A swath of the U.S. and Canada will be in the path of a total solar eclipse on April 8. It’s a natural event, but the scams around it are nothing but human-made. Read on to find out how people are being swindled during the occasion.
On Monday, April 8, parts of the U.S. and Canada will be in the path of a total solar eclipse. The event is truly spectacular – it will be the longest total solar eclipse for centuries, and those near the center of the zone where the Sun will be blotted out completely will experience darkness for over 4 minutes – day will become night for those people.
The path of the eclipse – running across the U.S. south-to-north – has led the event to be called The Great American Total Solar Eclipse. Even government agencies call it that. Tens of millions of people will be in the path of the total eclipse and almost the whole of the country will be in the area where a partial eclipse will occur.
With all these people being in the path of the eclipse, there could be problems. For example, a television station in Texas has already put out an article actually called, This is not Armageddon. Some preparation is required for sure: visitors will clog transportation routes along the path of the total eclipse. Gawkers and the unprepared will make a mess of traffic in the affected areas.
The land of opportunity
For those least worried about Armageddon, the total solar eclipse could provide an opportunity to make money by shady methods. For example, The influx of tourism is creating havoc on booking websites. Is a particular location actually in the zone where the eclipse will be total? Jamie Carter, writing for Forbes, has warned would-be visitors to make sure they check the actual location of places made available on AirBnB and other sites. Scammers are listing fake locations or are claiming that a location is in the path of totality, when it is not.
Another scam is pushing the expected percentage of the eclipse at a location, especially for those near the path of totality. It does actually make a difference, as experiencing the total eclipse, with its day-turned-night for even a short time is on a different level from a partial eclipse’s silver-white light. Places promising “99.5 percent totality” are simply misleading, as in the idea of “partial totality”.
Sunglass scam
Some of those trying to make a dishonest buck out of the event have taken a more sinister turn by hawking fake eclipse sunglasses. Looking at a partial eclipse or especially trying to watch the partiality of an eclipse as it approaches totality requires eyegear that protects the eyes. They’re readily available for a few dollars. However, some people are selling similar looking glasses without the lenses sufficiently dark enough to protect the eye. This scam has been reported by the Attorney General of Pennsylvania, for example, and the same can be found in other states. Real eyewear will have “ISO 12312-2” written on the inside of the earpieces.
Argomenti
