The total solar eclipse visible in Ohio is just one week away! Make sure you have everything you and your family need for safe viewing.

Eclipse Glasses or Handheld Viewers

It’s no April Fool’s joke: Your eyes will be severely damaged – and you can even go blind – if you view the solar eclipse directly. Do not think you will be safe viewing it through ordinary sunglasses, no matter how dark the lenses. Only specialized eye protection will allow you to safely look at the sun.

Be sure to:

• Use a handheld viewer or wear eclipse glasses that comply with the ISO 12312-2 international standard. The American Astronomical Society (AAS) maintains a list of suppliers of safe solar viewers and filters.
• Wear eclipse glasses over your eyeglasses.
• Supervise children using solar viewers.
• Discard your handheld viewer or eclipse glasses if they are torn, scratched or otherwise damaged, and replace them with undamaged ones before viewing the eclipse.

Be aware that counterfeit eclipse glasses could be on the market. Don’t be fooled; test your eclipse glasses before using them in the sun. Even if you’re confident in the manufacturer, it’s best to test them ahead of time in case they have been damaged.

Never test eclipse glasses with the sun, but you can hold them up to a bright light such as a lamp or flashlight. Through eclipse glasses, the light should appear extremely dim or not appear at all. Watch this video from NASA Goddard for a demonstration of how to check your eclipse glasses.

Cameras, Telescopes and Other Optical Devices

Use cameras, telescopes and other optical devices only with a special-purpose solar filter over the front of the device. This includes mobile phone cameras. If you view any part of the sun through these devices without a properly attached solar filter, your eyes will immediately be seriously injured.

Do not look at the sun through an unfiltered camera, telescope, binoculars or other optical device even when wearing eclipse glasses or using a handheld viewer – the concentrated solar rays could damage the filter, enter your eyes and injure them.

Pinhole Projector

If you don’t have eclipse glasses or a handheld solar viewer, you can use a pinhole projector. The NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology provides directions for making a pinhole camera. NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio provides instructions, as well. Do NOT look at the sun through the pinhole!

During the Eclipse

• Wear sunscreen, a hat and protective clothing to prevent skin damage.
• Wear your eclipse glasses or use a handheld solar viewer to look at the sun before and after totality.
• You can view the eclipse directly without proper eye protection only when the moon completely covers the sun’s bright face – the brief period of totality. You’ll know it’s safe when you can no longer see any part of the sun through eclipse glasses or a solar viewer.
• As soon as you see even a little bit of the bright sun reappear after totality, put your eclipse glasses back on or use a handheld solar viewer to look at the sun.

For more details, visit NASA’s web page on Total Solar Eclipse Safety.

You can also tune in to the AultCaring Conversations podcast about the solar eclipse! Dr. Jean Paddock, president of Aultman College, and Dr. Hope Badawy, assistant professor of biology, share details about this once-in-a-lifetime astronomical event including how a total solar eclipse occurs, the types and stages of an eclipse and safe viewing practices.

Sources:
Solar Eclipse Across America, AAS
Total Solar Eclipse Safety, NASA