Six minutes of total darkness: NASA warns of a phenomenon that will affect millions of people.

Outer space is full of strange astronomical events that occur periodically, while others have only been recorded once. We have no explanation for many of them, but it's true that, thanks to technological advances in recent years, these extraordinary events can be responded to and detected.

Without a doubt , one of the most common, or at least the best known, are solar eclipses , the phenomenon that occurs when the Moon comes between the Sun and the Earth, totally or partially blocking sunlight and projecting its shadow onto the Earth's surface.

While it is something that happens with some frequency (as far as it goes), NASA has noted that on August 2, 2027, a rare total solar eclipse will occur that will be observed on up to three continents , offering one of the longest periods of total darkness seen in more than a century.

Lasting up to six minutes and 23 seconds, it will be the longest eclipse visible from Earth between 1991 and 2114, making it a unique event for astronomers, skywatchers, and the general public.

Most solar eclipses last an average of about three minutes, but this one is special, and its extended duration will allow us to observe the solar corona and appreciate this spectacle that will leave us in total darkness for several minutes.

The reason for this is due to a combination of several unusual astronomical factors that will come together in 2027. The Earth will be near aphelion (its farthest point from the Sun), making the Sun appear slightly smaller in the sky. Meanwhile, the Moon will be at perigee, its closest point to Earth, and will appear slightly larger.

Additionally, the eclipse path will occur near the equator . This causes the Moon's shadow to move more slowly across Earth's surface, contributing to the unusually long duration of totality.

According to Space.com, the shadow, about 258 kilometers wide, will pass over southern Spain, northern Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, central Egypt, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Somalia, before ending over the Indian Ocean near the Chagos Archipelago. This means that in southern Spain, it will be visible between 1:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., depending on the area.