Eclipse Eye Safety

Except during the brief total phase of a total solar eclipse, when the moon completely blocks the sun, it is not safe to look directly at the sun without specialized eye protection for solar viewing.

Viewing any part of the bright sun through a camera lens (including the one on your cell phone), binoculars, or a telescope without a special-purpose solar filter can instantly cause eye injury.

You should only view the sun through eclipse glasses or a handheld solar viewer during the partial eclipse phases before and after totality.

You can view the eclipse directly without proper eye protection only when the moon completely obscures the sun’s bright face – during the brief and spectacular period known as 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, immediately put your eclipse glasses back on or use a handheld solar viewer to look at the sun.

Damage to the eye from viewing the sun without proper eye protection is called solar retinopathy and it can occur in a matter of seconds. It is similar to an intense sunburn of the skin. Milder symptoms can include headache, watery eyes, light sensitivity. More serious symptoms include blurry vision, loss of vision, changes in color perception, seeing normally straight lines as curvy, and eye pain.

People with suspected solar retinopathy should be evaluated by an ophthalmologist as soon as possible.

There is no effective medical treatment to cure solar retinopathy. Symptoms are often temporary, lasting from several weeks to over a year, but in some cases, there can be permanent damage.