A high school on the North Shore of Montreal had to resign itself to throwing away 3,700 pairs of eclipse observation glasses ordered on Amazon, several of which had already been distributed to students, after learning that they were counterfeit.
The Saint-Jérôme Polyvalent School began distributing these glasses on Wednesday.
The Rivière-du-Nord School Service Center indicates that they were ordered through Amazon from a recommended supplier, American Paper Optics. Their lenses were then certified and complied with the international standard ISO 12312-2.
However, members of the School’s staff discovered a notice issued by the supplier to the effect that the glasses had been counterfeited.
After referring to the specialists at the Science Center in Montreal, “it was decided to throw away all the glasses in order to avoid risks,” explains a spokesperson for the CSS de la Rivière-du-Nord, Nadyne Brochu .
One pair of glasses per student had been ordered and a few more for staff members, for a total of around 3,700, she said.
Parents of students were notified by email and text message.
“If your child has received a pair, we ask that you DO NOT use it and throw it away. Unfortunately, despite our desire to provide this experience to your young people, it turned out that the said glasses did not comply with the intended protections,” we can read in the message consulted by The Press.
Ordinary sunglasses, even with the best UV protection, are not sufficient to protect the eyes when viewing the Sun directly.
The eclipse viewing glasses are equipped with an ISO 12312-2 certified filter. This filter is so opaque that only light emanating directly from the Sun is visible through it – it is 1000 times darker than ordinary solar lenses.
When obtained from a reputable supplier – for example, an astronomy store or public facility – and marked ISO 12312-2 and not scratched or damaged, these glasses should can be used without problem to watch an eclipse.
However, on March 22, the American Astronomy Society warned the population against the sale of counterfeit or non-compliant glasses on the internet.