How many solar eclipses happen each year?

There are between 2 and 5 solar eclipses per year. At least 2 must occur because the Sun and Moon align near a lunar node twice per year. Total solar eclipses are rarer — on average about 1.5 per year globally, but any given location on Earth sees one only every 375 years on average.

What is the difference between a total and an annular solar eclipse?

In a total eclipse, the Moon is close enough to Earth that its apparent diameter exceeds the Sun's, so it completely blocks the solar disk and reveals the corona. In an annular eclipse, the Moon is near apogee (farther from Earth) and appears smaller, leaving a bright "ring of fire" around it.

What is a hybrid solar eclipse?

A hybrid eclipse begins as an annular eclipse along part of its path but transitions into a total eclipse for another segment, because the curvature of Earth brings some observers closer to the Moon during the event. These are rare — roughly 5% of all solar eclipses.

How long does totality last?

The maximum duration of totality depends on the Moon's distance from Earth and the observer's position on the central path. The theoretical maximum is about 7 minutes 32 seconds. Most totalities are between 1 and 4 minutes. Annular eclipses can last up to 12 minutes of "ring of fire."

Why is the path of totality so narrow?

The Moon's umbra — the cone of complete shadow — is only about 100 to 200 km wide where it touches Earth's surface. The penumbra (partial shadow) is much wider (thousands of kilometers), which is why partial eclipses are visible across large regions.

Are the dates accurate?

Yes. Eclipse dates are sourced from NASA's Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses compiled by Fred Espenak. Exact local times depend on your longitude; see NASA's Eclipse Explorer for precise contact times at your location.

Solar Eclipse Calculator

Name: Solar Eclipse Calculator
Availability: InStock
Author: Nham Vu

See the next 10 upcoming solar eclipses with dates, types, durations, and visibility regions, plus a live countdown and eclipse geometry diagram.

Next Solar Eclipse

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Days

Hours

Mins

Secs

Upcoming Solar Eclipses 2024–2035

Source: NASA Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses (Espenak). Click a row to update the geometry diagram.

Date	Type	Duration	Primary Visibility

Eclipse Geometry

Total Solar Eclipse — Moon fully covers the Sun

Sun

Moon

Earth

Umbra shadow

Diagram is schematic — not to scale. Click a table row to switch between eclipse types.

Eclipse Types

Total: Moon completely covers the Sun. Corona visible. Requires standing in the narrow umbra path.
Annular: Moon near apogee — appears smaller, leaving a "ring of fire" around the solar disk.
Hybrid: Appears total along some of the path and annular along others due to Earth's curvature. Rare (~5% of eclipses).
Partial: Only the penumbra reaches your location; the Moon covers part of the Sun but not the center.

Summary

See the next 10 upcoming solar eclipses with dates, types, durations, and visibility regions, plus a live countdown and eclipse geometry diagram.

How it works

Eclipse data (dates, types, durations, visibility) is sourced from NASA's Five Millennium Canon of Solar Eclipses.
JavaScript calculates the difference between today's date and each eclipse date to find the nearest upcoming event.
A live countdown in days, hours, minutes, and seconds ticks down to the next eclipse.
The eclipse table highlights the next upcoming eclipse and marks past eclipses as completed.
Click any eclipse row to update the SVG diagram showing the alignment geometry for that eclipse type.
The diagram labels the umbra and penumbra shadow cones, showing why totality is visible only in a narrow path.

Use cases

Plan travel to the path of totality for a future total solar eclipse.
Teach students about eclipse geometry and the umbra vs. penumbra.
Quickly find when and where the next annular or hybrid eclipse occurs.
Understand the difference between total, annular, hybrid, and partial solar eclipses.
Estimate how long you will experience totality at a given eclipse.
Use as a reference when building eclipse observation or photography plans.
Check which continent or ocean a rare hybrid eclipse crosses.
Settle debates about upcoming eclipse dates with authoritative NASA-sourced data.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Last updated: 2026-05-29 · Reviewed by Nham Vu