On August 12, 2026, a total solar eclipse will traverse Greenland, Iceland, and Spain, providing a rare opportunity for researchers to examine the Sun's corona and the impact of sudden darkness on Earth's atmosphere. NASA-supported teams plan to utilize specialized aerial equipment to capture data that is otherwise difficult to obtain.
A WB-57 high-altitude research aircraft will fly at 50,000 feet to track the Moon's shadow. By moving at 460 miles per hour, the jet will extend the observation window of the corona to nearly three minutes, surpassing the maximum duration of two minutes and 18 seconds available from the ground. The aircraft is equipped with the SCIFLI Multispectral Airborne Imager (SAMI), which uses four cameras to record high-resolution imagery in visible and infrared light. Principal investigator Amir Caspi of the Southwest Research Institute noted that because the Sun is constantly changing, each eclipse offers unique insights into solar structures, heating processes, and the solar wind.
Simultaneously, the Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project, led by Montana State University’s Angela Des Jardins, will conduct atmospheric studies in Iceland and Spain. In Iceland, researchers will launch 80 balloons to monitor the Earth’s boundary layer, investigating how the eclipse-induced darkness affects this atmospheric region during a season characterized by long daylight hours. Meanwhile, teams in Spain will deploy balloons equipped with 360-degree cameras and ozone-measuring instruments to observe the eclipse shadow and analyze fluctuations in atmospheric ozone levels.
Kelly Korreck, NASA’s eclipse program manager, emphasized the importance of these efforts, stating, “The Sun impacts our daily life, satellites, and astronauts in space, and we can take advantage of this moment to advance our understanding of that influence.”
Source: NASA
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