Solar eclipse sparks scramble for protective glasses across Europe
Updated Aug. 11, 2026, 5:20 p.m. | By AFP In Spain, where parts of the country will be in the path of totality, finding certified protective glasses has…
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Updated Aug. 11, 2026, 5:20 p.m. | By AFP
In Spain, where parts of the country will be in the path of totality, finding certified protective glasses has become increasingly difficult.
The scramble for protective glasses has reached fever pitch across Europe ahead of Wednesday's rare total solar eclipse, as pharmacies, opticians and other shops struggle to keep them in stock.
In Spain, where parts of the country will be in the path of totality, finding certified protective glasses has become increasingly difficult, with many distribution points reporting they have run out.
A notice posted at the entrance of Madrid's National Museum of Natural Sciences said its supply of protective glasses was exhausted.
The museum was among 30 science institutions across the country taking part in a government-organised campaign to distribute two million pairs of glasses for free.
Some pharmacies in central Madrid still had supplies on Tuesday, generally selling certified glasses for safely viewing the Sun for between three and four euros (R74) a pair.
But Carles Sisquella, who runs an optical shop in Barcelona, said his store had been out of stock for 10 days.
"There are now a lot of people who obviously won't be able to get glasses," he said.
Doctors warn that looking directly at the Sun during a solar eclipse can damage the retina, potentially harming the cells responsible for sharp central vision.
"I've been asking around since Friday, but they're nowhere to be found," a woman told AFP in Barcelona.
The rush is being repeated across Europe.
In Brussels, where about 90% of the Sun will be covered by the Moon, people were also racing to find glasses.
With a seeming majority of opticians and pharmacists out of stock, pastry chef Arno Dossogne, 37, struck gold at a small opticians' store that received a last-minute shipment on Monday afternoon.
"I got some for me, my boyfriend and a couple of friends whose online order got cancelled!" he told AFP.
"It was this or nothing. You can't mess around, or you'll burn your eyes."
The opticians' manager, Fouad Mehdaoui, told AFP he acted on a tip from his pharmacist wife, placing large orders of glasses early on, but even then was outrun by demand and had to place more orders.
"Two boxes just came in with 100 pairs in total -- they were gone in 30 minutes," he told AFP as a stream of eclipse enthusiasts filed in the store, by chance or word of mouth, and an employee fielded non-stop phone enquiries.
In France, where the eclipse will be partial, some pharmacies have been stripped of their supplies while others were still receiving shipments -- and charging significantly more.
Customers lined up outside La Pharmacie du Soleil in Paris on Monday afternoon to buy glasses for 5.95 euros a pair, only to be disappointed when staff displayed an empty box.
The pharmacist asked customers to check back later, saying another shipment of 500 pairs was expected that evening.
"Come back in an hour or tomorrow morni…