text: Unfortunately , looking at the Sun during an eclipse is just as dangerous as looking at it outside an eclipse , except during the brief period of totality , when the Sun 's disk is completely covered ( totality occurs only during a total eclipse and only very briefly ; it does not occur during a partial or annular eclipse ) .
simplified: Sadly , looking at the Sun during an eclipse is equally dangerous , except in the very short time when the Sun 's surface is completely covered .