With the total solar eclipse due tomorrow, August 12, experts are warning UK stargazers to avoid counterfeit eclipse glasses as stocks sell out nationwide. The eclipse will be total for around 15.2 million people, mainly in northern Spain, Iceland and Greenland, but partial for observers in the UK. Because it is a partial eclipse, a sliver of the sun will still be visible, making it unsafe to look at with the naked eye.
Certified glasses essential for eye safety
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) recommends using eclipse glasses with the ISO 12312-2:2015 certificate, which ensures they are safe for direct solar viewing. However, many online retailers have sold out, and some customers report their orders will not arrive until after the eclipse. In London, queues formed outside a camera shop in Whitechapel at 2am today, according to a Reddit user who shared a photo of the scene.
Tania de Sales Marques, senior astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, stressed the importance of certified eyewear: 'Looking directly at the sun can cause serious and permanent eye damage. Even during a solar eclipse, the sun’s light is intense enough to harm the sensitive cells in the back of your eye.' She added that the only safe way to look directly at the sun is with certified eclipse glasses or a properly fitted solar filter on a telescope or binoculars.
Inspect and buy from reputable sources
Marques advises anyone with existing glasses to inspect them for scratches or damage and discard any that are compromised. She also notes that regular sunglasses do not provide adequate protection, as they do not reduce glare or block harmful UV rays. Panicked buyers should purchase from 'reputable sources' to avoid counterfeit products that offer no protection.
Daniel Mohacek, CEO of review authenticity platform TruthEngine, warns of scammers exploiting the demand. 'Don’t simply choose a pair because it has thousands of five-star reviews or because the product description says it is “certified”,' he said. 'Look carefully at who is actually selling it, whether the seller can be identified and whether the safety claims can be verified.' He added that shoppers should scrutinise reviews, especially if they are uniformly positive, and that 'if anything about the seller, reviews or safety claims looks suspicious, it simply isn’t worth taking the risk with your eyesight.'
Alternatives to direct viewing
If certified glasses are unavailable, there are safe indirect methods to view the eclipse. A DIY pinhole camera, or box projector, can be made with scissors, white paper, tape, tin foil and a pin. Cut the paper to fit the inside bottom of a box as a projector screen, tape it in place, cut two holes in the top, cover one with foil and punch a tiny hole in the foil. The other hole serves as the eyehole. Facing away from the sun, light streams through the pinhole to project the eclipse inside the box.
A simpler free option is to use your hands: place one hand at a 90-degree angle with fingers slightly open, allowing sunlight to project the eclipse onto the ground. Any object with small holes, such as a colander or cheese grater, can work similarly.
For those preferring a digital view, livestreams are available from NASA and the Royal Museums Greenwich YouTube account. However, NordVPN warns that scammers are creating fake livestream sites to steal personal data. Marijus Briedis, the company’s chief technology officer, noted that during the 2024 North American eclipse, criminals made fake SpaceX streams featuring a deepfake Elon Musk. 'The technology has only become more convincing since then,' he said, urging caution if a stream asks for account creation, payment details, QR code scans, or downloads. Observatories and libraries, including the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, have closed due to 'unprecedented volume' of orders, and only 100 sets were available there, according to a social media post.
