Questions came up at last night's MAS meeting about safely viewing the solar eclipse.

This forum is for discussing all things astronomical that aren't directly related to the activities of the MAS.
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petemn2004
Posts: 235
Joined: Tue Aug 31, 2004 5:01 pm
Real Name: Mark Petersen
Location: Maple Grove, MN

Questions came up at last night's MAS meeting about safely viewing the solar eclipse.

Post by petemn2004 »

Questions came up at last night's meeting about safely viewing the solar eclipse.

From the SEML (Solar Eclipse Mailing List) now a Yahoo Group on Sunday July 2, 2017:
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Baader Planetarium, the German manufacturer of AstroSolar Safety Film — which many of us have been using for decades — has introduced a new version called AstroSolar Silver/Gold. Unlike the earlier film, this newer one meets the specifications of the ISO 12312-2 international safety standard for filters for direct viewing of the Sun. Accordingly, the American Astronomical Society (AAS) has added Baader to the list of suppliers mentioned on our 1-page PDF safety flyer (https://eclipse.aas.org/resources/downl ... fety_flyer <https://eclipse.aas.org/resources/downl ... fety_flyer>) and to the appropriate HTML pages of our Solar Eclipse Across America website (https://eclipse.aas.org <https://eclipse.aas.org/>). NASA will presumably follow suit on its eclipse safety pages.

Note that if you mention Baader AstroSolar film to anyone, you should clarify that ONLY the Silver/Gold version is approved for use in eclipse glasses/shades and handheld viewers. Regular/older AstroSolar Safety Film is designed for use with optics (only in over-the-aperture filters, of course).

Dr. Richard Tresch Fienberg
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See the following:
https://eclipse.aas.org/sites/eclipse.a ... 170702.pdf

From this PDF: (How to View the 2017 Solar Eclipse Safely)
"The only safe way to look directly at the uneclipsed or partially eclipsed Sun is through special purpose solar filters, such as “eclipse glasses” or
hand-held solar viewers. Homemade filters or ordinary sunglasses, even very dark ones, are not safe for looking at the Sun. To date five manufacturers have certified that their eclipse glasses and hand-held solar viewers meet the ISO 12312-2 international standard for such products: American Paper Optics, Baader Planetarium (AstroSolar Silver/Gold film only), Rainbow Symphony, Thousand Oaks Optical, and TSE 17."

I have eclipse glasses from both Thousand Oaks Optical and Rainbow Symphony. I prefer the eclipse glasses from Rainbow Symphony.

The solar image when using eclipse glasses from Thousand Oaks Optical is brighter than Rainbow Symphony's.
To me there is a slight haze around the edge of the sun when using eclipse glasses from Thousand Oaks Optical that is absent in Rainbow Symphony's.

The demand is now high for eclipse glasses so do not delay.


Mark Petersen
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