Annular Solar Eclipse of January 26, 2028: Times and Duration in Spain

On January 26, 2028, the Moon will pass in front of the Sun without managing to cover it: too far from the Earth, it will leave a ring of light around itself. The path of annularity crosses the Iberian peninsula diagonally, from the Algarve and the Gulf of Cádiz to the Valencian Community, in the late afternoon.

Up to 7 min 15 s of ring at Seville and 7 min 13 s at Cordoba. But obscuration tops out at 82.6 % on the peninsula: day will not turn to night, and the glasses never come off.

Work out the exact time for your own location

Address, city or GPS position: the calculator returns the four contacts, the duration of annularity, maximum obscuration and the Sun's altitude to within ±5-10 seconds, from NASA's Besselian elements.

Where the path of annularity runs

It comes in over the Algarve and the Gulf of Cádiz, covers Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Jerez, Cordoba and Jaén, climbs through Ciudad Real, Toledo and Albacete, and leaves by way of Murcia, Cartagena, Alicante and Valencia. Lisbon, Madrid, Cáceres, Badajoz and Almería stay just outside.

The Sun will be very low: 9° at Faro, 8° at Seville, 3° at Valencia — where the ring closes just thirteen minutes before sunset. A completely clear western horizon is not a comfort, it is the condition of the whole observation.

Annularity times, city by city

CityDurationRing beginsRing endsStart (C1)End (C4)Sun
Seville7 min 15 s17:52:1417:59:2916:3419:078°
Cordoba7 min 13 s17:52:3317:59:4616:3519:077°
Huelva7 min 11 s17:51:5517:59:0616:3319:079°
Écija7 min 10 s17:52:3417:59:4516:3519:077°
Albacete7 min 06 s17:53:0818:00:1416:3719:064°
Valencia7 min 02 s17:53:2118:00:2316:3919:063°
Faro7 min 01 s17:51:3817:58:3916:3219:079°
Jaén6 min 53 s17:53:0617:59:5816:3619:076°
Jerez de la Frontera6 min 50 s17:52:3417:59:2416:3419:078°
Cádiz6 min 42 s17:52:3717:59:1916:3419:088°
Ciudad Real6 min 33 s17:52:4817:59:2116:3619:065°
Ronda6 min 06 s17:53:1817:59:2416:3519:077°
Granada5 min 23 s17:54:0517:59:2916:3619:076°
Alicante5 min 05 s17:54:4517:59:5016:3919:063°
Málaga4 min 59 s17:54:0817:59:0716:3619:077°
Murcia4 min 40 s17:54:5517:59:3516:3819:064°
Toledo3 min 02 s17:54:1117:57:1316:3519:065°
Cartagena1 min 14 s17:56:4817:58:0116:3919:063°

Times in CET (UTC+1), legal time in Spain on January 26, 2028. NASA/GSFC Besselian elements, ±5-10 s. The C4 column is theoretical: the Sun sets before the partial phase ends, everywhere on the peninsula.

Major cities just outside the path

CityMax. coverageTime of maximum
Badajoz82.6 %17:54:57
Almería82.4 %17:57:12
Madrid82.3 %17:55:32
Cáceres82.1 %17:54:59
Zaragoza82.0 %17:55:43
Lisbon81.2 %17:54:05
Salamanca79.4 %17:54:38
Valladolid78.6 %17:54:38
Bilbao76.2 %17:54:19
Porto75.6 %17:53:22

Madrid, Lisbon, Almería, Badajoz: a very deep partial eclipse — over 75 % — but no ring. The difference comes down to tens of kilometres, and the calculator above settles it to the metre.

The full track: Galápagos, Amazonia, Atlantic, Iberia

The ring touches down near the Galápagos, crosses Ecuador, northern Peru and the Brazilian Amazon — that is where obscuration peaks, very close to 84.8 %, the maximum for this eclipse — before crossing the Atlantic and reaching the Iberian peninsula at sunset. It leaves the Earth over the western Mediterranean.

Method and sources

Ephemerides
The calculator first queries the IMCCE's OPALE API (Paris Observatory), INPOP19A ephemerides, accurate to about a second. If it does not answer, it falls back on the polynomial Besselian elements published by NASA/GSFC (Fred Espenak) for that eclipse.
Geometric criterion
A point lies inside the path if the minimum over time of « distance to the shadow axis minus shadow radius » turns negative. The same criterion drives a city's readout, the drawn path limits and the animated shadow: the three cannot contradict one another.
Measured precision
The Besselian fallback was cross-checked against INPOP19A for twelve cities across the three eclipses: contact times differ by 1 to 10 seconds, and path membership agrees everywhere except for one city sitting exactly on the limit. The tables above come from that same engine.

Citing this page

Solunareclipse — Annular Solar Eclipse of January 26, 2028: Times and Duration in Spainhttps://solunareclipse.com/en/calculateur-2028

The times can be recomputed: anyone can check them from the same Besselian elements.

Open dataEmbed the calculator on your siteWho writes this site

Safety: the glasses never come off

An annular eclipse has no totality: even at maximum, a ring of photosphere stays visible, far bright enough to burn the retina in seconds. ISO 12312-2 certified glasses are worn from first to last contact, without the exception that applies to a total eclipse.

Frequently asked questions

Why will it not go dark on January 26, 2028?+
Because the Moon will be too far from the Earth to cover the solar disc completely: a ring will remain. Obscuration tops out at 84.8 % anywhere on Earth, and at 82.6 % on the Iberian peninsula. The light will drop noticeably, as under a heavy cloud, but never fall.
Where can you see the ring in Spain and Portugal?+
Inside the path of annularity: the Algarve, Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Jerez, Cordoba, Jaén, Ciudad Real, Toledo, Albacete, Murcia, Alicante and Valencia. Madrid, Lisbon, Almería and Cartagena are right next door — deep partial, but no ring.
How long does the ring last?+
Up to 7 min 15 s at Seville, 7 min 13 s at Cordoba, 7 min 11 s at Huelva, 7 min 02 s at Valencia. Towards the edges of the path the duration collapses: 1 min 14 s at Cartagena.
Can you take your glasses off during annularity?+
No, at no point. That is the key difference from a total eclipse: the ring is still photosphere, as dangerous to the retina as the uneclipsed Sun. ISO 12312-2 glasses are worn from first to last contact.
What time is the eclipse of January 26, 2028?+
The partial phase starts around 16:34, the ring appears between 17:52 and 17:57 depending on the city and lasts from one to seven minutes, Spanish time (CET). The Sun then sets while the partial phase is still running.

The other eclipses of the Iberian trilogy