HomeScienceNASA Announces Coverage for Northern H
SCIENCE

NASA Announces Coverage for Northern Hemisphere Total Solar Eclipse

NASA will stream live views, collect high-altitude solar observations, and deploy student balloon teams during the Aug. 12 event.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • A total solar eclipse will occur on Aug. 12, 2026, touching Greenland, Iceland, Russia, Spain, Portugal, and the Atlantic Ocean.
  • NASA's live broadcast begins at 1:15 p.m. Eastern, with totality hitting Iceland at 1:45 p.m. and Spain at 2:28 p.m.
  • A research team will use a WB-57 high-altitude aircraft to fly through the Moon's shadow and gather solar corona data.
  • Students from several U.S. universities will launch atmospheric research balloons in Iceland and Spain.

NASA will stream live coverage and conduct scientific experiments during a total solar eclipse on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. The path of totality will pass over parts of Greenland, Iceland, northern Russia, Spain, the Atlantic Ocean, and a small corner of Portugal.

Viewers across other regions of the Northern Hemisphere will see a partial solar eclipse instead. NASA stated that this partial view extends to parts of the United States running from Alaska to North Carolina, as well as most of Canada, much of Europe, and northwestern Africa.

During the eclipse, a NASA-funded science team will chase the Moon's shadow using a WB-57 high-altitude research aircraft to investigate the dynamics of the Sun's corona. Additionally, the NASA-supported Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project is sending students from several U.S. universities to Iceland and Spain. These student teams will launch scientific balloons before, during, and after totality to study how the temporary darkening of the sky affects Earth's atmosphere.

Live video coverage will broadcast online at nasa.gov/live beginning at 1:15 p.m. Eastern time. According to the broadcast schedule released by NASA, totality begins in Iceland at 1:45 p.m. Eastern and in Spain at 2:28 p.m. Eastern. Subject matter experts participating in the stream will answer questions submitted on X, Facebook, and Instagram under the agency's official accounts.

Still photography from the event will be made available shortly after the eclipse on NASA's Flickr account, subject to local visibility conditions. NASA designated Abbey Interrante and Karen Fox of the Science Mission Directorate as contact representatives for the broadcast advisory.

Xentir Media
Xentir Media NewsroomSource-backed AI and technology coverage, drafted by Xentir's automated editorial system under fixed human-set rules. See our editorial policy and AI usage policy.
J
Jomon · Founder & EditorFounder and editor of Xentir Media. Sets the editorial rules the newsroom system runs under, and is accountable for its corrections. About Jomon · [email protected]
The Xentir Brief
The developments worth knowing — one useful email.
Get the Brief →