Overview
- Coverage published Wednesday, August 12, 2026, repeated that certified ISO 12312-2 eclipse glasses are required for any direct viewing because unfiltered sunlight can cause severe and permanent retinal injury.
- Household substitutes such as ordinary sunglasses, smoked glass, photographic film, space blankets, CDs or stacked lenses are unsafe and must not be used for direct solar viewing.
- Safe indirect methods include pinhole projectors made from a cereal box or cardboard with aluminium foil and a pin, kitchen colanders that cast many crescent images, and leaf-gap shadow projections that show multiple miniature suns.
- When using indirect viewers stand with your back to the Sun, look only at the projected image, never look through a pinhole or at the Sun directly, keep children supervised, and do not point unfiltered cameras, binoculars or telescopes at the Sun.
- If you cannot obtain certified glasses, watch a reputable live broadcast or use indirect projectors so families and schools can experience the eclipse without risking eyesight and to avoid problems from local supply shortages.