ECLIPSES

On the occasion of the three solar eclipses visible from Spain in 2026, 2027 (total), and 2028 (annular), which constitute an exceptional astronomical triad for the country, this volume explores all aspects of the observation and study of the sun and solar eclipses. From a multidisciplinary perspective, we thus gather all these scientific and humanistic aspects that make eclipses phenomena of exceptional impact on the history of culture. It is worth noting that we have deemed it appropriate to disregard the traditional, and in our view pernicious, division of the "two cultures" in order to approach the phenomenon of eclipses from both the perspective of the arts and humanities and that of the natural sciences. We believe that only in this way is it possible to fully appreciate the human dimension of the significance of eclipses.Each total solar eclipse is an extraordinary focal point that can mark a milestone in history, in the arts and sciences. Here we will see how the history of eclipses intertwines with the history of science, the visual arts, and literature—in short, with the history of humanity in its broadest sense. Scientists, explorers, painters, musicians, poets, and writers parade through these pages, forming a multifaceted mosaic of human knowledge and imagination. The texts are written by some of the most prestigious astronomers and science communicators from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), the Canary Islands Institute of Astrophysics, and the National Astronomical Observatory (OAN, National Geographic Institute), including internationally renowned specialists in solar physics and the astronomers in Spain who perform the astronomical calculations to predict eclipses.