NASA picks Spanish village for solar eclipse broadcast

NASA has selected Villalibado, a small village in Burgos, Spain, as one of the sites for its live broadcast of the total solar eclipse on August 12, 2026. The village, once abandoned and later restored by four brothers, will host around thirty scientists and technicians from NASA and the Exploratorium of San Francisco, who will set up equipment to stream the event to an estimated audience of 10 million people Source: infobae.

Why Villalibado

The choice was driven by its location within the path of totality, a clear horizon, and good communication infrastructure Source: euronewses. The observation point will be near the Romanesque church of El Salvador, which has a special relationship with light Source: infobae. Joan Ansótegui, who bought the village two decades ago, said NASA contacted him months ago to rent the entire village, including the church. "I thought it was a scam," he recalled Source: euronewses.

Technical requirements

NASA's technical demands have been minimal. They requested a special electricity connection and internet, but the village already has fiber optics, so there were no problems Source: euronewses. The team will arrive on August 8 to calibrate telescopes, with the main camera placed in the church Source: infobae.

Broadcast details

The broadcast will start at 19:30 Spanish time (10:30 Pacific) and will be available on the Exploratorium's website and YouTube channel, as well as distributed to other international media Source: euronewses. The eclipse will cross Greenland, Iceland, the Atlantic, Spain, part of Portugal, and northern Russia, with partial visibility across Europe Source: euronewses.