A racist solar eclipse

From The People's Cube,

As the total solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 comes to an end, we have seen an unprecedented surge in claims for government support based on the premise that people are now blind. We all know that this was, in fact, a racist solar eclipse, since there were a disproportionate number of non-whites outside of the path of totality.

While the ACLU files discrimination lawsuits against the sun, the masses are overwhelming the People’s Department of Labor. The sun was not equally blocked for all people, as it should have been. This, combined with not being given solar-filtered glasses for eclipse-viewing has caused a systemic eye-damage problem resulting in blindness for everyone outside the path of totality. Therefore no one but those in the path of totality are required to work again.

Read more here.

Protect your eyes!

I have been reading about the eye dangers of next week's eclipse. One site said many libraries have glasses you can use to watch it. This article recommends NASA approved sunoculars.

Staring into the Sun with a naked eye can result in injury to the retina and even blindness. The danger to the eye comes from infrared radiation, ultraviolet radiation, and excessive blue light. And before you ask, yes, it’s more dangerous than looking at the Sun on any other ordinary day.

This danger is due to the fact that our normal built-in ocular safety doesn’t really work the same during an eclipse, thanks to the juxtaposition of the dark shadow of the Moon against the blazing Sun. The combination of extreme brightness against total darkness creates a sharpness that challenges the eye’s safety focus features, causing it to absorb the damaging image on the most sensitive neural tissue.

Of course, even if it didn’t direct this radiation to the most sensitive areas, the eclipse would still be dangerous. Depending on exposure time and other personal health factors, the damage could be temporary or it could last a lifetime. In either case, it’s not a risk worth taking, and proper glasses are a must.

Read more here.

Safe eclipse viewing

Leada Gore explains at AL.com why it is dangerous to watch a total eclipse, why you need to use special glasses, and where you can get them.

"You can't stop the moon!"

The staff at The Week brings us a thorough review of the August 21 eclipse of the sun. They look at what happens, when, where, scientific projects, and how to view it here.