Eye doctor explains what will happen if you look directly at the sun during the solar eclipse (2024)

FAQs

Eye doctor explains what will happen if you look directly at the sun during the solar eclipse? ›

Looking directly at any part of the sun is unsafe, and that doesn't change during an eclipse,” said Geoffrey Abraham, OD, optometrist at Parkland. “It is possible to suffer serious and permanent eye damage and there is no treatment to restore lost vision.”

Looking directly at the sun during an eclipse or at any time, for that matter, can cause retinal and ocular damage, leading to irreversible blindness or partial vision loss, he says. Even looking at the sun directly for a few seconds can cause irreparable harm.

The sun's bright rays can burn cells in the retina at the back of the eye. The retina doesn't have pain receptors, so there's no way to feel the damage as it happens. Once the cells die, they don't come back. Symptoms of solar eye damage, called solar retinopathy, include blurred vision and color distortion.

While your eyes likely won't hurt in the moment if you look at the eclipse without protection, due to lowered brightness and where damage occurs in the eye, beware: The rays can still cause damage. The harm may not be apparent immediately. Sometimes trouble starts to appear one to a few days following the event.

"Even a few seconds of viewing the sun during an eclipse can temporarily or permanently burn the macula," which is part of the retina, the Journal of the American Medical Association says. "Once retina tissue is destroyed, it cannot regenerate, resulting in permanent central vision loss."

Except during the brief total phase of a total solar eclipse, when the Moon completely blocks the Sun's bright face, it is not safe to look directly at the Sun without specialized eye protection for solar viewing.

“If you have symptoms of a blind spot, wavy lines, floaters or blurry vision, that could be solar retinopathy after this eclipse, and you need to be seen right away,” said Dr. Luxme Hariharan, chief of ophthalmology at Dayton Children's Hospital in Ohio.

Exposing your eyes to the sun without proper eye protection during a solar eclipse can cause retinal burns (solar retinopathy). The retina has no sensitivity to pain, and since the effects of retinal damage may not appear for hours, there is no warning that an injury to your eye has occurred.

Still, despite these dangers, solar eclipses have never caused a significant number of eye injuries. During a 1991 eclipse that was watched by over 50 million people in Mexico, there were only 21 moderate cases of eclipse-related visual impairment recorded.

Can this damage your eyes? Answer: While looking at the sun for a long period of time can permanently damage the retina and result in decreased vision, a brief glance or look is unlikely to harm your retina, eyes, or vision. But be sure to avoid looking directly at the sun, even when wearing sunglasses.

Can I look at the eclipse through my phone? ›

While it's not recommended to directly observe a solar eclipse through your phone's camera or screen without proper filters or equipment, you can certainly use your phone to indirectly view or capture the eclipse safely.

Even a few seconds can be too much. But during an eclipse, the visible sunlight is reduced and it becomes possible to look directly at it without discomfort for longer periods of time. You may not even know you've damaged your eyes until the next day. The result is solar retinopathy or retinal burns.

This UV and IR radiation from the sun can burn the retina. This is called solar retinopathy, and it can lead to legal blindness or permanent distortion or blind spots in the central vision. This can happen within seconds of looking at the sun.

It is not dangerous to be outdoors during an eclipse, but take care not to look directly at the sun. It is never safe to stare directly at the sun for a prolonged period. The visible and infrared rays can cause permanent damage to your eyes. Note that the retina does not feel pain when it is being damaged.

Even during a partial or annular eclipse, or during the partial phases of a total eclipse, the Sun will still be very bright. If you are watching an entire eclipse, you may be in direct sunlight for hours. Remember to wear sunscreen, a hat, and protective clothing to prevent skin damage.

The short answer is no. According to NASA, “regular sunglasses, no matter how dark, are not safe for viewing the Sun.” Instead, you'll want to find special eclipse glasses. These are at least 1,000 times darker than the darkest sunglasses you can find, Scientific American reports.

“The damage can start to occur in less than a minute of staring at the sun, and it may not be noticeable until hours later,” Moussa said. Moussa is an expert on the human retina.

Now, we look to the heavens to celebrate these celestial dances. First off, don't stress. NASA has already refuted the myth of “eclipse sickness.” It's more likely to do with excitement. Ahead of Total Eclipse taking place on April 8, the space organisation even issued a statement addressing the issue.

The UV rays emitted from the sun are still equally as dangerous as it would be to look at the sun directly. In order to ensure eye safety and protection of the retina, one must look at a partial eclipse via safety glasses or projecting the images via a pinhole camera or shadows from the trees!

Even looking at the eclipse through your camera could cause serious eye damage, according to NASA. The only time it's safe to view the sun without eye protection is during the totality of a total solar eclipse, or the brief period when the moon completely blocks the light of the sun, according to NASA.