Question: how does the eclipse effect our eyes

Thomas Clements answered on 20 Mar 2015:

Well it only effects it if you look at the sun!!!

Did you know that you can sun burn your eyeballs? When you stare at a bright object the dark spots you see is where the cells in the back of your eye are so overloaded with signals they just stop working.

The most harmful part of looking at the sun is the UV rays, which can damage the macula, a tiny substructure of the retina responsible for the majority of your central detail vision. Damaging it can cause macular degeneration, eventually resulting in permanent blindness in the center of your field of vision. Basically, that black dot you see after a photo flash would just never go away. Permanent, complete blindness can also occur from staring at the sun over the long term. The eye’s lens can be damaged from too much UV light, typically resulting in cataracts.

Looking at the sun with a telescope or binoculers magnify this effect can literally cook your eyes out of your head, destroying rod-and-cone structures and potentially resulting in permanent blindness. 🙁

ewwwww – if that happens you’ll look like I do in my photo!