Viewing a solar eclipse is said to be one of the greatest visual experiences that someone can have,
with a total solar eclipse being even more special because they only occur every few years. Just
around the corner on April 8th, 2024, here in the US, we have a total solar eclipse happening. This
is going to be even more special because the next total eclipse viewable in the US won't
occur for another 20 years, in 2040. Before so, this is something you definitely want to catch if
you can. However, there is a major eye safety concern when viewing a solar eclipse because
staring at the sun, even for just a few seconds, can result in permanent vision loss and can even
lead to blindness, a medical condition that eye doctors like myself refer to as solar retinopathy,
where the sun literally burns a hole in the delicate retinal tissue in the back of the eye.
Because nobody wants that to happen, next I'm going to share with you
three ways to safely view a solar eclipse, and I'll share some tips
on what to do if you by chance happen to accidentally gaze directly into the sun.
So first, here are some safe ways to view a solar eclipse. Number one is to wear official
solar viewing glasses that meet the proper ISO safety standards. These glasses will protect
your eyes from the harmful rays of light while allowing you to enjoy the eclipse
without sacrificing your vision. If you do need to pick some of these up, I'll put a link to an
official source in the description below for you. A bonus tip here is to first try to put
the glasses on before you face the eclipse, and the same thing in just the reverse,
try to turn away from the sun before removing your solar glasses. Remember that these solar
viewing glasses are not the same as sunglasses, and polarized filters do not try to just wear
your regular sunglasses. They are not safe for gazing into the sun. Even wearing three or four
pairs of sunglasses is still not safe enough for gazing at the sun. Only look through these
certified solar viewing glasses or a solar eclipse viewing card. And it's also important to mention
not to try to look through these glasses and gaze through a telescope, binoculars,
or a camera lens because these glasses are not made for that. The condensed solar rays will,
in fact, burn a hole through these safety lenses and may still cause damage to the eye.
Number two is that if you're feeling crafty, you can create what's called a pinhole projector.
This is where you just take a piece of paper or cardboard and you poke a hole through the very
center using a pin or a thumbtack. Just make sure that the hole is round and smooth. Then
with your back facing the sun, you can hold up the pinhole projector, and that'll cast
an image of the eclipse onto a flat surface such as a white piece of paper. For example,
you can also try this with cool things lying around the house, such as using a colander,
you can put your fingers together to make sort of a waffle mesh-like pattern, or I've even seen
someone use a Ritz cracker before. You can even create a box pinhole projector that's
darker inside and that makes it easier to view the eclipse that way. If you want to try that,
I will put some cool guides on how to make those in the description.
Number three is that if you happen to have a telescope, binoculars, or a camera lens that
you want to view through, then you can look into getting an appropriate solar filter for
those devices. I'll put additional links in the description for ways to properly get a hold of
those solar filters. But again, it's really important that you don't try to look through
those devices directly at the sun without an appropriate solar filter. And remember
that these solar filter glasses are not the same quality if you try to look through one of those
devices with these glasses on, these glasses will burn through, and you'll still injure your eye.
Alright, so now you know some safe ways to properly view a solar eclipse. But there is
one cool thing I want to mention, is that if you happen to be viewing a total solar eclipse like
the one coming up on April 8th, 2024, then there is a time during a total eclipse where you can
view the eclipse without any protective eyewear. You can view the eclipse directly without any
eye protection only when the moon has completely blocked out all of the sun's bright face. We call
this the moment of totality, and you'll know it's safe when you can't see any more of the
sun from around the moon when you're wearing your solar filters or your solar eclipse viewer. Just
be sure that as soon as you even see a little bit of sun peeking out from behind the moon,
that you again turn away, put your solar filters back on, and then begin viewing the sun.
So, what happens if you do happen to just accidentally gaze at the sun with your naked
eye? Well first, you might experience some pain, discomfort, and unfortunately, it can lead to
retinal damage. Again, if it's just for a split second, then it's important to close your eyes,
turn away, and give your eyes a moment to rest and recover. You'll probably see like an afterimage
of the sun for a few moments, and that's the photoreceptors in the back of the eye being
bleached and trying to recover. But it's important to not chance it and look back at the sun without
proper eye protection because there can be a cumulative effect from staring at the sun,
and this could lead to permanent retinal damage. And sometimes vision loss from solar retinopathy
doesn't happen right away. It happens hours or even days later with either a permanent black
spot, a reduced blurry vision spot, or even just a spot of no vision at all like it's just
completely missing. It usually occurs right where you had been staring at the sun. But as always,
if you are noticing any changes to your eyesight or your vision, contact your local eye doctor
right away. I'll even put some links to some doctor locators in the description just in case.
Hey, thanks for checking out this video. I hope that it brought some value to you. Please let
me know in the comments if you've already seen an eclipse before or if you plan on seeing this next
upcoming one. I think because it is a total eclipse and the next one's not for 20 years,
I am going to look into seeing if I can travel and go see it myself. Otherwise,
I want to say thank you so much for watching,
and you have a fantastic day. Keep an eye on it, and we'll see you in that next one. Peace.