Solar eclipse: Recent questions answered

In case you haven't heard about it, there will be an eclipse on Monday ... I know, I am surprised to hear it too ... And there have been tons of articles done on what type of glasses you should use to see the eclipse.

RELATED: How to watch the eclipse

Question 1: This morning I had a question from a Facebook friend named Christy. She writes: "Is it possible to get advice on about viewing the solar eclipse with welding glasses?" Christy, ask and ye shall receive.

Some welder's glasses/masks will work, and some will not. Experts say you need to have ones that are Shade 14 or higher (according to NASA) but it may be hard to find, especially at this point.

Question 2: This one comes to me via a friend named Barb. She asked "Why do you even need eye protection for this?" The short answer is you will go blind. Here's why:

If you were to stare at the sun today, your body, instinctively, will turn away before damage to your eye occurs. During an eclipse, the sun becomes darker so your instincts are overridden, and you can stare at the sun for a longer period of time. And that's a really bad thing. Your retina does not have any pain receptors, so as it's being burned and permanently damaged and you are really not aware. Eventually, it will blind you. So please, if you are going to look at it, make sure your glasses are safe!

RELATED: Where you can still buy solar-eclipse glasses

BTW... just being outside won't blind you, only if you look directly at the sun during the eclipse. So you don't have to be inside and cocooned in your house during the event.

Happy (and safe) viewing!