Even if you are wearing solar-viewing glasses, viewing the disk of the sun through a magnification device will result in serious eye damage if the device is not equipped with a proper solar filter, according to the viewing safety sheet. Solar-viewing glasses are not powerful enough to protect your eyes from magnified sunlight. Never view the disk of the sun through a telescope, binoculars or camera without a proper solar filter. Solar-viewing glasses are not a substitute for a proper solar filter on magnification devices.

Telescopes, cameras, binoculars and other optical devices need their own solar filters. This is an 'indirect' way of observing the sun, because the viewer sees only a projection of the sun and the moon. During a partial solar eclipse, people often use pinhole cameras to watch the progress of the moon across the sun's surface (pinhole cameras are easy to make at home). But there are ways to safely observe the sun. Looking directly at the sun without eye protection can cause serious eye damage or blindness. In an effort to inform the public on this topic, NASA, along with the American Astronomical Society (AAS), the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Academy of Optometry and the National Science Foundation, have written and released an informational guide on safe viewing. This is truly one of nature's most awesome sights.'īut in order to see this awesome natural sight, skywatchers need to know how to view the eclipse safely. ' Bright stars and planets will become visible as well.

'During those brief moments when the moon completely blocks the sun's bright face … day will turn into night, making visible the otherwise hidden solar corona (the sun's outer atmosphere),' according to NASA's Eclipse website. Locations within the path of totality will experience up to 2 minutes and 40 seconds of darkness. The path of the total solar eclipse of 2017.

How to see the eclipse without galsses