Ahead of the solar eclipse passing through the U.S. on April 8, many people may be wondering if it is safe to take a flight during the event. TIME headed straight to the experts for an answer, which was resoundingly positive.
“Yes, absolutely. There’s no reason not to [fly],” Paul Bryans, a project scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, tells TIME. A solar eclipse happens when the moon blocks the light from the sun. In terms of being on board an aircraft, this doesn’t make the sun any more of a threat than it is on regular days. “There’s nothing dangerous about a solar eclipse,” says John Gianforte, director of the observatory at the University of New Hampshire, during a video call.
Nevertheless, eclipses are often accompanied by safety warnings from concerned scientists and authorities warning the public about the importance of wearing eye protection. The phenomenon of eclipse blindness has been documented throughout modern history. After an eclipse in 1976 in Turkey, 58 patients sought medical treatment for eclipse-related eye damage. While most made a full recovery, some reportedly had permanent vision loss. Similarly, in 1999 after a solar eclipse passed through parts of Europe, 45 patients attended the eye casualty of a hospital in Leicester, England, after viewing the event.
Read More: Helpful Tips for Planning Your Solar Eclipse Trip
All this has led many people to believe that eclipses are inherently dangerous phenomena, but this is not true. The only reason we see more eye injuries on solar eclipse days is because people are intrigued and are purposefully looking at the sun. “The fact that there is an eclipse doesn’t make it any more dangerous to look at the sun, but it makes people want to look at the sun,” Gianforte points out. “If you look at the sun on any given day, without eye protection, you’re going to damage your eyes.”
As such, you can rest assured that flying during an eclipse is safe. In fact, Delta…
