Magnifying Visors

What happens when you stare at a dot from a magnifying glass?

Ok, so I burned things before with a glass magnifying glass, but it broke along time ago and I tried using a plastic one. It wouldn't work, but when I looked at the dot, trying to make it smaller, It left this purple spot that I could temporarily see for a few minutes. I'm pretty sure I've seen this before from bright lights or from accidental looking at the sun. What exactly does this do to your eye when you see this dot?

Public Comments

1. If you are staring at a dot of concentrated light from a magnifying glass that is on any type of diffusing media (paper, carpet, plastic, etc) there is no danger to your eye. Even though the light is highly concentrated at the point of contact the relfected light you see is so diffused there is no danger whatsoever to your eye. If the light is quite bright, though, you may see a temporary after image (which you described). This is normal and of no concern.