On August 12 2026, a total solar eclipse – one of the most spectacular astronomical events in Europe since the one in 1999 – will be visible in France and Spain.

On August 12 2026, a total solar eclipse – one of the most spectacular astronomical events in Europe since the one in 1999 – will be visible in France and Spain.

Find out how this phenomenon occurs and why it doesn’t occur every month.

Find out how this phenomenon occurs and why it doesn’t occur every month.

Eclipses have always fascinated people and have given rise to numerous myths and major scientific discoveries.

Eclipses have always fascinated people and have given rise to numerous myths and major scientific discoveries.

What is a total solar eclipse? Simple: the Sun disappears – so it’s night-time in broad daylight! An inevitably awe-inspiring event that gave rise to many myths. As the Sun is the source of life, its disappearance was seen as a sign of misfortune all over the world, except among a few Aboriginal tribes in Australia (for whom a modest veil was then cast over intimate encounters between husband and wife, the Sun and the Moon). To resolve the problem, special, noisy ceremonies had to be held to scare off the monster or demon attempting to swallow the Sun. Even today, it is hard to remain indifferent when darkness falls – our hearts instinctively sink. Relief then comes a few minutes later when the light returns: just like the birds that greet this return, we may feel the urge to sing, as we breathe a sigh of relief…

Where do eclipses hail from? The basic principle behind them is common knowledge: the Earth orbits the Sun and the Moon orbits the Earth. So, from time to time, an alignment of the Sun, Moon and Earth occurs. In this case, the Moon blocks the Sun’s rays, much like a parasol casts a shadow. The Moon’s shadow stretches out in a long cone behind it, and the Earth cuts right across the tip of it: this means that, unfortunately, only a small part of the globe will be able to enjoy the spectacle.

And this is where a stroke of luck comes into the equation: the Moon is 400 times smaller than the Sun, but also 400 times closer to the Earth. As a result, when viewed from Earth, both appear to be the same apparent size (also known as........

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