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| The indoor telescope at Sun Baked Observatory currently looks through a pane of optical window glass to protect against harmful solar UV radiation in the Subtropical Zone. Above, a solar tuning test for image scale and other parameters. |
Sun Baked Observatory
The first solar telescope, a 60mm Maksutov-Cassegrain Acuter Catadioptric with a Celestron computer driven alt-azimuth mounting (and other test platforms), is up and running at the new Sun Baked Observatory.
The solar filter and solar finderscope accessory arrived and the system is in place and being tuned. The new Sun Baked Observatory, equipped with a solar-tuned Acuter Maksy 60 telescope, is located in the dangerous particle-hot Subtropical Zone with exceptional seeing conditions. There is no ozone layer in the upper atmosphere which allows dangerous rays to penetrate - and human cellular cancerous degradation protection against harmful high intense UV is important. For this reason, the observatory is currently being run protectively from indoors, looking through optical window glass. Window glass absorbs UV while passing IR. H-
Alpha test filters are available for experimentation and several cameras and camera mounts are also ready for action. Of course, soon after buying the telescope and accessories, the weather turned to rain. In the future, more of the telescope may be operated by remote to limit harmful solar UV rays exposure to astronomers.
Overall, the tests thus far are highly successful and an image scale to show the entire solar disk is possible along with increasing magnifications to zoom in on sun features. An optical zoom at 68-degree widefield - Baader Mark IV Hyperion 8mm-24mm (8,12,16,20,24) is being tested along with a camera zoom to test the clarity and resolution of results to test a technique of rapidly going from full solar disk to zooming in on sunspots and other features. This rapidity of change afforded by a zoom lens where time is not lost in changing eyepieces, will facilitate observing through holes in clouds (Sucker Holes) that can disappear in 20 minutes or less. The Sun Baked Telescope needs fast reaction time to be ready in an instant.
Baader Mark IV Hyperion Click-Stop 8mm-24mm (8,12,16,20,24)
Acuter Solar Telescope: 750mm (29.5-inch) FL, 60mm (2.4-inch) aperture
08mm - 93.75
12mm - 62.50x
16mm - 46.88x
20mm - 37.50x
24mm - 31.25x
Under prefect seeing, the maximum power per aperture inch is 50x.
2.4" x 50 = 120x. 6.25mm - 120x
