UK Braces for 90% Solar Eclipse as 11-Year-Old Fan Urges Safe Viewing

Q: If you missed buying certified glasses for today's historic eclipse, can a simple kitchen colander safely save your view?

Yes — a kitchen colander can provide a safe way to watch the eclipse, but only indirectly. Experts and official guidance say a colander works like a multi-pinhole projector. If you stand with your back to the Sun and hold the colander so sunlight passes through its holes onto a sheet of white paper, the holes project many small images of the Sun. During the partial eclipse, each image will show the Moon’s bite taken out of it. Royal Cornwall Hospital ophthalmologist David Jones has described this as a favourite method because it creates “a hundred” images at once. What it does not do is make direct viewing safe. You should not look through the colander at the Sun. The safe method is to look only at the projected images on paper or another light surface. The same rule applies to phones, cameras, binoculars and telescopes: do not point them at the Sun without a proper front-mounted solar filter. Ordinary sunglasses are not safe, and old eclipse glasses should not be reused if scratched or damaged. Certified eclipse glasses should meet ISO 12312-2. If you missed buying approved glasses, a colander, a simple pinhole projector or a cereal-box viewer are the recommended alternatives. With the eclipse low in the western sky this evening, a clear west-facing horizon will help — but whatever the view, never look directly at the Sun.

3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Aug 12

More than 90% of the Sun will be covered across most of the UK on Wednesday evening in the country’s biggest visible solar eclipse since 1999, with the event starting around 18:10 BST.
11-year-old astronomy enthusiast Efan Dafydd warned viewers not to reuse 1999 eclipse glasses or ordinary sunglasses, saying scratched or damaged lenses could risk eyesight.
Efan also said phones, telescopes and binoculars need solar filters because UV light can damage lenses while people try to photograph or watch the eclipse.
The eclipse will be the largest visible from the UK until September 2090, turning a rare event into a major public viewing moment across Britain and parts of Europe.