There is definitely some truth to that. You wouldn't want to keep staring at the diamond ring! Or any of the partial eclipse.
This is anecdata, but I viewed the 1979 total eclipse with binoculars, and when the diamond ring and Baily's beads appeared at the end of totality, I kept looking at them with the binoculars for a few seconds longer than I should have. It didn't damage my vision in the slightest.
I'm not saying I recommend that! But if you look away the moment they appear, you will be fine. Otherwise organizations like NASA and the American Astronomical Society wouldn't recommend viewing the total eclipse with binoculars.
For some more reputable sources than my own anecdotes, I posted several links in a couple of Reddit comments a while back:
You don't want to risk your vision at all, of course, but in other recent eclipses, many people were too cautious and based their decisions on fear, as happened to this astronomer when he was a child:
One other thing I forgot to mention: if you are viewing the total eclipse, don't bother taking pictures! Totality will end all too soon, and the time you spend fiddling with your camera is time you won't get to experience the eclipse.
This is anecdata, but I viewed the 1979 total eclipse with binoculars, and when the diamond ring and Baily's beads appeared at the end of totality, I kept looking at them with the binoculars for a few seconds longer than I should have. It didn't damage my vision in the slightest.
I'm not saying I recommend that! But if you look away the moment they appear, you will be fine. Otherwise organizations like NASA and the American Astronomical Society wouldn't recommend viewing the total eclipse with binoculars.
For some more reputable sources than my own anecdotes, I posted several links in a couple of Reddit comments a while back:
https://www.reddit.com/r/space/comments/6rkqr0/the_path_of_t...
https://www.reddit.com/r/space/comments/6rkqr0/the_path_of_t...
I was also involved in a discussion in this Reddit thread:
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/6lyei5/befor...
You don't want to risk your vision at all, of course, but in other recent eclipses, many people were too cautious and based their decisions on fear, as happened to this astronomer when he was a child:
http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/35055369/i-was-robbed-of-my-ecli...
One other thing I forgot to mention: if you are viewing the total eclipse, don't bother taking pictures! Totality will end all too soon, and the time you spend fiddling with your camera is time you won't get to experience the eclipse.