Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - If you have yet to obtain your eclipse viewing glasses with just six days remaining until the Total Solar Eclipse, there is still time to get yours in order to safely look at the sun during this once in a lifetime celestial event.
However, experts advise people to be careful where you get, or may have gotten your eclipse viewing glasses for the April 8 eclipse.
A recent post from the American Astronomical Society (AAS) is warning people to be careful of counterfeit and fake eclipse viewing glasses, especially if you happen to be shopping online for the glasses. The AAS is advising everyone to make sure people check their glasses before they use them.
"It's more if they got them online than if they got them from another person's hands," said Tim Collins from the Buffalo Eclipse Consortium. "Our library glasses and the ones at the museum, and the ones being handed out locally are fine, but they just really want to make sure that people who got them online check them, because they've seen some counterfeits coming through now."
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How can one identify a fake pair of eclipse viewing glasses? Collins says there are a couple different ways to do so on your own, but the best way to do it is with a three-step test that he recommends everyone should do to get in the habit.
"First off, you want to do the indoor test. You want to put them on inside and make sure you don't see anything. You may see a bright light come through, but it'd be very, very dim even if it does, and that should be OK. The second test would be the outdoor test on a sunny day. I know we don't get many of those in Western New York as it is, but if you go outside on a sunny day, again, you shouldn't see trees, buildings, clouds or anything like that. And if those two tests pass, AAS recommends just briefly glancing at the sun, not even for a second, just to test them out and make sure you see a clear, crisp circle in the sky. Real fast, don't want to spend a lot of time on it, but as long as you see a good image of the sun, that's the final test," Collins explained.
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There are a couple of additional ways to tell if your eclipse viewing glasses are real, with the primary indicator being the ISO stamp of approval on the inside part of your glasses.
"Make sure, at least, that the ISO 12312-2 is on there. The manufacturer's name, possibly address should also be on those glasses too," Collins said. "You may also see the European standard, the CE, on the other side of the glasses. That's another one to make sure you see. And those should be on the white part or the inside."
Collins advises everyone that if you may find yourself in doubt over the eclipse viewing glasses you purchased or obtained, the best thing to do is not panic and just check them out. While he believes most everybody should be OK come the April 8 eclipse, if anyone does spot a pair of viewing glasses that are bad, just toss it aside and get another one.
While there are still some glasses available across Western New York that are free to the public, Collins says there are plenty still available at a relatively cheap price.
"I do know that some people still have them, I still have some myself, and some of the other organizations around town still have some too for a small fees. They should not be much more than $5, but if they are, they might just be a little higher priced. But it's up to the person purchasing them," he said.
What does Collins recommend for anyone who maybe haven't acquired their eclipse viewing glasses, at this point?
"If you haven't gotten them by now, try to find somebody locally who has them maybe before you go online. I'm not saying don't go online, but if you can get them personally, from hand-to-hand, you're probably safer that way," Collins noted.
And if you can't happen to obtain your eclipse viewing glasses before April 8, there are other ways to safely view the eclipse.
"We're still teaching about doing pinhole and other indirect methods to viewing the sun. You can use oatmeal containers, your leftover boxes from shipments, even Pringles cans can work," Collins said.