Online simulators show how the August 12 eclipse will appear in your commune
See timing and coverage of the eclipse from your commune
The eclipse will be visible across France on August 12
Griffin Gillespie/Shutterstock.
A near-total eclipse is coming soon in France, and simulators already exist online to help determine when the eclipse will be visible in each commune, as well as the best time to observe it.
The eclipse will be visible across France on August 12. In the south-west, it will be almost total, with 99.5% of the Sun expected to be covered.
Other parts of France, such as Paris, where 92.2% coverage will be visible, will see a lesser degree of obscuration, but it will still be a unique spectacle to behold.
At the moment, there are two free simulators available to see at what time the eclipse will be visible in your commune.
The first is Photo Ephemeris. The site is quite straightforward: when you open it, you should scroll down slightly and click on the ‘Start Planning’ option. If this is not there, you might have to click on the ‘Get started for free’ option first.
This will immediately direct you to a map, where the areas affected by the eclipse will be visible.
From there, all you need to do is select and drag the red pin to your exact location, zooming in and out of the map accordingly. Once the pin is placed on your location, you will be able to see when the eclipse’s maximum coverage can be observed.
Another option is EclipSEOP. This tool is provided by the Observatoire de Paris and “allows you to obtain, with just a few clicks, the times of the different phases of the eclipse as well as a graphical representation of the phenomenon observable from a given location.”
The steps are equally simple: you zoom in, select a location, and tap the option ‘Calculate the local circumstances’.
The map will then display the visibility of the eclipse, whether partial or total, and the time at which maximum coverage will be observed. Additionally, it also provides information on its duration.
It should be noted that the time shown on the website is in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). Mainland France is UTC+2 in August, so you will need to add two hours.
If you are planning to watch the eclipse, you should also consider buying protective glasses in advance, as last-minute stock shortages are possible.
It should also be noted that this is a deep partial solar eclipse in France, not a total eclipse. Totality will be visible from parts of northern Spain.
