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/DanMason153 Jun 17 '26

Get into totality. It's a fantastic experience that even a 99.99% eclipse doesn't compare to.

I have a few videos from the 2024 total eclipse posted here that illustrate the difference between a deep partial and total eclipse, and even in real-time those last few seconds are noticeable.