As of February 8th — T (totality) minus 2 months — we are no longer adding vendors to our suppliers list. Any company worthy of people's business should have established itself well before last October's annular solar eclipse across the Americas, let alone well before this coming April's eclipse!
This page is for suppliers of two types of devices to enable direct observation of the uneclipsed, partially eclipsed, or annularly eclipsed Sun:
- Eclipse glasses, handheld viewers, or other products meant for "naked eye" use, that is, without magnifying optics.
- Aperture filters meant for attachment over the front of optics, including camera lenses, binoculars, and telescopes.
Specifically, this page tells how to get listed on our Suppliers of Safe Solar Filters & Viewers page. In short, you must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the AAS Solar Eclipse Task Force that your products are safe, i.e., that when used properly, they will protect observers' eye(s) from injury by reducing the Sun's ultraviolet, visible, and infrared radiation to safe levels. There is no charge to be listed, but see our disclaimer below.
In addition to what's described below, we require a URL (website address) where potential customers can learn more about your products and, if you sell online, purchase your products.
For Suppliers of Eclipse Glasses & Handheld Solar Viewers
Manufacturers / Importers / Distributors
If you are a manufacturer, importer, or distributor of cardboard and/or plastic eclipse glasses (or clip-ons) and/or handheld solar viewers in any form, whether or not you are also the manufacturer, importer, or distributor of the solar-filter material used in your products, we require all of the following:
- A laboratory test report showing conformity with the ISO 12312-2 standard (with changes or exceptions as described in the companion article "About the ISO 12312-2 Standard for Solar Viewers"); and
- The test report must come from a laboratory accredited by a full member/signatory of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA), as described in "About the ISO 12312-2 Standard for Solar Viewers; see the ILAC MRA website for a list of such accrediting bodies; and
- The laboratory must be accredited specifically to test products against the requirements of ISO 12312-2, as indicated by the accreditation scope and certificate provided by the accrediting body (again, see "About the ISO 12312-2 Standard for Solar Viewers").
Laboratory test reports must be quantitative, that is, they must report measurements of transmittance at visible, UVA, UVB, and IR wavelengths (ISO 12312-2 section 4.1.1) and of uniformity of luminous transmittance (section 4.1.2), and they must include an estimate of measurement uncertainties. Reports that simply report "pass" or "fail" (or their equivalents) for these sections of the ISO 12312-2 standard are unacceptable. Test reports should be sent to eclipse@aas.org.
We routinely receive test reports provided by laboratories that are not accredited to test for conformity with ISO 12312-2 and/or that are accredited by a body that is not an ILAC MRA member/signatory. In such cases we recommend that suppliers get their products tested at one of the following labs:
- ICS Laboratories in Ohio, accredited by the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA). You can find contact info for ICS Labs as well as their accreditation scope and certificate, which includes ISO 12312-2, on the A2LA website.
- COLTS Laboratories in Florida, also accredited by the A2LA. You can find contact info for COLTS Labs as well as their accreditation scope and certificate, which includes ISO 12312-2, on the A2LA website.
- Optics and Radiometry Laboratory (ORLAB), School of Optometry & Vision Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, accredited by the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA), Australia. You can find contact info for ORLAB as well as their accreditation scope and certificate, which includes ISO 12312-2, on the NATA website.
Sellers of Custom-Branded Products
If you sell eclipse glasses and/or handheld solar viewers customized with your brand name, logo, and/or design but that are made for you by another manufacturer, importer, or distributor, we require either of the following:
- A test report from a properly accredited laboratory as described above for your branded products, or
- The name and contact information of the manufacturer, importer, or distributor who makes your customized products.
In the second case, if the supplier is already on our list, we'll verify with them that they are making your products. If the supplier is not already on our list, we will ask them (or you may ask them) to send us the information required above for manufacturers and importers. Materials should be sent to eclipse@aas.org.
Resellers of Stock Products
If you’re buying stock eclipse glasses and/or handheld solar viewers at wholesale or bulk-discounted prices from a manufacturer, importer, or distributor for resale or to give away, you should source such products only from the companies on our list. Send the name and contact information of your supplier to eclipse@aas.org; we will verify with them that you are their customer.
Disclaimer: We cannot commit to listing every company or organization that sells or gives away eclipse glasses and/or handheld solar viewers, as there are literally hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of such suppliers, including science museums, planetariums, observatories, university astronomy departments, primary and secondary schools, amateur astronomy clubs, convention and visitor bureaus, tour operators, large stores, small shops, and more. We reserve the right to list only major retailers and organizations with significant national or regional distribution. As long as the manufacturer, importer, or distributor who makes the products you're selling or giving away is on our list and identified by name on the products you're selling or giving away (as required by the ISO 12312-2 standard), your customers or patrons can be confident that they are safe.
For Suppliers of Solar Filters for Optics
As noted in the companion article "About the ISO 12312-2 Standard for Solar Viewers," solar filters meant for use with camera lenses, binoculars, or telescopes are not covered by ISO 12312-2; in fact, there is at present no international standard for such filters. But any filter material that meets the transmittance, uniformity, and quality requirements of ISO 12312-2 sections 4.1.1, 4.1.2, and 4.2.1, respectively (with changes or exceptions as described in that article), should also be safe to use with optics as long as the user follows the instructions on our Solar Filters for Optics: Telescopes, Binoculars & Cameras page. AAS Solar Eclipse Task Force members and other astronomers have extensive experience safely using aperture solar filters to observe the uneclipsed or partially eclipsed Sun, and the suppliers we're familiar with are already on our list. If you're not on our list, how do you convince us that your products are safe? We require either of the following:
- A test report from a properly accredited laboratory showing that your filter material meets the requirements of ISO 12312-2 sections 4.1.1, 4.1.2, and 4.2.1 (with changes or exceptions as described in the article "About the ISO 12312-2 Standard for Solar Viewers"), or
- The name and contact information of the manufacturer, importer, or distributor who makes your solar-filter material.
In the second case, if the supplier is already on our list, we'll verify with them that they are making your solar-filter material. If the supplier is not yet on our list, we will ask them (or you may ask them) to send us the information we require as described above. Materials should be sent to eclipse@aas.org.