Europe will witness a rare astronomical event on August 12, when a total solar eclipse crosses parts of the continent, briefly turning day into darkness along its path. The eclipse occurs as the Earth, Moon and Sun align, allowing the Moon to cast its darkest shadow across the Earth's surface.
The path of totality will stretch from Greenland and Iceland to northern Spain and the Balearic Islands, offering millions of observers the chance to experience the Moon completely covering the Sun.
The spectacle will be far less dramatic in Bulgaria. The country lies at the easternmost edge of the eclipse's penumbra, meaning the event will appear only as a very weak partial eclipse and will be difficult to observe. The phenomenon will be visible for only around 10 minutes, with the timing made particularly challenging because it occurs immediately before sunset.
The best opportunity for observers in Bulgaria will be in the country's far northwest, around Vidin and the Danube Plain near the Serbian border. There, the eclipse is expected to begin at about 8:27 p.m. local time. Just 10 minutes later, at around 8:37 p.m., the Sun will have set below the horizon.
During that brief window, the Moon will cover only about 1% of the Sun's disk. The Sun's extremely low position in the western sky means that observers will need a location with a completely open horizon and no buildings, trees or other obstacles blocking the view.
