Proper glasses vital when viewing eclipse

According to Paducah ophthalmologist Dr. James Kim, next month’s total solar eclipse provides “a very rare opportunity to see the radiant nature of the sun.”

But viewing the eclipse without certified eclipse glasses or ignoring safety precautions can cause serious damage to a person’s eyes that in some cases could be permanent.

“The eye concentrates light into the retina,” Kim said, not unlike using a magnifying glass to burn a hole in a leaf, only several times more powerful.

“The eye is like a magnifying glass pointed inward,” he said, and warned those who view the eclipse without certified eyewear during the partial eclipse phase “could end up with a permanent blind spot.”

The glasses protect light-sensitive photoreceptor cells in the eye from ultraviolet rays.

“Proper eclipse glasses block about 99.9 percent of the light,” Kim said, “and standard sunglasses are not at all adequate.”

The 2-minute, 21-second period of totality, when the moon completely blocks the sun, is the only time when it is safe to look directly at the eclipse.

“The window is very narrow,” Kim said, “then people need to immediately put the glasses back on.” He recommended seeking immediate professional help if a person experiences any decrease in vision.

Viewing the eclipse without the glasses after the period of totality for more than just a few seconds can cause short-term damage known as solar retinopathy. Continuing to look for a longer period of time can cause permanent damage.

West Kentucky Community and Technical College’s (WKCTC) Night at Noon event and the SunDrop and MoonPie Party at the Carson Center each received Official Event Location status from NASA, given to events that meet stringent safety standards.

“Our goal is for everyone to have a good time and be safe,” said Tammy Thompson, public relations coordinator for WKCTC. She said the college will be distributing the official NASA Solar Eclipse Viewing safety instructions with every one of the 4,000 pair of eclipse glasses they provide to attendees.

Thompson said the event disc jockey will make continuous announcements about safety precautions as the partial phase of the eclipse begins, as will Col. Terry Wilcutt, a former astronaut and a current director at the Johnson Space Center, who is emceeing the event.

Mellisa Duncan, director of the Challenge Learning Center at WKCTC, said, “We did our research and knew who we ordered our glasses from, and then double-checked them when they were delivered.”

WKCTC ordered eclipse glasses from Rainbow Symphony, one of four NASA-approved eclipse glass manufacturers.

The NASA safety instructions include this warning:

“Homemade filters or ordinary sunglasses, even very dark ones, are not safe for looking at the sun. To date four manufacturers have certified that their eclipse glasses and handheld solar viewers meet the ISO 12312-2 international standard for such products: Rainbow Symphony, American Paper Optics, Thousand Oaks Optical and TSE 17.”

McCracken County Public Library Director Susan Baier confirmed that the 200 pair of eclipse glasses they’ll distribute at their Great American Eclipse Viewing Party are NASA certified.

The 16,000 pair that will be distributed beginning Aug. 17 through the Paducah Convention and Visitor’s Bureau were purchased from Rainbow Symphony. The 17,000 pair of eclipse glasses already sold by the 35 branches of Banterra Bank were manufactured by American Paper Optics.

Lowes and both Paducah Walmart stores were selling eclipse glasses earlier this month, but all three reported that they were out of stock and uncertain if they would receive an additional shipment prior to Aug. 21.

The Paducah Best Buy still has in stock a number of Eclipsmart ISO 12312-2 rated items including glasses, solar binoculars and a Travel Scope 50 sun-observing telescope that sells for $99.99.

Kim urged eclipse watchers to have their eclipse glasses prior to Aug. 21 rather than relying on event sponsors to have sufficient supplies.

“Better to be safe than sorry,” he said.

He also emphasized what WKCTC and other event organizers have included on their marketing materials: “Anyone under the age of 5 ought to be supervised” from the time the partial eclipse begins at 11:54 a.m. until it ends at 2:49 p.m.

Kim, who has a 3 year-old daughter, said “children are very curious and their attention spans are so short. They’ll have a tendency to put them on and take them off again, to play with them.”

We often stare at the sun – at sunrise and sunset – when the light is more benign, Kim said, but he cautioned against doing that for very long either.

“As a general rule, it’s not good to stare at the sun. Period.”