I’m sure that you heard some of the ruckus some folks were kicking up before the most recent solar eclipse.

End of the world, etc.

It might surprise you, however, to learn what Google search people were super curious about after it went down without fanfare.

Or maybe not.

Basically, the search term “my eyes hurt” spiked immediately afterward, and when you break the results down by state, they track along with the path of totality.

It’s not a coincidence, either, because these terms were also searched in higher-than-normal volumes:

“eyes hurt after looking at eclipse”

“My eyes hurt after looking at the eclipse”

“why do my eyes hurt after looking at the eclipse”

Bless their hearts.

Looking directly at the sun without eclipse glasses can cause what’s known as solar retinopathy – essentially a burn on your retina.

Symptoms could be watery and sore eyes, difficulty seeing shapes and details, discomfort in the presence of bright light, or a blind spot in your central vision.

back at my desk after staring at the eclipse for 13 minutes pic.twitter.com/8pWoBe8JFz

— jordan (@jdan) April 8, 2024

Hopefully the people making these Google searches have gone to see a doctor.

Although honestly, I don’t think there is much that can be done after the fact.

Stay safe out there, y’all.

If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read about 50 amazing finds on Google Earth.