From the darkness of a Middle East eclipse to light at the end of a Pyramid tunnel - what 2026 may bring

Mankind will take a step closer to returning to the Moon, but it's a wrap for a famous Paris bridge - and all in the next 12 months

A great archaeological discovery inside the Pyramid of King Khufu in Egypt is promised for 2026. Getty Images

For the people of southern Spain and much of North Africa, 2026 will feature a long period of darkness.

Not that this is bad news. On Monday, August 2 one of the longest total solar eclipses in history will appear, lasting longer than six minutes. Expected to be first seen over Cadiz, Spain, the darkness will then spread across parts of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, including over Makkah, and ending in Yemen.

The longest period of darkness will be in southern Egypt, where the Sun will be blocked out for six minutes, 23.2 seconds. This will not be the longest total eclipse of the century, which took place on July 22, 2009 over the Pacific Ocean and less populated lands.

But it is a record that will not be matched until July 16, 2186, with a total eclipse lasting seven minutes and 29.22 seconds, the longest in 10,000 years.

Further out in space, the Voyager 1 probe is set to reach another major milestone. The probe, launched on September 5, 1971, left the solar system in 2012 and in November 2026 is expected to be one light day from Earth.

That means light from the probe would take exactly a day to reach Earth, travelling at 299,792,458 metres per second. By way of reference, the nearest star to Earth is Proxima Centauri, at 4.2 light years or 1,533 light days away.

Fly me to the Moon

The crew of Artemis II, Nasa's Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen are set to fly to the Moon in 2026. Reuters

Still in space, but a little closer to home, attempts to return humans to the Moon should take a major step forward as early as February, with the launch of Nasa’s Artemis 2 mission.

Four astronauts will orbit the Moon for the first time since 1972 in a voyage intended as a prelude to a crewed lunar landing as early as 2027.

With the International Space Station due to be taken out of orbit in 2031, plans are already being made for a new research platform in space. For its replacement, the private sector, rather than government agencies such as Nasa, will play a major role.

Vast, a company in Long Beach, California, plans to launch Haven 1, a prototype space station, in May. Four astronauts will spend 30 days in low-Earth orbit on board the world’s first commercial space station, with Vast planning future missions that will expand the station's capacity to up to 40 people and features artificial gravity.

Landmark US anniversary

The US will hold large-scale celebrations to mark its 250th Independence Day on July 4 next year. AFP

Anniversaries always feature prominently in any year, and they don’t get much bigger – some might say HUGE! – than the 250th birthday of the US, or the signing of the Declaration Of Independence on July 4, 1776.

President Donald Trump has already made big plans for what he is calling “America 250”, including a vast triumphal arch to be built in Washington already being nicknamed the “Arc de Trump”.

The US, though, is a positive infant compared to the Mughal Empire, formed 500 years ago in what is now modern India. Founded in 1526, the Mughals were the last pre-colonial empire to rule the Indian subcontinent until their defeat in 1857 by the British East India Company.

A sobering reminder of conflict will fall on June 16 next year. If the fighting that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has not ended by then, the conflict will have lasted longer that the First World War of 1914-1918.

Happy birthday to Pooh

The beloved Winnie the Pooh will turn 100 in 2026. AP

Celebrating his 100th birthday will be Winnie the Pooh, along with his friends Piglet and Tigger. The anniversary of the publication of the first book of stories from 100 Acre Wood falls on October 14, with plans for a year of celebrations, including new editions.

The original stuffed toys which belonged to Milne’s son Christopher Robin can still be seen on display at New York Public Library.

On the other side of America the Los Angeles of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is due to open on September 22.

Founded by the filmmaker George Lucas and his wife Melody Hobson, it will house the couple’s art collection and works by artists including Norman Rockwell, Diego Rivera and Ralph McQuarrie, whose illustrations were the basis for many scenes in Lucas’s original Star Wars films.

Star attraction

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is set to open in Los Angeles next year. AFP

The museum was originally proposed for San Francisco but fell foul of objections about the scale of the building, as did a second plan for Chicago. Designed by MAD architects, the museum's futuristic design might have stepped out of a Star Wars film.

One of the most celebrated and controversial artists of the 50 years was the late Christo who, with his wife Jean-Claude, made a career out of wrapping structures such as the Arc De Triomphe in Paris, and creating a massive curtain hung between two Colorado mountains.

In 1985 the couple wrapped the Pont Neuf bridge in Paris and, as tribute to Christo and Jean-Claude, who died in 2020 and 2029, respectively, the structure will once again be covered.

This time, the project is conceived by the French artist known only as JR, who will cover the 232-metre bridge in June, so that it resembles a series of limestone caverns. JR’s previous works include a giant toddler posted over the US-Mexico border and larger-than-life portraits of Palestinians and Israelis on the occupied West Bank's barrier walls.

All eyes on Egypt

Finally, watch out for an announcement by Egypt’s flamboyant archaeologist and former minister of culture, Zahi Hawass, who is promising 2026 will reveal “a great archaeological discovery that will write a new chapter in the history of the pharaohs".

Speaking at Sharjah Book Fair last month, Mr Hawass said it will involve a 30-metre corridor deep inside the Pyramid of King Khufu.

Using robots to clear a passage, the tunnel ends at a sealed door. What lies behind the door will, Mr Hawass said, be one of the highlights of the New Year.