Eclipse will last over two hours |01 October 2005

Mr Holst, who first broke the news of the event said that although the first article published in the Nation on Wednesday last week was accurate, some people could easily think that the phenomenon will be a five-minute event.

"As my advertisements have been showing, the eclipse will begin at 2.40 p.m. and end at 4.50 p.m., he said, confirming that maximum coverage of the Sun by the Moon will be at 3.58 p.m. and last four minutes and 30 seconds.

He said many people have heeded his advice and are going for the double layer metallic sheet viewing glasses which Vision Care Seychelles is selling at R10.

He stressed that whereas there may be other makeshift devices people might attempt to use, the aluminised Mylar dual sandwich type he is offering are some of the only guaranteed forms of protection for the eyes.

He repeated his warning that a person may feel no discomfort when viewing the eclipse with the wrong kind of aid, but could still suffer impaired or lost eyesight.

“Seeing a total eclipse is a fantastic experience. But without proper preparation it can also be very dangerous to the eyes and vision.

“No pain does not mean no damage,” Mr Holst said, explaining that viewing the partly-eclipsed Sun without protective equipment will result in a retinal burn.

“Depending on how long the retina is exposed to the Sun, this injury may cause permanent damage to vision.

“There is no pain when the retina is being burned, and the resulting visual symptoms do not occur until at least several hours after the injury has occurred - by which time it is far too late,” he said.

He showed Family Life photographs of the back of the eye of a man who viewed the partial solar eclipse of 1966 without eye protection which in which arc-shaped scars could be seen.

Another picture showed a more extreme form of solar retinopathy in the left eye of a young man who stared unprotected at a partial eclipse of the sun.

Several crescent-shaped burns could be seen in the central retina. He said they had resulted in blindness in the particular eye.

“Only when the Sun is completely covered by the Moon - at total eclipse - is it safe to look at the event without protection.

“As soon as it reappears - producing the diamond ring effect - you must look away,” he said.
“Totality will last for about two minutes, depending on your location on the eclipse path.

However, for most people, only a partial eclipse will be visible, and although the sky will become very dark, it will not be safe to look at the Sun without proper equipment and viewing techniques,” he said.