Google searches for what to do about sore eyes spike after solar eclipse

Warnings about staring directly at the sun unheeded by many

Life

Image: Drew Rae via Pexels

9 April 2024

Parts of the United States experienced a complete solar eclipse yesterday and despite warnings to stay safe some people have had to take to Google for advice on what to do after staring directly at the sun.

Data from Google Trends shows that right after that solar eclipse, searching for search terms such as ‘eyes hurt’ and ‘my eyes hurt’ spiked. At its peak, about one hour after the eclipse occurred, searches for those terms were more than thirty times higher than usual. Those search terms also trended on X at the same time.

Maine, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Arkansas and Texas – the states where the eclipse was easiest viewed – made up for the bulk of searches.