The Aug. 12, 2026 total solar eclipse will be visible in full across parts of Spain, Iceland and Greenland, with a deep partial eclipse across much of Europe. Major organizations will stream the event live: NASA at 1:15 p.m. EDT (17:15 UTC), Time And Date at 12:00 p.m. EDT (16:00 UTC), ESA at 1:30 p.m. EDT (17:30 UTC), the Royal Observatory Greenwich at 1:15 p.m. EDT (17:15 UTC) and the Virtual Telescope Project at 1:20 p.m. EDT (17:20 UTC). Coverage includes live telescope views, expert commentary and a late-night Virtual Telescope stream for the Perseid meteor shower peak on Aug. 12–13.
How to Watch the Aug. 12, 2026 Total Solar Eclipse Live — Free Streams and Times
Credit: Inset: Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images.Background: NASA, ESA and AURA/Caltech. Created in Canva by Anthony Wood.
The Aug. 12, 2026 total solar eclipse will sweep across parts of Spain, Iceland and Greenland, producing a brief but dramatic period of totality for millions of observers. Even if you’re outside the path of totality or clouds intervene, you can still watch the entire event live online from anywhere in the world.
Where To Watch Live
Below are the major, free livestreams that will cover every phase of the eclipse, with times listed in Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) and Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
NASA — 1:15 p.m. EDT / 17:15 UTC
NASA will host a comprehensive livestream beginning at 1:15 p.m. EDT (17:15 UTC). The broadcast will stitch together live footage of totality from cameras placed along the eclipse path and include scientific commentary about what viewers are seeing and how NASA studies the Sun. Watch on Space.com or via YouTube, Twitch, NASA+, Facebook, Instagram and Amazon Prime.
Time And Date — 12:00 p.m. EDT / 16:00 UTC
Time And Date’s YouTube livestream begins at 12:00 p.m. EDT (16:00 UTC), with live views from León in northwestern Spain and from Mallorca. The stream will feature commentary from journalist Anne Buckle and astrophysicist Graham Jones.
European Space Agency (ESA) — 1:30 p.m. EDT / 17:30 UTC
ESA’s official livestream starts at 1:30 p.m. EDT (17:30 UTC). Expect expert analysis and live telescope imagery from the Observatorio Astrofísico de Javalambre near Teruel, Spain, which lies directly in the path of totality.
Royal Observatory Greenwich — 1:15 p.m. EDT / 17:15 UTC
The Royal Observatory Greenwich will run two simultaneous YouTube streams beginning at 1:15 p.m. EDT (17:15 UTC). One stream features live commentary from Royal Observatory astronomer Greg Brown; the other is a silent feed focused on visuals of the partial eclipse.
The Virtual Telescope Project — 1:20 p.m. EDT / 17:20 UTC
The Virtual Telescope Project’s livestream starts at 1:20 p.m. EDT (17:20 UTC), with real-time views from robotic telescopes in Manciano, Italy (partial eclipse) and locations in Spain within the path of totality. The Virtual Telescope Project will also host a separate late-night stream showing the peak of the Perseid meteor shower overnight on Aug. 12–13.
Quick Tips For Watching
- Check the stream start times in your local time zone — the times above are EDT (UTC-4) and UTC for global reference.
- If you are viewing locally, use eclipse-safe solar glasses for any partial phases before and after totality.
- Follow live blogs and social feeds for real-time updates, viewer photos and on-the-ground reports.
Follow our live blog for continuous coverage, including on-site reports from Skywatching Writer Anthony Wood (observing in central Spain) and Skywatching Editor Daisy Dobrijevic (observing from a Greenland voyage with HX Expeditions).
Editor’s Note: If you’d like to share eclipse photos with Space.com readers, send your images along with comments, your name and location to [email protected].
Help us improve.
