Total eclipse — Australia & NZ (2037)
The path of totality crosses Australia from Western Australia through Brisbane and the Gold Coast, then over the Tasman Sea to the central North Island of New Zealand. Totality lasts up to 3 minutes 58 seconds.
📍 Visible from where you are right now — computed in your browser
Available views: Orbit ✓ · Sky ✓
The story
On 13 July 2037, the path of a total solar eclipse will cross Australia and New Zealand. The Moon's shadow reaches land near Geraldton on the coast of Western Australia, passes near Wiluna and Uluru, and continues to Charleville, Roma and Toowoomba in Queensland. It then crosses Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Byron Bay before heading out to sea.
The shadow passes Lord Howe Island, crosses the Tasman Sea, and reaches Te Awamutu, Taupō and Napier in the central North Island of New Zealand. In Taupō, totality lasts about 2 minutes 4 seconds at around 3:49 pm, and in Napier about 2 minutes 20 seconds. Because it is a midwinter afternoon, the Sun is fairly low in the north-western sky.
Where totality lasts longest, it reaches 3 minutes 58 seconds. Brisbane, by contrast, is near the edge of the path, so its totality at around 1:17 pm lasts only about 1 minute 4 seconds. Even inside the same path, the length of totality changes a lot depending on how far a place is from the centre line.
Sydney and Auckland are outside the path. Sydney sees a partial eclipse with about 87% of the Sun covered, and Auckland about 98%. In the sky view, switching the location between Brisbane, Taupō and Sydney and replaying the event shows the difference between totality and a partial eclipse.
Viewing guide — where, when, how
In the sky view, choose the 2037 eclipse from the event list and set the location to Brisbane. The darkened Sun in the northern sky at about 1:17 pm local time on 13 July is shown. Moving the location to Taupō shows totality lower in the sky at around 3:49 pm, and choosing Sydney shows a partial eclipse.
The event playback in the orbit view shows the Moon's shadow crossing the Australian continent at a slant from north-west to south-east, then crossing the Tasman Sea to New Zealand. It is around midday when the shadow crosses Australia and late afternoon when it reaches New Zealand, so the Sun can also be seen getting lower along the way.
Replaying the 22 July 2028 Sydney eclipse, the 25 November 2030 eclipse and the 26 December 2038 eclipse side by side in the sky view shows how the Sun's height and the direction of the path change with the season and the time of day. Because this is a midwinter eclipse with a low Sun, real observers need a spot where buildings or hills do not block the direction of the Sun.
See this for yourself — open that sky at that moment · replay the moment in the orbit view
Why this eclipse is special
From the late 2020s, Australia gets a series of total eclipses. On 22 July 2028 the path crosses Sydney, and on 25 November 2030 it crosses South Australia, New South Wales and Queensland. Adding 2037 and 26 December 2038 (South Australia and Victoria), four total eclipse paths cross the continent in about ten years.
These eclipses belong to different saros families, and it is a coincidence that they gather over the same continent. The Southern Hemisphere has wide oceans and less inhabited land, so a total eclipse path crosses a large city less often than in the north. That makes a large city such as Brisbane falling inside the path a good opportunity for observers.
New Zealand is in a similar position. The annular eclipse of March 2035 is followed by this total eclipse, and then by the total eclipse of December 2038 over the south-west of the North Island. Being able to compare several eclipses from one region within a short time is a special feature of this period.
Background and earlier eclipses
The 2037 eclipse belongs to an eclipse family called Saros 127. The previous member of this family was the total eclipse of 2 July 2019 over Chile and Argentina, and the next one will be on 24 July 2055. Similar eclipses repeat about every 18 years and 11 days.
In inland Queensland and the Northern Territory, July falls in the dry season. These areas are therefore thought to have a better chance of clear skies than the coast, but they are large and thinly populated, so travel is not easy. Brisbane and the Gold Coast are easy to reach but have shorter totality, and their weather can only be known on the day.
FAQ
How long does totality last?
Up to 3 minutes 58 seconds at the longest point. Brisbane, near the edge of the path, gets about 1 minute 4 seconds, and Taupō about 2 minutes 4 seconds.
Can it be seen from Sydney?
Sydney is outside the path and sees a partial eclipse with about 87% covered. Totality is visible inside the path, for example at Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
What about New Zealand?
Te Awamutu, Taupō and Napier in the central North Island are inside the path, with totality a little before 4 pm. Auckland sees a partial eclipse of about 98%.
What other total eclipses will Australia see?
22 July 2028 (Sydney), 25 November 2030, and 26 December 2038.
Related
- Total solar eclipse of 2028
- Annular eclipse — Wellington (2035)
- Total eclipse — South America (2020)
- The Sun — object index
- The Moon — object index
Times and figures are approximate — verify with official sources when planning travel. Simulation uses J2000 mean elements.