Three things happen in the sky this week. A total solar eclipse on August 12. The Perseid meteor shower peaking the night of August 12 into the morning of August 13. And six planets strung across the morning sky around the same dates. The meteors and the planets are both best in the hours before dawn, not in the evening. That is the single most useful thing on this page.

most of what is circulating this week has the timing wrong, so here is the version I would give a friend.

The total solar eclipse, August 12

Greatest eclipse falls at 17:47 UTC. The path of totality crosses a remote stretch of Siberian Russia, eastern Greenland, the west coast of Iceland and then northern Spain, clipping a corner of Portugal. Totality lasts a maximum of two minutes and eighteen seconds.

If you are in Bilbao, Burgos, Santander, Valladolid, Zaragoza, Valencia or Palma, you are inside the band, and in Spain it happens late, close to sunset. Much of the northern hemisphere sees a partial eclipse instead, including most of Canada, parts of the northern United States and much of Europe.

On safety, plainly. Certified eclipse glasses, not sunglasses, not a phone screen, not smoked glass. The only moment it is safe to look with bare eyes is during full totality, and only if you are inside that narrow path. The second the sun begins to return, the glasses go back on.

The Perseids, and why this year is unusual

The Perseids run from July 17 through August 24, and peak the night of August 12 into the morning of August 13, with the exact maximum around 14:53 UTC on the 13th.

Here is the part worth understanding, because it connects the two events. A solar eclipse can only happen at a new moon. A new moon means no moonlight. And no moonlight is precisely what you want for a meteor shower, because a bright moon washes most of them out.

So the same alignment that darkens the sun on the twelfth also gives the Perseids the darkest possible sky on the same night. Under genuinely dark conditions NASA puts the rate at up to a hundred meteors an hour. You will see fewer from a city, but this is the best Perseid year in a long while.

Go out between 2am and dawn. Look up and slightly away from the radiant rather than at it. Give your eyes twenty minutes to adjust and do not check your phone, because one glance at a bright screen resets that adjustment completely.

The planet parade, and a correction

Six planets are gathered in the morning sky around August 12: Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

Two things are being said about this online that are not accurate, and I would rather you were not disappointed at four in the morning.

The first is that Venus is in this parade. It is not. The six are the ones listed above.

The second is that they are all visible to the naked eye. Only Jupiter, Mercury, Mars and Saturn are. Uranus and Neptune need binoculars or a telescope, and Neptune realistically needs a telescope and some patience.

Look in the hour before sunrise, from the eastern horizon toward the southwest. The arrangement shifts a little each day, so if the twelfth is cloudy where you are, the mornings either side still work.

The astrology, briefly and honestly

The eclipse falls in Leo, the sign of visibility and self-expression, and it is the first total solar eclipse in that sign since 2019. Jupiter is in Leo alongside it. Read together, the usual interpretation is about what you have been performing versus what is actually true, and about leadership in the widest sense, meaning what you are lending your energy to rather than what any politician is doing.

One thing I want to be clear about, because the advice going around is contradictory. Eclipses are not a good moment for setting intentions or manifesting. You will see plenty of content this week telling you the opposite, that the twelfth is a master manifesting day. Traditional practice, and my own view, is that eclipses bring endings and new information rather than stable beginnings, so anything committed to inside that window tends to look different by the end of the month. We wrote about why in should you manifest during an eclipse.

Use it to notice and to finish things. Write down anything you feel certain about and reread it on the thirtieth. The new moon in September will be much steadier ground for deciding anything.

What I would actually do

• August 12, daytime. If you are in the path, eclipse glasses and go outside. If not, it is an ordinary and rather beautiful Wednesday
• August 12, night into the 13th. Set an alarm for 2am. Warm layers, no phone, twenty minutes for your eyes to adjust
• The hour before sunrise. Same trip, look east. Jupiter and Saturn are the easy ones to find
• Hair. The twelfth is a rest day rather than a cutting day, since it is an eclipse. Our lunar calendar has the full month

Frequently asked questions

When is the Perseid meteor shower in 2026?

It runs July 17 through August 24 and peaks the night of August 12 into the morning of August 13, 2026, with maximum activity around 14:53 UTC on the 13th. The best viewing is between 2am and dawn.

Why are the Perseids especially good in 2026?

Because the peak coincides with a new moon, so there is no moonlight washing out the fainter meteors. Under dark skies NASA puts the rate at up to a hundred meteors per hour. It is the best combination of peak and moon phase in years.

Which planets are in the August 2026 planet parade?

Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, in the morning sky around August 12. Jupiter, Mercury, Mars and Saturn are visible to the naked eye. Uranus and Neptune need binoculars or a telescope. Venus is not part of this alignment.

What time should I look for the planet parade?

In the hour before your local sunrise, looking from the eastern horizon toward the southwest. It is a morning event, not an evening one.

Where is the August 12, 2026 solar eclipse visible?

Totality crosses Siberian Russia, eastern Greenland, western Iceland and northern Spain, with a small part of Portugal. Much of the rest of the northern hemisphere sees a partial eclipse.

Is it safe to look at the solar eclipse?

Only during full totality, and only from inside the path. At every other moment you need certified eclipse glasses. Sunglasses, phone cameras and smoked glass do not protect your eyes.

Should I manifest during the eclipse?

Traditional practice advises against it. Eclipses tend to bring endings and new information rather than steady beginnings, so intentions set during one are often built on a situation still in motion. Use the window to finish and release instead.

Three things in one week, and only one of them asks anything of you. The other two just ask you to be awake at an inconvenient hour, outside, looking up.

Set the alarm. It is worth the sleep.

With love from Bali,
Myrah