Not bound by age, tradition or geography, selfie pictures are an obsession that can be witnessed anywhere. There was the funeral selfie . The plane crash selfie . And now it seems, the solar eclipse selfie.
On Friday, March 20, during the March equinox, most countries in the MENA region will witness a partial solar eclipse, in addition to Europe, as well as northern and eastern Asia, that will last from 07:41 GMT till 11:50 GMT. And doctors are warning: Do not, under any circumstances, take a selfie with the solar eclipse.
The College of Optometrists has clearly warned that looking directly into the sun, even during a partial eclipse when a thin line is all we can see, is gravely dangerous, and can cause temporary or permanent damage to the eye, such as burning the retina and causing blindness.
“You need to cut down the light of the sun by an enormous amount before you can look at it safely,” Robin Scagell, vice-president of the Society for Popular Astronomy told The Daily Telegraph.
“A partial eclipse is more risky by far than a total eclipse because people don't realise that even looking at a thin sliver of sun is dangerous.
“It's absolutely true that there is a serious risk to people's eyesight. If people can't find a way to view the eclipse correctly then they shouldn't look because they're likely to damage their eyes.”
Daniel Hardiman-McCartney, clinical adviser at the College of Optometrists told the Telegraph that “taking a selfie could potentially put you at risk as you may end up accidentally looking directly at the Sun while aligning yourself and your phone.
"Whilst a solar eclipse is an amazing and infrequent event, the general public must remember that they should not look directly at the Sun or at a solar eclipse, either with the naked eye, even if dark filters such as sunglasses or photographic negatives are used, nor through optical equipment such as cameras, binoculars or telescopes.”
Nevertheless, there are several proposed methods to watch the solar eclipse without subjecting yourself to any dangers.
If you don’t have a solar viewer, you can make a pinhole camera which would allow you to see the solar eclipse without facing it. You can do this by punching a hole in a card which will project the scene onto another surface, such as another card (they have to be at least one meter apart).
It is also advised to avoid driving during the time of the solar eclipse, or to alter your direction if possible to avoid looking directly into the sun.
And at all costs, please do not take a selfie with the solar eclipse!