Everyone is curious to know when the total solar eclipse is happening in August 2026. In India, the eclipse coincides closely with the festival of Sawan Shivratri on August 11. Hence, it is important to know the exact date and time of this eclipse.The total solar eclipse is officially dated Wednesday, 12 August 2026. However, its final stages will continue past midnight and end in the early hours of 13 August, Indian Standard Time. This time zone difference is the main reason for the two dates.
Is the solar eclipse on the 12th or 13th of August?
The official name NASA gives to the celestial event is the total solar eclipse of 12 August 2026. The eclipse begins on 12 August for the whole world, and the maximum phase is also reached on that date in Universal Time.For Indian viewers, the timing will be confusing as the eclipse will start late at night on 12 August and end after midnight on 13 August.
Time of Solar Eclipse 2026
·Official date: August 12, 2026Eclipse closing date in Indian time zone: 13 August 2026Will it be visible in India? No
Solar Eclipse 2026 Time in India
Below is the Indian Standard Time (IST) version of the worldwide eclipse timeline:·Partial eclipse starts: 9:04:15 pm on 12 August.·Worldwide: 10:28:09 pm Total eclipse begins.·Peak eclipse: About 11:16 p.m.·Worldwide end of total eclipse: 12:04:07 AM, 13 August·Partial eclipse ends 1:27:57 am 13 August.The global event kicks off at 15:34:15 UTC on August 12 and concludes at 19:57:57 UTC. The peak of the eclipse occurs at 17:46 UTC.
How long will the solar eclipse be?
Readers should realise that there are two different lengths.Total duration of the eclipse (global): The eclipse will last from the start of the first partial phase to the end of the last partial phase: 4 hours, 23 minutes, 42 seconds. That is the full duration worldwide as the Moon’s shadow moves across different regions.Maximum Length of Totality: The Sun will be completely obscured for about: At the optimum site, close to the centreline of the eclipse path, totality will last about 2 minutes and 18 seconds.Most locations on the path of totality will have less than two minutes of total darkness. The longest totality will be in the region of the North Atlantic and Greenland.The total phase for the globe lasts much longer, as different places enter and leave totality at different moments. No single observer will see totality for the whole globe-wide period.
August 2026 Solar Eclipse: Will It Be Visible in India?
The total solar eclipse on August 12 will not be visible anywhere in India.The path of totality will cross northern Russia, Greenland, Iceland, the North Atlantic, Spain and a small part of Portugal. A partial eclipse will be visible over much of Europe, most of Canada, parts of the northern United States and north-western Africa.In India, people will be able to watch the event on authorised live broadcasts, but they will not see the Sun covered in the Indian sky.
Quick reference for correct time and date:
Type: Total solar eclipsesActual Date: 12th August 2026Indian Timing: 9:04 PM on 12 August To 1:28 AM on 13 AugustMaximum eclipse in IST: August 12 around 11:16 pmSo the confusion is more about time zones than astronomy. The eclipse is on 12 August 2026, but its closing phase is after midnight on 13 August in India.
