Will I See / Eclipse 2027 / Saudi Arabia / Mecca

Will I see the 2027 solar eclipse in Mecca?

Monday 2 August 2027 · Mecca

Yes, totality

The Moon covers the Sun completely for 5 min 08 s, from 13:24:10 to 13:29:17 local time. The Sun will be 75° up in the west.

Only Muslims may enter Mecca.

89%chance of a clear view at 13:26, from 20+ years of weather records
5 min 08 sof totality
13:24totality starts (UTC+3)
75°Sun height, west
Insideof the path
Hotels and tours in MeccaBook something with free cancellation for the days around 2 August. Hotels and tours in the path fill up first.
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Minute by minute

Local time in Mecca (UTC+3). The light fades for over an hour before totality; the last minutes go fast.

  1. 12:02:05StartsThe Moon touches the Sun
  2. 13:24:10TotalityDarkness, corona, stars
  3. 13:26:44Mid-totality
  4. 13:29:17Totality endsGlasses back on
  5. 14:44:47EndsThe Sun is whole again
Gold band: the path of totality. Dashed line: the centre of the path, where totality lasts longest.

Will the Sun be clear at 13:26?

A clear view is very likely. Around 13:26 from 21 July to 14 August, the sky over Mecca is on average 89% free of cloud: roughly the chance that the Sun is clear when the eclipse peaks.

2 August around 13:26, every year since 2006

  • 062006: clear
  • 072007: clear
  • 082008: clear
  • 092009: clear
  • 102010: clear
  • 112011: clear
  • 122012: clear
  • 132013: clear
  • 142014: clear
  • 152015: some cloud
  • 162016: some cloud
  • 172017: clear
  • 182018: clear
  • 192019: clear
  • 202020: no report
  • 212021: clear
  • 222022: some cloud
  • 232023: no report
  • 242024: some cloud
  • 252025: some cloud
clear (up to 2/8 cloud)some cloudcloudy (6/8 or more)no report

Clear or nearly clear in 13 of 18 years on the day itself (Taif airport weather reports). One day is luck; the 89% above averages every day from 21 July to 14 August. How: NASA POWER hourly cloud data (2001–2025), corrected to match the weather reports of the 66 airports we checked (NOAA ISD, 2006–2025); NASA alone was up to 20 points too sunny along the Strait of Gibraltar. A real forecast exists about a week before: we'll add it here.

Longer or clearer nearby

Towns within 160 km of Mecca with longer totality or a clearer record.

Jeddah

5m 59s
of totality · Saudi Arabia 88% chance of a clear view · 70 km away

Staying in Mecca

Rooms in the path go first: book now with free cancellation, then check the forecast a week before. If clouds threaten, a car lets you move along the path.

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Keep your eyes safe

Before and after totality

Look at the Sun only through eclipse glasses or a solar viewer made to ISO 12312-2. Sunglasses are not enough, even at 99%.

During totality

Once the last bead of sunlight disappears, take the glasses off and look. Put them back on the moment the Sun's edge reappears.

Cameras and binoculars

Never point binoculars, a telescope or a camera lens at the partial Sun without a solar filter on the front.

Mecca eclipse: questions

It starts at 12:02 and ends at 14:44 local time (UTC+3). Totality runs from 13:24:10 to 13:29:17.

5 min 08 s. Mecca is inside the path; Jeddah (70 km) gets 5 min 59 s.

Nobody can know that until about a week before. From history: around 13:26 in late July and early August, the sky over Mecca is on average 89% free of cloud, so roughly a 89% chance that the Sun is clear when the eclipse peaks. That is NASA satellite-based cloud data corrected with nearby airports' weather reports.

The Sun will be 75° above the horizon in the west, so pick a spot with an open view that way: a beach, a rooftop terrace or a hill. At that height buildings rarely get in the way.

Yes, for everything except totality itself. Use glasses or viewers made to ISO 12312-2. During the 5 min 08 s of totality you can look without them.

All towns, the full path map and "check any place"