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The Illinois Department of Health has issued an alert to residents after several pairs of solar eclipse glasses sold in the state were recalled for "potentially failing to meet safety standards."
According to the alert, the glasses were reportedly sold through Amazon and at least six stores in Southern Illinois. Southern Illinois is a prime viewing area for the eclipse, with some cities, including Carbondale, in the 2024 total solar eclipse's "path of totality."
The now-recalled glasses were sold on Amazon under the branding, "Biniki Solar Eclipse Glasses AAS Approved 2024 – CE & ISO Certified Safe Shades for Direct Sun Viewing (6 Packs)," the alert states. They were also sold at the following retailers in Southern Illinois:
- Farm Fresh Market, Breese, IL
- Highland Tru Buy, Highland, IL
- Perry County Marketplace, Pinckneyville, IL
- Sinclair Foods, Jerseyville, IL
- Steelville Marketplace, Steelville, IL
- Big John Grocery, Metropolis, IL
"The recalled glasses are labeled as 'EN ISO 12312-1:2022,' the IDPH alert said. "Proper safety glasses should carry the ISO designation of 12312-2."
Some of the impacted stores over the weekend posted on social media about the recalled glasses.
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"If you have purchased solar eclipse glasses from Farm Fresh please do not use them. You can return them," a Saturday Facebook post from Farm Fresh Market said. "We have just gotten word form the company we purchased them from there may be a problem with them and they may not block out all the harmful UV rays. Sorry for the inconvenience."
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MORE: Finding solar eclipse glasses in Chicago: Where to get them, and how to know if they work
Retailers in other parts of the country also issued warnings about the recall.
"DO NOT USE! Please check your solar eclipse glasses," a Facebook post from Fink's ALPS in Union, Missouri, read. The Facebook post referenced glasses with an EN ISO number 12312-1: 2022.
Similar Facebook messages were posted from nearby retailers in Missouri, including K & R Market in Marthasville, and St. Clair Country Mart in St. Clair.
According to a report from NBC affiliate WHEC in Rochester, New York, some people who purchased the recalled glasses from Amazon received an email from the online marketplace, saying the glasses were in fact not safe to view the eclipse with, and that the packaging labeling of "AAS Approved" is in fact incorrect.
“Dear Amazon Customer, We write to notify you of a potential safety concern with a product that you purchased on Amazon.com," the email read in part. "Affected Product: Biniki Solar Eclipse Glasses AAS Approved 2024 – CE & ISO Certified Safe Shades for Direct Sun Viewing (6 Packs). The product listed above was not included in the American Astronomical Society’s list of safe suppliers of solar eclipse viewers and filters and therefore may not be safe for viewing a solar eclipse."
MORE: Are glasses the only suitable option for viewing a solar eclipse? Some welding masks might suffice
The note went on to suggested that customers who purchased the glasses should not use them to view Monday's solar eclipse.
An Amazon spokesperson told the news station in a statement that the notifications were done "out of an abundance of caution."
"We continuously monitor our store for non-compliant products, and when we discover a product was undetected by our proactive checks, we address the issue immediately and refine our controls," the statement read in part. "If customers have concerns about an item they’ve purchased, we encourage them to contact our Customer Service directly so we can address any questions they may have. We regret any inconvenience this may have caused our customers.”
How to know if your solar eclipse glasses work
According to the Adler Planetarium, viewing the solar eclipse without proper eyewear can result in irreversible eye damage within seconds, and as your eyes lack the nerve endings to register pain as it's occurring.
What's more, your pupils will be more dilated as the eclipse occurs, allowing more harmful rays to enter your eyes than on a normal sunny day.
Regular sunglasses, even very dark ones, are not safe to view the eclipse.
With the danger of irreversible eye damage present in the event of viewing the eclipse unprotected, it's critical to ensure that the solar eclipse glasses used are not counterfeit.
But there's no real way to detect real glasses versus counterfeit ones just by looking at them.
"The glasses if they're counterfeit, they may appear fine, because maybe they're dark enough that you can that it appears like you can safely look at the sun. But what you don't know is are they letting through ultraviolet and infrared light. That's the thing that I would worry about the most," Michelle Nichols, director of public observing at the Adler Planetarium said.
Detecting real vs. fake becomes even more challenging when companies tout unproven or inaccurate safety claims.
"Just be careful and don't just assume just because it says safe glasses that they actually are because anyone can write that," she said.
If you’re still wondering how to tell if your glasses will give you the right protection, here’s a trick, according to experts:
“When you wear the glasses, you should not be able to see anything," Dr. Nina Goyal, an ophthalmologist with Rush University Medical Center told NBC Chicago. "It is a flexible resin with carbon particles infused, the only thing you should be able to see out of these is the orange glow of the sun. Don't use sunglasses, don't layer sunglasses, and don't use smoked glass."
Experts suggest purchasing solar eclipse glasses through suppliers deemed "safe" by the American Astronomical Society.
The society's list offers links to "selected suppliers of solar viewers and filters that you can be confident are safe when used properly."
"These include companies and organizations with which members of the AAS Solar Eclipse Task Force have had good experience as well as other companies and organizations that have demonstrated to our satisfaction that the products they're selling meet the safety requirements of the ISO 12312-2 international standard," the list states.
The society notes, however, that its list is not exhaustive, and glasses not listed on the site could still be safe. They do not recommend using Amazon, eBay, Temu or other online marketplaces to find lowest-priced options.
"Before you buy a solar viewer or filter online, we recommend that you make sure that (1) the seller is identified on the site and (2) the seller is listed on this page," the society states.
Here are the key take-aways for finding legitimate eclipse glasses:
- When buying eclipse glasses, look for an approved manufacturer on the astronomical society’s website and make sure the glasses have the numbers iso 1-2-3-1-2- 2 printed on the inside.
- You can find the list of Suppliers of Safe Solar Viewers & Filters here.
- If you still have your glasses from the 2017 eclipse, you might be able to reuse them. But that's only if they aren’t bent, torn, or scratched.
Some museums and stores in the Chicago area are also offering free solar eclipse glasses and viewers while supplies last.
- Solar filters: If you want to use a telescope, binoculars or camera, do not use them unprotected even if you have safe eclipse glasses. Consult the manufacturer for a proper filter to attach to your device.
- Pinhole viewer: This is a simple, inexpensive way to indirectly view the eclipse. Just take two sheets of white paper (card stock is best) and poke a hole in the middle of one sheet. With your back to the sun, hold the sheet with the hole over the other sheet and adjust them until you see a dot of light. That's the sun! As the moon travels across the sun, a crescent will appear.
