On April 8, the sun will disappear behind the moon’s shadow in a total solar eclipse.
The 115-mile-wide path of totality will streak across North America, plunging nine major US cities into several minutes of total darkness.
But spectators should be wary of letting their excitement get the best of them while watching. There are important safety measures to be taken, especially to protect your eyes.
It’s never safe to look directly at the sun for an eclipse without eye protection — except during totality. That’s why solar eclipse glasses are crucial because they are specially designed to allow you to view the sun while it’s only partially covered by the moon’s shadow without risking damage to your vision.
But in the weeks leading up to the eclipse, prices for these protective glasses have jumped 27%, according to Forbes. And eclipse glasses could get harder to find as supplies sell out due to frantic demand.
If you get caught without a pair on April 8, don’t panic! You’ve got options. Here are some easy ways to enjoy the eclipse without special glasses.
Use a solar filter to look through your phone camera
If you can’t get your hands on a pair of eclipse glasses, you might have better luck buying a solar filter for your smartphone camera.
The sun’s harsh UV rays can damage your phone camera lens just like your eyes. A solar filter allows you to safely point your phone camera directly at the eclipse so you can watch it on the screen. During totality, you can remove the filter without risking damage to your phone.
Plus, this method comes with the added bonus of letting you snap photos of the eclipse while you watch.
To get the best shot, you can use an app called Solar Snap. It was created by former Hubble Space Telescope Astronomer, Doug Duncan, and adjusts your phone camera to the perfect settings for photographing the eclipse.
Wear welder’s glass rated shade 12 or higher
Welder’s glass is designed to protect welders’ eyes from the bright light of their acetylene torches. Because it blocks UV light, it’s also perfect for looking at the sun.
Just make sure that the welder’s glass you use is dark enough to provide sufficient protection. NASA recommends shades 12, 13, or 14, with 12 the least opaque and 14 the most.
Build a pinhole camera
Making a pinhole camera is a fun and easy way to make sure your eyes will be protected during the solar eclipse. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has instructions for building a simple one in just a few minutes.
All you need are scissors, tinfoil, a piece of thick card stock (or paper), tape, and a needle.
First, cut a hole in the middle of a sheet of cardstock. Then, tape the edges of a sheet of tinfoil over it and carefully poke a hole in the center of the foil with a needle. And there you have it!
Hold your pinhole camera over something white, like a wall or a sheet of paper, and the shadow of the eclipse will appear. You might have to move your camera around a bit to figure out where the best focal point is.
Use a colander to project the eclipse onto a piece of paper
This method works similarly to a pinhole camera, but doesn’t require any cutting, poking, or taping.
The tiny holes in a kitchen colander can project light from the eclipse onto a piece of paper or cardboard so that you see the effect.
Stand with your back against the sun and the piece of paper out in front of you. Hold the colander over your head and watch dozens of tiny eclipse shadows appear. They should look like little crescents as the moon moves in front of the sun.
If you don’t have a colander handy, you can grab anything with small holes in it: a straw hat or slotted spoon can also work.
Make a fist
This works the same way as a colander or pinhole camera, but instead of using a bunch of little holes, it uses just one.
With your back facing the sun and your paper or wall out in front, raise a fist above your head.
Make sure your grip is tight enough to only let a small point of light shine through. At the center of your hand’s shadow, you’ll see the shape of the eclipse projected on the surface.
Find a tree
Depending on where you are in the US, this might not work for you. But if you’re in a warmer state where trees have already leafed out for spring, all you need to do is find one and look for its shadow.
You’ll want to find one that has significant leaf cover and a good amount of shade. Look for the patches of sunlight that filter through the leaves. During the eclipse, they’ll become crescent-shaped.
To make them stand out, you can lay a white sheet of paper down in the tree’s shadow.
Point binoculars at a piece of paper
Never look directly at the sun through binoculars. The concentrated solar rays can quickly and severely damage your eyes.
But you can use them to project the eclipse onto a piece of paper. Just point the front of binoculars toward it and aim the other end towards the sun.
You can even adjust the crispness of the projection using the binoculars’ focus knob.
Watch the eclipse live online
If all else fails, you can always turn to a digital livestream and watch the eclipse from the comfort of your home. Here are a few different ones you can use.
Lydia Ramsey Pflanzer and Dave Mosher contributed to an earlier version of this post.
