Don’t throw away safety glasses used to watch total eclipse in Texas. Do this instead

Whew, the total solar eclipse Monday was awesome.

“Many things in the world are overrated. I think a total eclipse might actually be underrated. It was an incredible experience, unforgettable, strangely mysterious, truly magical,” wrote Claas Voelcker on X, formerly known as Twitter.

So, now what?

After months of the protective eye wear industrial complex selling us millions of pairs of protective safety glasses with which to view the eclipse, what are we to do with all of the cardboard mounted eye pieces now that the once-in-a- lifetime celestial party has concluded?

Toss them in the garbage?

Space.com recommends either donating, or recycling the safety eye wear, whether it is the disposable kind or the fancy souvenir type.

“The nonprofit group Astronomers Without Borders (AWB) has partnered with libraries, schools, museums, businesses and other organizations across the U.S. and Canada to collect and recycle gently used eclipse-viewing glasses,” according to the astronomy website.

From there, the nonprofit will send the gently used glasses around the world for others to use for future eclipses. Before regifting, experts will inspect the eye wear to ensure they are not counterfeit or damaged.

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Hillsboro has 4,000 pairs of eclipse glasses leftover

Hillsboro, about an hour south of Fort Worth, was ready for over 60,000 guests to drop by for the special day. In preparation, they ordered 50,000 eclipse glasses, distributing them to schools and businesses around town.

Thousands of astronomy buffs did flood the tiny Texas town, but not to the extent eclipse watchers had predicted. Still, their eclipse party went without a hitch — a great relief to the town’s leaders who had been laying plans for the shindig for over a year and a half.

For those who chose to make the drive to Hill County, it was well worth it.

“It was really amazing,” said Joshua Lennon, who made the trip from Philadelphia.

His wife, Erica Wolbramsky, could not agree more, telling the Star-Telegram, “This is a little piece of history.”

Hillsboro’s preparation left the town with a surplus of 4,000 pairs of safety glasses. Lynette Hearrell, executive director of the town’s Chamber of Commerce, told the Star Telegram they will be donating the unused glasses to the local Starbucks, who she said will be shipping it out to AWB to distribute.

Warby Parker is one of AWB’s partners. Not only did they give out free eclipse eye wear but they are also collecting used glasses to fulfill AWB’s mission. The eye wear company has stores sprinkled across North Texas.

If you do not have time to donate, and your glasses are cardboard, you can rip off the glasses arms and recycle those and dispose of the rest according to Time Magazine.

Here’s where your recycled eclipses glasses could end up

Donating your glasses can help those from the corners of the world future solar eclipses are soon to occur. Here is where the next ones are happening.

• Aug. 12, 2026: Iceland, Greenland, Iceland and Spain.

• Aug. 2, 2027: Morocco, Spain, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen,and Somalia.

• July 22, 2028: Australia and New Zealand

• Nov. 25, 2030: Botswana, South Africa, and Australia.

The next one in the U.S is in 2033, but only across Alaska, which will be followed by one in 2044 that will span across Montana and the Dakotas.

If you keep your glasses, thinking you’ll see another total eclipse in Texas, there’s a chance you’ll be a skeleton when it happens. The next total eclipse expected to cross Texas is in 2317.

Holding on to your eye wear may depend on whether you will travel to see a total eclipse again. Having the safety glasses handy will save your eyes. Doctors have warned about the dangers of looking into a solar eclipse without protective eyewear.

Was watching the eclipse in Fort Worth as good as what many say?

To many in Fort Worth, a resounding, yes.

At the Fort Worth zoo, 50 students from British Columbia gathered to finish their year-long research on animal behavior during the solar eclipse. In the tiny town of Hillsboro, eclipse tourists from Brazil, South Africa, Japan and Australia were all represented.

Others weren’t so impressed.