
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The countdown to the solar eclipse is on. But, to see it without damaging your eyes, you'll need special glasses to block out harmful ultraviolet light from the sun.
“Unfortunately, there is no treatment that we have that is going to undo the damage once it occurs, and that's where prevention really is important,” said Dr. Sunir Garg, co-director of retina research at Wills Eye Hospital in Center City.
Garg says the sun’s rays can produce heat in the macula, the center of the retina, and leave a burn or scar.
"And when you create heat, it can cause a burn, and that is functionally what we have seen in patients who have looked into the sun for a long period of time,” he explained.
He says if you’re lucky, it could just cause some trouble with reading, but in other cases, it can make it very difficult to qualify for a driver’s license.
“It can make straight lines permanently wavy, it can make it hard to fill out a checkbook or look at their credit card statements effectively,” Garg explained.
“The damage can be severe for some folks and so it's better not to put yourself in that position of having that risk when there is such a simple way of looking at the sun safely.”
Pennsylvania's Attorney General's office warns of fake solar eclipse glasses being sold. They say scammers are interested in a quick buck and not the potential harmful effects. American Astronomical Society has a list of approved solar viewing glasses on its website.
The eclipse is April 8. In Philadelphia, the partial eclipse will begin at 2:08 p.m. The maximum eclipse can be seen at 3:23 p.m. It will end at 4:35 p.m.
Experts recommend equipping your cameras, telescopes and binoculars with safe-viewing filters beforehand.
There will be another eclipse viewing opportunity next year, on March 29 at 6:51 a.m. But only 22% of the sun will be covered by the moon.