By now, I'm sure you've heard about the total solar eclipse happening on August 21 of this year. It's an exciting national event because it's the first total solar eclipse to happen in the US for 26 years. I've seen partial and annular eclipses, but total solar eclipses are extremely rare, and supposedly are breathtakingly beautiful. My husband, Joshua, and I are driving out to Wyoming into "the path of totality" to get the best view possible of this amazing, once-in-a-lifetime natural event.
It is never safe to look directly at the sun (you will wreck your retinas), and the only safe way to view the various phases of the eclipse is through special eclipse glasses. Please take this issue seriously, as you can do major damage to your eyes by staring at the sun unshielded, and make sure to protect your children's eyes as well.
There are currently many, many unscrupulous vendors selling unsafe or uncertified eclipse glasses. NASA released this announcement on which glasses would actually protect your eyes during the eclipse. Beware of purchasing eclipse glasses from vendors not recommended by NASA, as they could seriously damage your eyes, especially if you are viewing the eclipse in an area that is not in the "path of totality," as the sun is always at least partially unshielded when viewed from those places.
Here are two sources for eclipse glasses from manufacturers recommended by NASA Don't wait too long to buy these as it seems that the prices are going up as we get closer to the date of the eclipse, 8/21/17.
10-count pack of eclipse glasses from American Paper Optics for $13.99 with free Prime shipping on Amazon; $1.40 per pair. This is where we got our glasses; we split the extras among friends.
5-count pack of eclipse glasses from Thousand Oaks Opticals for $17.95 with free Prime shipping; $3.59 per pair. These look a bit sturdier to me.
(Please note, a number of public libraries are distributing certified eclipse glasses for free; call your local public library to see if they are participating in this giveaway.)
Interested in safely photographing the eclipse? Make sure you buy a special filter for your camera (yes, even for your phone!) and watch this video (put together by Celestron) on how to capture the total solar ecipse image.
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