Millions of people will stare up in awe at the sun on Monday afternoon when the total eclipse passes over North Texas.
The two main takeaways that those people are asked to consider – enjoy this rare experience and do it safely.
That is why eye doctors emphasize that it is essential to wear your proper eclipse glasses when you look at the sun.
“What is the risk? If you look directly at the sun, your eye can basically sustain a sunburn,” said Dr. Cynthia Beauchamp, a pediatric ophthalmologist who works in Dallas-Fort Worth. “And perhaps, even more importantly, the back of the eye, the retina, can be damaged by solar retinopathy. Solar retinopathy can cause blurred vision and a blind spot in your central vision. Sometimes it improves, but unfortunately, sometimes it doesn’t.”
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As for the glasses themselves, there are a few ways to ensure that yours are safe.
The lenses should have a silver appearance on the front and should be black on the inside. They should not be torn or punctured. The ISO needs to have certified the glasses. You can find the ISO logo and the IS 12312-2 code printed on the inside.
If you want to test them out, they should block out most everything except for bright lights.
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Dr. Beauchamp said she and her colleagues expect a certain percentage of the population will not heed the safety warnings regardless of the reason, but stressed that the cloudy weather that is forecasted for Monday should not lull people into a sense of safety.
“The clouds will not protect you from the solar damage, so it’s important to use eye protection either way,” Dr. Beauchamp said.
