Are you ready for totality from a mountaintop?

You can view the 2019 total solar eclipse from La Silla Observatory in Chile.
By | Published: November 14, 2017 | Last updated on May 18, 2023
ann17080a
ESO
On August 21, a total solar eclipse crossed America, prompting 215 million American adults to get out and view the celestial event. Whether you experienced totality or not that day, another chance to do so is swiftly approaching: A total solar eclipse will cross Chile July 2, 2019, and the European Southern Observatory (ESO) will host the event with a limited number of public viewing tickets.

2019’s totality will sweep across ESO’s La Silla Observatory, home of the 3.58-meter New Technology Telescope and the ESO 3.6-meter optical and near-infrared telescope, as well as several other national and project telescopes. The same year, the observatory will celebrate its 50th year of operations, along with the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the International Astronomical Union and the expedition led by Arthur Eddington, which confirmed the predictions of general relativity by observing background stars visible during another total solar eclipse. In honor of this confluence of so many major events, ESO is offering 700 tickets to view totality from La Silla.

Tickets will be sold on a first-come, first-serve basis; they will go on sale November 22 in the ESOshop online and cost 200 euros apiece. Each ticket includes transportation to the observatory from the base of the mountain, as well as a guided tour of the facilities. More details will also be available at the time tickets go on sale. You can receive an alert when tickets become available by signing up ahead of time for ESOnews.

nighttimelasillajfs
La Silla Observatory offers stunning views of the Southern Hemisphere Milky Way.
ESO/José Francisco Salgado (josefrancisco.org)
La Silla Observatory is located about 370 miles (600 kilometers) north of the Chilean capital of Santaiago in the Atacama Desert, which is also home to the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. The observatory sits at an altitude of nearly 7,900 feet (2,400 m) and offers stunning views of the Southern Hemisphere sky, including the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds not visible from the Northern Hemisphere.