Safety warning ahead of eclipse as thousands in Hampshire prepare to witness the phenomenon

Children, who will be starting school at the time, are thought to be particularly at risk.

• 1999 Total Solar Eclipse - in pictures >>

Eye specialists reported 70 people in the UK lost their sight during the total solar eclipse of 1999 - 40 per cent of them after only looking at it for a matter of seconds.

Now they are urging people to use safer ways to enjoy the natural phenomenon, including through homemade projectors or by watching online webcasts.

The Royal College of Ophthalmologists (RCOphth) found that the 38 men and 32 women had solar maculopathy after the last eclipse, a form of sight loss caused by cells inside the eyes becoming burnt by the sun's rays.

The condition, which cannot be prevented by sunglasses, is incurable but some cases recover naturally over time.

A spokeswoman from the RCOphth said: “The fine cells in the macula and which is located at the centre of the retina may be damaged by solar burns.

"As these cells are responsible for good central vision patients may experience reduced vision after prolonged solar gazing.”

John O'Hagan, head of the optical radiation group at Public Health England, said: “Even if it's cloudy there's a risk of eye damage. Sunglasses won't give enough protection.

"Although they may reduce the sun's glare, they allow you to look for longer, allowing more sunlight into the eye.”

The message has been repeated by schools across Hampshire as children plan to watch the eclipse with their classmates.

Some schoolchildren have made their own projectors so they can watch it safely, while others will be watching it indoors via online webcasts.

Karen Mellor, head teacher at Newlands Primary School in Millbrook, Southampton, said: “We are advising the children and parents that they should not be looking directly at the sun, particularly on their way to school that morning.

“During the morning each class will view some of the online footage and will be discussing the solar eclipse from a scientific point of view, whilst developing awe and wonder.”

Meanwhile, roads bosses are urging drivers not to get distracted by the eclipse, which will start at 8.23am.

A Highways Agency spokesman said: “As always, we advise road users to drive carefully, adjusting their driving according to weather and road conditions and during the eclipse we'd ask them to do the same.”

Safety tips

1. NEVER look directly at the sun - even wearing sunglasses. Instead, here are some safer ways to watch the eclipse: Use special eclipse viewing glasses which have been given out by astronomy organisations.

2. Make a pinhole viewer by piercing a hole into the edge of a cereal box. The eclipse will be projected onto the inside of the box.

3. Hold a kitchen colander in one hand and a piece of paper or card in the other. Get the right position and multiple images of the eclipse will appear on the paper through the colander's holes.

4. Cut a 4mm hole into a piece of paper and place it over a small flat mirror then position the mirror five metres (16ft) away from a plain wall. Get the position right and the eclipse will be projected onto the wall.

5. Hold a piece of card or paper in one hand and a pair of binoculars in the other. Hold the binoculars up between the paper and the sun with the larger side of the lens pointing upwards and the eclipse will be projected onto the paper.

PANEL - Weather FORECASTERS are unsure how good a view people in Hampshire will get of the eclipse as cloud is expected over the county.

The Met Office says conditions will be good tomorrow morning - if there is a well-timed break in the cloud.

A spokesman said: “Even if it's cloudy it will get darker and if you're lucky enough you might get one of those breaks at the right time.”

The weather is expected to be dry with temperatures of 9C (48F).

IT’S a phenomenon that will not happen again in the UK for years.

Hampshire will be plunged into darkness tomorrow as the Moon travels between the Earth and the Sun, casting a shadow on our planet.

For people watching in the south, 85 per cent of the Sun will be covered (known as a partial eclipse) but those in Svalbard in Norway and the Faroe Islands in Denmark will watch the Sun completely disappear as they experience a total solar eclipse.

Richard Judd, chairman of the Hampshire Astronomical Group, said: “There’s about 360 years before you get another total solar eclipse in any one point and the next one in the UK isn’t until 2090 so you don’t get many of these in your lifetime.

“The Moon’s position between the Earth and the Sun is the right distance away at the moment. In a few hundred years we won’t get them because the Moon is moving away.”

• Total solar eclipses are rare, only happening once every 360 years at any given location
• The UK’s last total eclipse was centred on Cornwall on August 11, 1999
• There will not be another total eclipse in this country until September 23, 2090
• People who travel around the globe to see a total solar eclipse are known as umbraphiles or “shadow lovers”
• Total eclipses often confuse animals and insects into thinking night has fallen
• Partial eclipses are more common and take place when only part of the Sun appears blocked by the Moon
• The next one where more than 85 per cent of the sun will be covered for people watching in the UK will be on August 12, 2026
• There will be another partial solar eclipse on August 21, 2017, but this will be much less impressive in the UK as it’s centred on America
• Lunar eclipses are the most regular and happen when the Earth moves between the Sun and the Moon, stopping the sunlight reflecting off of the Moon’s surface
• A total lunar eclipse will occur on September 28.
• People watching the eclipse should never look directly at the Sun even with sunglasses on. Those who do risk being blinded. It is safer to watch it through special eclipse glasses or projectors

Today’s eclipse will be visible anywhere there is a clear view of the Sun.