Solar eclipse: Eye health warning
To observe a total or partial eclipse of the Sun, it is essential to protect your eyes or risk suffering damage to your eyes which may be irreversible. Also, to make the most of this great celestial spectacle, approved eclipse glasses are essential.
Asolar eclipseis a magnificent and unforgettable spectacle. They occur when theMoon, 400 times smaller than theSunbut 400 times closer to us than it, passes in front of the solar star . The shadow of the Moon then sweeps over a region of the terrestrial globe. If it completely masks it, it is a total eclipse of the Sun and if only a piece is nibbled away, it is apartial eclipseof the Sun.
Why shouldn’t we look at a solar eclipse directly with our eyes?
The phenomenon, less dazzling than if we looked at the Sun alone, is tempting to observe without protection. However, you expose youreyesto lesions which certainly can be painless but irreversible in the space of a few seconds.
Indeed, our eyes are not armed against infrared rays andultraviolet. These can damage your cornea andinfraredcan cause burns to theretina.
To protect yourself against this and make the most of the Moon’s rendezvous with the Sun, it is therefore important to wear approved eclipse glasses. And if you have an instrument (binoculars, telescope ortelescope), cover it with sunscreen or a mylar sunscreen sheet. Both will significantly reduce thebrightnessof the Sun.
Without protection, the risks for your eyes
The ophthalmic risks are:
- corneal lesions of the keratitis type, essentially linked to ultraviolet rays. These lesions are painful, but usuallyreversiblein a few days ;
- retinal lesions, linked to the thermal and photochemical effect of solar radiation on retinal cells , these burns can be irreversible and lead to permanent visual impairment. They are all the more dangerous in that they do not cause any immediate sensation ofpain. The damage does not appear until several hours after exposure.
