solar eclipse visible anywhere in the world since 2024, followed just hours later by one of the year's most popular meteor showers.
Days also start to get noticeably shorter across the Northern Hemisphere in August. Across more than half of the United States, there is more than an hour less daylight on Aug. 31 than on Aug. 1.
Total solar eclipse: Aug. 12
The month’s biggest event arrives on Aug. 12, when the moon will completely block out the sun along a narrow path across parts of Spain, Portugal, Iceland and Greenland. Totality will last up to 2 minutes and 18 seconds, less than half the length of the total solar eclipse that crossed North America in April 2024.
The Aug. 12, 2026 total solar eclipse path of totality.
In North America, millions will get to experience a partial solar eclipse, including those across Canada, Alaska, and the northeastern and midwestern U.S.
Anyone planning to watch a partial eclipse will need eclipse glasses to look safely toward the sun. Eclipse glasses from the 2024 total solar eclipse can still be safe to use as long as they are not scratched, torn or otherwise damaged. More details on the eclipse path and timing are available in AccuWeather’s total solar eclipse viewing guide.
The next total solar eclipse after August’s event will happen on Aug. 2, 2027.
Perseid meteor shower: Aug. 12-13
The sky show will continue after sunset on Aug. 12 as the Perseid meteor shower reaches its peak. The Perseids are often touted as one of the best meteor showers of the year, partly because they unfold during warm summer nights.
A composite image of 18 meteors from the Perseid Meteor Shower over Mt. Lassen and Lake Helen in Lassen Volcanic National Park, California. (Jerry Hamblen/Getty Images)
People watching from rural areas may see around 50 meteors per hour during the peak. In very dark areas, away from city lights, the number could climb as high as 60 to 100 meteors per hour. Shooting stars will start to appear shortly after nightfall, but the best activity is expected during the second half of the night.
Partial lunar eclipse: Aug. 27-28
The final major astronomy event of the month will arrive with August’s full moon, known as the Sturgeon Moon. During the night of Aug. 27 into the early morning of Aug. 28, a partial lunar eclipse will be visible across North America, South America, Europe and Africa.
This will not be a total lunar eclipse, but it will still be impressive. At the peak of the eclipse, 93% of the moon will pass through Earth’s shadow, with the deepest point occurring at 12:12 a.m. EDT on Friday, Aug. 28.
During a partial or total lunar eclipse, the moon can appear to have a reddish glow. According to NASA, this is because any sunlight that's not blocked by Earth is filtered through Earth’s atmosphere on its way to the lunar surface.
"It’s as if all the world’s sunrises and sunsets are projected onto the Moon," NASA said.
The earth's shadow covers the moon during a partial lunar eclipse Friday, Nov. 19, 2021, in Yokohama, near Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
For skywatchers hoping to see a total lunar eclipse, there will be a long wait as the next one is not set to unfold until June 25, 2029.
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