Solar eclipse, I don't understand why we can't look 😬

[Abouteffingtime]

I'm not stupid....really.

So mormally, if you look at the sun, its bright, but doesn't appear do any harm. (Based on my random viewing of the sun on occasion...) Can anyone explain to me why the solar eclipse is different?

Or, is it actually different?

I don’t get this response.

OP was just asking if anyone could explain it for her.
She wasn’t saying “I don’t care what anyone says, I’m going to go out and stare at the sun all day”

Jesus Christ. How thick are some people.

You absolutely can. Don't listen to these so called experts. They are probably anti Brexit, pro vaccination freaks.

It’s a partial eclipse in the UK. It won’t go that dark and you won’t get the “diamond ring” effect.

Protecting your eyes is still vital though.

Wasn't it some sort of light display?

They don't block enough of the radiation. Even my welding glasses are not enough and I can see practically nothing through them!

You need the proper eclipse glasses.

Yes, my optometrist told me to get myself prescription sunglasses.

Thank you for that question at this pertinent time@Abouteffingtime.

The "sun" is whats known in scientific circles🤓 as a very, very, very, powerful thing. It controls life on earth, our entire solar system and beyond.

It really is that powerful.🤯🤯🤯

The human eye, being a wee, tiny ball of mostly water and the least useful and most ill equipped of the human senses, is particularly vulnerable to the sun because it is stupider than skin. And is only 7/8 minutes away from the sun's full power.

I think it was a meteor shower; but you're close.

I think the lights in the sky from the meteor shower were green?

Presumably not to actually look at the sun with.

We've bought eclipse glasses and you really can't see anything through them except if you look at the sun. My prescription sunglasses, I can see lots through them. They are completely different and not suitable for looking at the sun.

I looked at the sun when I was a child. I still have a little sunshape before my eyes and I[m 67! It doesn[t bother me now as I[m old but it did for quite a while.

It is safe to GLANCE at the sun though on a normal day, everyone does it by accident all the time. Is it safe to GLANCE at the eclipse or is it WORSE than the normal sun and if so why?

You do know you can Google this, just cut and paste your question, as the answer is quite detailed so a lot for a poster to write it out.

Because people don't GLANCE at eclipses, they are much more likely to STARE.

'stupider than skin' 😂

Oh that's true for the entire thread. May as well get rid of forums entirely.

In that case I would like to whip my head around and view it in passing so I know what it looks like.

For this type of thread, yes. Google is decent for facts so it beggars belief how bone idle so many posters seem to be.

Threads which deal with more complex ideas will always be around, so don't worry about forums disappearing any time soon. I hope this sets your mind at rest.

To be fair most articles you get with a Google search of this question don't explain whether an eclipse is worse to look at than the sun. The answer being that it's not worse than looking at the sun but it's just easier to look at it. For example the NASA page just explains why it's damaging to look at the sun but doesn't answer the specific question on this thread. I personally was confused after reading about it earlier in the week and was left worried about seeing it by accident. Now thanks to this thread I understand that I can indeed treat it like the normal sun I.e. don't look at it longer than I would look at the sun. It's reassuring.

It was purported to be a meteor shower, the light from which blinded everyone who saw it. Only later was it suggested that it was the result of a man-made weapon. And the triffids didn't descend, they escaped from their farms.

I just happened to order solar film for my windows and have the samples. If I wear sunglasses and view also through the solar film can I do that?!

Good grief, no. I had raised concern over the possibility of developing cataracts since both my parents had them.

He told me that we all get cataracts if we live long enough, but that I could slow up the process by protecting my eyes from UV rays. I wonder whether he was also trying to help protect the macula, given the information in the linked article.

A 'change' in my macula was noted in 2014. Apparently, it subsequently improved - which seems strange to me, but that's what I've been told. Mind you, the change in 2014 came about after I'd been eating badly in a period of extreme stress and I'm told that diet can have an impact.

I recall being warned as a child in 1970 or '71 not to look at an eclipse. I'm quite conscious of trying to protect my eyes as best as I can.

To add its 3m prestige film - says it blocks 99.9% uv rays