The Romulan operative Nedar wore sunglasses while on duty as Starfleet Commodore Oh - this suggests they're at least an option for Starfleet officers.
If you go way back to the United Earth Starfleet, Archer and Trip both wore sunglasses while on duty.
Further proof that Enterprise NX-01-era Starfleet had the most functional uniforms. Pockets and useful accessories.
Capt. Archer was a regular offender, btw.
I even think there was a conversation about how he didn't have an extra set of eyelids or something. I could be wrong, it's been a while since I have seen that episode.
Edit: It just occurred to me that if what I remember is true, doesn't T'Pol just have built-in sunglasses that she is wearing?
Theres a whole page on sunglasses on Memory Alpha.
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Eyewear
Doctor Beverly Crusher and Guinan wore sunglasses in the Dixon Hill holonovel. (TNG: "The Big Goodbye", "Clues")
Does it count if it's a memory brought on by wormhole aliens that don't understand linear time?
Geordi La Forge
Seems like if you’re on an away mission to, say, a desert planet, sunglasses might be useful.
To a degree. Not all species need them, and it might not be considered necessary. Particularly since it adds the risk of you losing them, and inadvertently causing a violation of the Prime Directive.
Species like Vulcans have innate defences that are just as good, if not better than 21st century sunglasses, and they may rely on those instead.
Welcome to Daystrom Institute!
Serious, in-depth discussion about Star Trek from both in-universe and real world perspectives.
Read more about how to comment at Daystrom.
1. Explain your reasoning
All threads and comments submitted to the Daystrom Institute must contain an explanation of the reasoning put forth.
2. No whinging, jokes, memes, and other shallow content.
This entire community has a “serious tag” on it. Shitposts are encouraged in Risa.
3. Be diplomatic.
Participate in a courteous, objective, and open-minded fashion. Be nice to other posters and the people who make Star Trek. Disagree respectfully and don’t gatekeep.
4. Assume good faith.
Assume good faith. Give other posters the benefit of the doubt, but report them if you genuinely believe they are trolling. Don’t whine about “politics.”
5. Tag spoilers.
Historically Daystrom has not had a spoiler policy, so you may encounter untagged spoilers here. Ultimately, avoiding online discussion until you are caught up is the only certain way to avoid spoilers.
6. Stay on-topic.
Threads must discuss Star Trek. Comments must discuss the topic raised in the original post.
The /r/DaystromInstitute wiki held a number of popular Star Trek watch guides. We have rehosted them here: