Sævar Helgi disputes Icelandic eclipse safety guidance

Sævar Helgi Bragason says Iceland’s Directorate of Health has published incorrect guidance on using solar eclipse glasses, mbl.is reports. The guidance concerns eye safety during the total solar eclipse expected in Iceland on August 12.

The eclipse will be Iceland’s first total solar eclipse since 1954. Many people have obtained solar eclipse glasses to watch the partial eclipse before and after totality.

The Directorate of Health correctly says that eclipse glasses must be used throughout the partial eclipse. However, its website also says viewers should put on the glasses during totality, look at the Sun for a few seconds, then look away and repeat the process with breaks in between.

Bragason, also known as Star-Sævar, says that instruction is wrong. He has repeatedly explained that eclipse glasses are not needed during totality.

He says it is safe to look at the Sun during the total eclipse, when the Sun’s corona becomes visible. “It is only dimmer than the full Moon, and I do not know of anyone who is advised not to look at the full Moon,” Bragason told mbl.is.

According to Bragason, glasses should be worn only during the partial eclipse. During totality, he says, people may look at the eclipse without glasses for the entire period and do not need to take breaks.

He also says there is no danger in watching the partial eclipse continuously through the glasses.

Bragason has published videos on social media explaining how and when to use eclipse glasses, including for children and people who wear ordinary glasses. He also runs the website solmyrkvi2026.is, which provides information about the eclipse.