“It comes on very gradually and leaves very gradually”. It will be visible from parts of South America, Africa as well as Europe, but only partially, wherein the moon only covers a part of the sun. “People want to look”, but staring at the sun, even for just an instant, can cause temporary and sometimes permanent vision damage, warned Dr. Rajesh Rao, an assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of MI.
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According to NASA’s eclipse website, 90 percent is a general threshold for noticing that shadows cast by the sun start to look diffuse and unusual. Doing so could harm one’s eyes.
Vox notes that photo or X-ray film, looking through binoculars, mirrored cameras and telescopes are also not safe without special filters. Even special glasses that meet specifications should not be used if they are more than a year or two old, or if they are crinkled or have scratches.
Immaculate Conception School in Clarksville, Tennessee, also lies in a prime viewing location, just south of the center line of the path of the total eclipse, which will pass through Hopkinsville, which is on the other side of the Tennessee-Kentucky state line. But that exists only in that narrow band – about 65 miles wide – of totality, and I frankly would be hesitant to do it even there. The only safe way to view the eclipse is with “eclipse glasses”, or sun filters and viewers. “Although a clearer lens that is more permissive to transmitting visible light may contribute to this finding, a more likely explanation may be simple misunderstanding of the danger of viewing an eclipse without proper protection or misuse of that protection”. Some of these have been recalled, and some have been removed from the shelves. “The damage can really be permanent and right smack in the center of their vision”, he told AFP.
While there doesn’t appear to be a major weather feature that will bring widespread bad weather to a specific region, there are a few trouble spots to keep an eye on for potential poor visibility. You have to be near or at totality – when the sun is fully covered – to notice the sun’s dimming with your unaided eyes.
Now for the good news.
Completed on 31 July, the computer simulations were converted into scientific visualisations that approximate what the human eye might see during the solar eclipse, the researchers said. Those of us in Northfield as well as millions of others outside this narrow strip will enjoy a partial eclipse.
“It is actually not as uncomfortable to stare at the Sun but the damaging effects are the same”, Winokur explained.
“Probably 100 million people are going to look at this but the dangers of looking at the Sun are real and serious”, said Vincent Jerome Giovinazzo, director of ophthalmology at Staten Island University Hospital Northwell Health.
The project will allow scientists to study the sun’s corona and the lunar orbit, providing practical experience for students and making this major scientific event accessible to the public, des Jardins said.
Our news team made our own eclipse viewing box using foil, tape, paper and a cereal box. Viewers in Northeast Arkansas will get the best view, with 95 percent of the sun eclipsed in Jonesboro, Blytheville and Mountain View.
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Of course, bad weather could ruin it all. Here we have given the answers to all your questions like What is Total Solar Eclipse?
