How we calculate
UmbraLux calculates every date and time on this page itself, with the astronomy library astronomy-engine – the same calculation the UmbraLux app uses for its charts. As usual in astrology, positions are measured in the tropical zodiac: the signs start at the vernal equinox and span 30° each.
For each eclipse we calculate the moment of greatest eclipse (when the axis of the Moon's shadow passes closest to the Earth's centre) and, for every place named, the beginning, maximum and end with the Sun's altitude above the horizon. The magnitude is the share of the Sun's diameter the Moon covers; the obscuration is the share of the Sun's area. Magnitude and lunar radius follow the conventions of NASA's catalogue.
An automated test compares every eclipse of 2026 and 2027 with NASA's Five Millennium Catalog (Espenak and Meeus): kind and magnitude agree, the moment of greatest eclipse lies within 10 seconds, the length of the total or annular phase within 10 seconds too. For future years every calculation estimates the Earth's rotation (ΔT); a few seconds depend on it.
Watching safely
Even when the Moon covers almost all of the Sun, looking at it can damage the retina. Look only through eclipse glasses that meet ISO 12312-2, or project the image, for example with a cardboard pinhole. Only in the brief time the Sun is fully covered (inside the band of totality) is it safe to look without a filter.
Questions about solar eclipses
When is the next solar eclipse?
The next solar eclipse is on Saturday, February 6, 2027 (in 116 days): an annular solar eclipse. It cannot be seen from Germany, Austria or Switzerland. The next one visible from Germany, Austria and Switzerland is the total solar eclipse on August 2, 2027: there the Moon covers up to 55% of the Sun.
When can the next solar eclipse be seen from Germany?
Until the end of 2027: on August 2, 2027 (total solar eclipse, partial there: the Moon covers up to 55% of the Sun).
When is the next total solar eclipse in Germany?
By our calculation on Wednesday, September 3, 2081. It is total in, among others, Bern (2 min 45 s), Basel (3 min 59 s), Freiburg (3 min 42 s), Zurich (3 min 59 s), Konstanz (3 min 56 s), Bregenz (4 min 1 s), Innsbruck (4 min 2 s) and Graz (2 min 44 s). Stuttgart, Ulm, Augsburg, Munich and Salzburg stay just outside the band; that far ahead the band may still shift a little, because the Earth's rotation cannot be predicted exactly. It stays partial in, for example, Cologne (93%), Frankfurt (95%), Hamburg (81%), Berlin (83%) and Vienna (97%).
How do I watch a solar eclipse safely?
Only with eclipse glasses that meet ISO 12312-2, or indirectly, for example with a pinhole projector. Sunglasses, smoked glass or film do not protect your eyes. Cameras, binoculars and telescopes need their own solar filter in front of the lens.
What does the magnitude of a solar eclipse mean?
The magnitude is the share of the Sun's diameter the Moon covers. From 1 the Sun is fully covered; in an annular eclipse it stays below 1 because the Moon appears too small. The obscuration gives the share of the Sun's area that is covered.
By year
More calendars
Matching calculators
Sources
- astronomy-engine (Don Cross) : the calculation library the UmbraLux app uses too
- NASA Eclipse Web Site: Five Millennium Catalog of Solar Eclipses (Espenak & Meeus) : reference values of our test