NASA Eye Safety Tips For Viewing Solar Eclipse

If you plan to catch a glimpse of Sunday's partial solar eclipse at about 5:25 p.m., in Long Beach or anywhere in Southern California, you might want to heed these tips from NASA's Eclipse website.

Here's Sunday's eclipse schedule for Southern California:

• 5:24 p.m.: Eclipse begins
• 6:38 p.m.: Maximum eclipse
• 7:42 p.m.: Eclipse ends
• 7:52 p.m.: Sunset

Here is information directly from the NASA site:

"Partial eclipses, annular eclipses, and the partial phases of total eclipses are never safe to watch without taking special precautions. Even when 99 percent of the sun's surface is obscured during the partial phases of a total eclipse, the remaining photospheric crescent is intensely bright and cannot be viewed safely without eye protection. Do not attempt to observe the partial or annular phases of any eclipse with the naked eye. Failure to use appropriate filtration may result in permanent eye damage or blindness."

The site reports that the safest ways to see an eclipse is by projection, "in which a pinhole or small opening is used to cast the image of the sun on a screen placed a half-meter or more beyond the opening. Projected images of the sun may even be seen on the ground in the small openings created by interlacing fingers, or in the dappled sunlight beneath a leafy tree."

NASA also says binoculars may be used to project a magnified image of the sun on a white card, but you "must avoid the temptation of using these instruments for direct viewing."

The site also indicates that the sun can be viewed directly only when using filters specifically designed for this purpose. Filters that you want to stay clear of and that NASA considers unsafe include: color film, some non-silver black and white film, medical x-ray films with images on them, smoked glass, photographic neutral density filters and polarizing filters, the site reports.

Bottom-line the site reports: "Even if the sun appears dark in a filter or if you don't feel any discomfort, it does not guarantee that your eyes are safe. Avoid all unnecessary risks." 

Here are some other great visuals and tips from HuffingtonPost.com.

(Source: NASA Eclipse website)