NEVER look directly at a solar eclipse with the naked eye – intense solar radiation can burn your retina and cause permanent vision loss or blindness, a condition known as solar retinopathy.
Looking at the sun without certified protection is extremely dangerous, and the eye’s retina has no pain receptors so you will not feel the damage as it happens.
According to their website, Astronomy Ireland’s certified eclipse glasses – those that meet the ISO 12312-2 international safety stand – will available at Designist Shop in Dublin 2 (eircode D02 AE06) – but you’ll have to move fast, as the shop closes at 5pm.
If you’re in Cork tonight, MTU Blackrock Castle Observatory in collaboration with the city council’s Night Time Economy initiative will be hosting a number of events locally from 18:00 – 20:30 with free solar eclipse glasses (kindly donated by Rochester Museum and Science Center) available for safe viewing and a team of ambassadors to answer queries.
Public viewing events will take place at (no booking required but plan for high volume):
- Blackrock Castle Observatory
- Tramore Valley Park
- Bell’s Field
If you are at one of these locations, glasses will be handed out in a controlled manner from 6pm onwards. The eclipse lasts for 2 hours so there is plenty of time to share glasses.
Please note that there is limited availability of glasses. In the interest of sharing, sustainability and community wide distribution, the observatory says it’s limiting the number of glasses per group.
Why Direct Viewing is Dangerous
- No pain warning: Your retina lacks pain receptors, meaning severe cellular damage occurs silently and without any physical discomfort.
- False sense of security: Dimmed sunlight during an eclipse tricks your pupils into dilating and stops your natural reflex to look away, letting more harmful radiation inside.
- Useless substitutes: Regular sunglasses, smoked glass, and homemade filters do not block invisible ultraviolet and infrared light
Safe Alternatives
- Certified glasses: Use only viewers or glasses that meet the ISO 12312-2 international safety standard.
- Indirect projection: Make a simple pinhole projector using two pieces of card or paper to cast an image of the sun safely.
- Digital streams: Watch official live video broadcasts on television or the internet
If you’ve still got a pair of eclipse glasses hanging around in the back of a drawer from the last eclipse, you might be tempted to use them.
However, experts have cautioned against this.
These decades–old pieces of safety equipment may have degraded since the last eclipse, meaning they don’t offer any real protection.
Scientists warn that using these worn–out eclipse viewers will put your eyes at risk of permanent damage and vision loss.
If you are planning on viewing the eclipse, experts recommend using specially made eclipse glasses bearing the ISO 12312–2 safety standard.
Looking at the sun without certified protection is extremely dangerous, and the eye’s retina has no pain receptors so you will not feel the damage as it happens.
The sun during the 1999 solar eclipse of the sun by the moon at 1200hrs Dublin time
Dr Greg Brown, Astronomer at Royal Observatory Greenwich, told the Mail: It is possible for the film on older solar eclipse glasses to degrade over time.
‘So it is recommended to only use eclipse glasses manufactured with the last decade.’
Although it might be tempting, experts stress that you must not look at the sun with your naked eyes at any point during the eclipse.
One man who did and suffered permanent damage to both of his eyes as a result is warning people not to look directly at tonight’s eclipse.
Peter Smith borrowed welder’s mask – believing that it would provide protection from the sun’s rays – to view the solar eclipse 27 years ago.
However, the following day he noticed flashing in his eyes as well as suffering headaches. He would later be told that both of his retinas had been damaged.
He is now asking people to use appropriate eye protection to enjoy the eclipse safely.
Mr Smith, from Taunton in England, this week told the BBC: ‘Make sure its got the right protection and filters to stop any damage because any damage you get, it’ll never heal. It’s not like cutting your hand.’
Smith said he still feels the effects of looking at the eclipse directly.
‘Even now there is a residual impact. When I’m tired sometimes a flashing dot might come back, and it’s not nice when it does.’
it is recommended to only use eclipse glasses manufactured with the last decade
Mohamed Elalfy, a consultant ophthalmologist and president of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, says: ‘Crucially, the retina has no pain receptors, so people will not feel the damage as it happens.
‘Symptoms may only become apparent several hours later and can include blurred vision, a central blind or dark spot, distorted vision, reduced colour perception and increased sensitivity to light. While some people recover over weeks or months, others can be left with permanent visual impairment.’
That makes it extremely important that you have the right protective equipment to view the eclipse, so that the bright light of the sun doesn’t cause serious damage.
Kyla Black, Boots Opticians Director of Optical Practice, says: ‘If you’re purchasing specially made eclipse glasses, make sure to double–check that they are undamaged before use as even a glimpse of damage could have an impact on your eyesight.’
That is especially important for older pairs which might have been scratched or scuffed while being stored over the last few decades.
You can check a pair for scratches by holding them up and looking at the brightest light in your house.
If the protection is still working, you shouldn’t be able to see even the slightest bit of light poking through.
Likewise, using a pair of dark sunglasses isn’t enough to keep your eyes safe during the eclipse.
‘It’s a common myth that wearing multiple pairs of sunglasses can protect you from any harmful UV light,’ says Ms Black.
‘This is untrue and should be avoided at all costs as only purpose–built eclipse glasses can allow you to watch an eclipse.’
Three ways to enjoy the eclipse safely WITHOUT certified glasses
If you don’t have a pair of eclipse glasses and can’t find one in time, there is still a way to enjoy the spectacle.
Dr Megan Argo, an astrophysicist from the University of Lancaster, told the Daily Mail: ‘The safest way for the public to enjoy the eclipse is to view it indirectly.
‘Standing beneath a leafy tree creates hundreds of tiny images of the Sun on the ground, which gradually change into crescents as the eclipse progresses.’
You can also replicate this process using a kitchen colander or a simple pinhole camera made from a cardboard box.
‘Projecting the Sun safely with a colander, a pinhole viewer or by using a tree canopy, will help people see the shape of the Sun’s disk change as the Moon covers part of it for a couple of hours,’ says Dr Argo.
The best way to view the eclipse is to find a vantage point that’s facing west, with minimal buildings around.
The Pinhole projector – pen, paper and card
The UK’S Royal Astronomy Society suggests creating a pinhole projector, which can be done by making a hole in a piece of card. You can use the tip of a ballpoint pen to push through the centre of it.
Holding the card in one hand and a blank piece of paper in the other, face away from the Sun.
Then line the card and paper up so that an image of the Sun becomes visible on the paper.
This pinhole projector will show you the shadow being cast on the Sun replicated in miniature.
The Colander projector – yes, the humble kitchen utensil
Instead of straining vegetables and pasta, you can use a colander to achieve a similar effect to that of the pinhole projector.
‘If you hold the colander to the Sun and you look away from the Sun, protecting your eyes, you can make not just one picture of the Sun but a hundred all at once,’ says eye specialist David Jones, consultant ophthalmologist at the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust.
Demonstrating the technique in a video on social media, he clutches a blank piece of paper behind the colander he is holding up.
It creates a kaleidoscope of images showing the Sun and the shadow cast on it during the eclipse.
The Pinhole viewer – cardboard box, tinfoil and paper
An empty cereal box is ideal for making a pinhole viewer. It works similarly to the projector but should provide a clearer image.
This is because the cardboard box blocks out the surrounding sunshine and allows in only light from the direction of the eclipse.
Cut out a piece of paper that fits the bottom of the box. Open the top of the box and tape the cutout to the bottom. This will be the screen on which you see the eclipse.
Close the box and tape it shut. On one half of the top of it, cut out a small square so you can see the paper at the bottom with one eye.
On the other half, cut out another small square to match. Cut out a piece of foil that is large enough to cover this square.
Tape it down over the square and use a pin or needle to poke a hole in the middle of the foil.
Standing with your back to the Sun, use one eye to look through the open square.
Once you’ve lined up the hole in the foil with the Sun, you should see an image of it on the screen at the bottom. This is where you’ll see the eclipse too.
The eclipse will begin shortly after 18:00 BST on Wednesday, with the exact start time depending on your location.
Viewers will be able to see as the moon appears to take a ‘bite’ of the sun’s right–hand corner, before sliding over to cover almost the entire surface.
The deepest moment of the eclipse will come about an hour later, when parts of Ireland will see up to 96 per cent of the sun vanish.
After shrinking to a slim inverted crescent, the sun will then begin to re–emerge, with the eclipse coming to an end shortly after 20:00 BST.
Unfortunately, Ireland won’t quite get to see totality, but this will still be the biggest solar eclipse in over 26 years.
The very best place in Ireland to see the eclipse will be Mizen Head in west Cork, where approximately 97 per cent of the sun will be obscured.
Eclipse timings in Ireland – and the best viewing spots:
First Contact is when the eclipse begins, as the moon begins to pass in front of the sun. Maximum Eclipse is when the greatest amount of the sun is covered, while the eclipse ends with Last Contact when the moon completes its pass of the sun. All times below in Irish Standard Time.
Eclipse times across Ireland – as well as best viewing spots
