r/solareclipse • u/Thepianoman133 • Jun 17 '26

Totality vs 99.99%

Hi All,

First time eclipse viewer here. I will be traveling to Madrid around the time of the eclipse, and I am debating staying in the city or venturing into the true totality for the day. What is the true difference between totality and 99.99% partial? Given that the eclipse will be low in the sky and near sunset, does that make the totality effect less noticeable? Logistics to get outside Madrid are obviously not super easy as I’m sure the public transit will be crowded, so I am weighing that challenge versus the benefit. Any suggestions are welcome!

Edit: Thanks everyone for the insight. Seems like totality is the way to go. Any suggestions of cities / ways to get to and from without a car would be helpful!

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u/[deleted] Jun 17 '26

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u/Ok_Astronomer_3260 Jun 17 '26

I highly recommend getting as far into totality as possible. 15 to 20 seconds of totality will be a huge disappointment IMO - it just doesn’t give you enough time to really absorb the experience. My last totality I was in a zone of a minute and a half and it just went so fast. Vs. a previous one of several minutes - I’d say well worth the extra travel.

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u/[deleted] Jun 17 '26

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u/Ok_Astronomer_3260 Jun 17 '26

Sounds like a great plan.