HOMEMADE SUN SPOTTER TELESCOPE FULL
HOMEMADE SUN SPOTTER TELESCOPE SERIES

Image 3 – The second cardboard ring was drawn using the first as a template, then also cut out with a utility knife. The solar equipment I currently carry include a Sky-Watcher USA 90-mm Maksutov- Cassegrain fitted with a factory-made solar-film filter, Lunt Solar System’s 8×32 (white-light) SUNoculars and an Explore Scientific ES80CF mated with a DayStar Quark (Hα). White-light and Hydrogen-alpha, it’s a rare day that I’m not asked about affordable solar-viewing and -imaging options. With the Great American Eclipse looming upon us, I’m regularly sharing views of the Sun in both

By passing only the Hα wavelength and rejecting the rest, we’re able to observe and photograph detail that is hidden in the relative intensity of rest of the solar spectrum, such as solar prominences. Instead, they are designed to deliver only a very narrow slice of that bandwidth, such as the Hydrogen-alpha wavelength centered at 656 nanometers.

HOMEMADE SUN SPOTTER TELESCOPE FULL

Narrowband solar filters do not deliver the full spectrum of solar light. Image 2 – Cutting the first cardboard ring with a utility knife. Baader Planetarium also produces a Herschel Prism, which, for point of reference, Astro-Physics lists for $710US.

There are exceptions, though, such as Herschel Prisms, also known as Hershel Wedges, that are placed between the telescope and the eyepiece through which you view or the camera with which you image. That is the type of whitelight filter covered by this article. The simplest white-light filters mount in front of the telescope, where they can reduce that intensity before the sunlight enters. Although white-light filters pass the fullest breadth of the spectrum of solar light, they reduce the intensity of that full spectrum significantly.īaader Planetarium’s AstroSolar material, which is the subject of this article, has a light reduction factor on the order of 100,000 times, and it is that intensity reduction factor that allows us to safely view the Sun through a telescope. Add back that blue, and you have the definition of white. We see the Sun as yellow only because our atmosphere scatters much more of the blue wavelengths. Broadband solar filters are called broadband or more specifically, white-light filters, because they pass the broadest spectrum of light emitted by the Sun, which appears white. Ultimately, the 90-mm circle was used to define the aperture rather than the 80- mm, and the square was unnecessary, too.įor those of you who are new to all this, solar filters are of two basic types: broadband and narrowband. If 1/20-wave precision is your goal, when it comes to glass, expect to pay dearly for it.Ī Brief Explanation of Solar Filters Image 1 – A compass was used to draw concentric circles on stiff cardboard with diameters of 80 mm, 90 mm and 152 mm. At the other end of the glass-substrate spectrum, those fashioned using high-quality optical- grade glass produced excellent views but at prices that reflected their excellence. Of course, those with coatings deposited on inexpensive plate glass were, well … inexpensive, but they also delivered poor views. I’ve used many white-light solar filters over the years, including examples made with glass ranging from poor to excellent in optical quality. Watch this video that demonstrates the Solar Eclipse happening on August 21, 2017! By Gary Parkerson, Executive Editor Astronomy Technology Today

Useful for group viewing, the Sunspotter allows several observers to simultaneously see the sun’s disk and quickly trace the changing positions of sunpots and compare them on a daily basis. Track sunspots as they appear, move, and vanish. Use the Sunspotter for viewing the sun, eclipses, transits, and for daily record keeping. And, because of its unique design, this kid-friendly instrument makes our closest star a safer subject of study by even the youngest students. Unlike other ways of viewing the sun, the compact and sturdy Sunspotter is convenient, easy to set up, lightweight and fun to use. In its perfectly curved cradle, the Sunspotter is easily aligned to the sun in seconds, without the complication of telescopes, solar filters, and tripods.

HOMEMADE SUN SPOTTER TELESCOPE SERIES

By using a series of mirrors, the device projects a bright 3.25-inch solar image onto a 5-inch white viewing screen through a powerful 62mm diameter objective lens. This wooden, folded-path, Keplerian telescope provides a much safer and convenient way to view the brilliant light of the sun than other more common methods.

Homemade sun spotter telescope