What Should I Do With My Solar Eclipse Glasses?
Mother Nature and her clouds put a damper on our 2017 eclipse viewing yesterday in Rockford, but many spirits were lifted once finding out that the next Total Solar Eclipse would be happening even closer to our area in 2024.
Now you're probably thinking, awesome, I already have my eclipse glasses so I'm ahead of the game for 2024. Not so fast. According to smithsonian.com;
Cassy Sommer at Staten Island Live reports, eclipse glasses manufacturers warn that the lenses expire after three years. And seven years in a junk drawer will likely lead to scratches or abrasions, which can make the glasses dangerous to wear.
Great. What should we do with them now? Throw them in the trash? Let the kids pretend they're aliens or astronauts and play dress up with them? Nope and nope. The Smithsonian recommends putting them to good use by donating them to Astronomers Without Borders who will send the used glasses to schools in South America and Asia to use during the 2019 solar eclipses.
Astronomers Without Borders will be announcing a program soon that will partner with businesses and organizations across the country to serve as collection points for your eclipse glasses. For the meantime, hold on to those glasses and follow the Astronomers Without Borders Facebook page for future details.
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