Solar filter for spotting scope??? (1 Viewer)

[carjug]

I have a case of the "I WANTS". What I want is a glass solar filter to fit over the big objective lens of my nice spotting scope. Will it be a fun thingy for me and my posse, or will it gather dust on a shelf. ???

 

[jring]

Hi,

any solar filter for a spotter will be custom made - glass most probably by a professional, Baader foil is easy to diy.
Have you tried solar observation in white light before? Most fun when there's some sunspots going on. H-alpha has more to see in general but $$$...

Joachim

 

[Ignatius]

You didn't say what scope, so I have no idea whether it has a filter thread and what size that would be, but you could potentially look at the Lee filter system and their solar filter.
As to whether that will be a fun thingy for you and your 'posse' ...

 

[Binastro]

Before you start any solar observations, you must be thoroughly familiar with safety.

Solar observation by direct means is NOT a fun thing. It is serious.

And if you don't know what you are doing, you don't want to risk harm to children or others.

Regards,
B.

 

[jring]

You didn't say what scope, so I have no idea whether it has a filter thread and what size that would be, but you could potentially look at the Lee filter system and their solar filter.
As to whether that will be a fun thingy for you and your 'posse' ...

Hi,

anything from the Lee sortiment is for imaging and thus NOT to be used for visual observation under any circumstances - especially if you don't know a lot about visual solar observation!

The filter material MUST be designed for visual observation through an instrument, like the Baader Astrosolar Film. Filter material for imaging has a transmission about an order of magnitude higher for the visual range and does not care about any wavelengths that imaging sensors don't detect and WILL RUIN your eyesight!

Please also note that there is also a difference between filter material suitable for visual observation through instruments and the stuff for naked eye observation (e.g. eclipse goggles)! The latter must also shield well for parts of the spectrum which are filtered by optical glass, e.g far infrared.

AstroSolar® Safety Film OD 5.0 (ECO-size, 20x29, 100x50, 117x117 cm) - Whitelight - Solar

AstroSolar® Safety Film 5.0 for solar observation and photography at high magnification, telescope quality, Optical Density (OD) = 5.0Safe for visual solar observation (with additional optics) and imagingThis highest precision film consistently produces s

www.baader-planetarium.com

It seems Baader now has ready to use filters for spotters with their visual film at quite competitive prices...

Cheers,

Joachim

 

[carjug]

The one I have my as yet undamaged eye on is made by spectrum, is glass, and should attach using be three setting screws to the outside of my scope with only minor scratching. It is made for telescopes.
You folks have got me wondering if cannibalizing a crap scope or binocular from the thrift store, and doing the projection thing wouldn't be a better idea, or a dedicated pair of Lunts. Seeing sunspots sounds like fun, especially after eclipses, but the space weather live website already has daily pictures, which don't require a retail experience.

 

[jring]

Hi,

if you mean this series, those are made for visual.

Glass Solar Filters

spectrumtelescope.com

Baader film for visual will probably yield better results for less money though.

Whatever you do, visual observation will look a lot worse than images you see on NOAA or NASA sites... those come from solar observatories with huge aperture instruments often in space and thus no bad seeing and were taken in a multitude of different small band wavelengths...

Joachim

 

[carjug]

Thanks. One less dust collector for the shelf, and more time to chase birds and stars.
Ditch the Gear, Have More Fun.

 

[Ignatius]

Hi,

anything from the Lee sortiment is for imaging and thus NOT to be used for visual observation under any circumstances - especially if you don't know a lot about visual solar observation!

The filter material MUST be designed for visual observation through an instrument, like the Baader Astrosolar Film. Filter material for imaging has a transmission about an order of magnitude higher for the visual range and does not care about any wavelengths that imaging sensors don't detect and WILL RUIN your eyesight!

Please also note that there is also a difference between filter material suitable for visual observation through instruments and the stuff for naked eye observation (e.g. eclipse goggles)! The latter must also shield well for parts of the spectrum which are filtered by optical glass, e.g far infrared.

AstroSolar® Safety Film OD 5.0 (ECO-size, 20x29, 100x50, 117x117 cm) - Whitelight - Solar

AstroSolar® Safety Film 5.0 for solar observation and photography at high magnification, telescope quality, Optical Density (OD) = 5.0Safe for visual solar observation (with additional optics) and imagingThis highest precision film consistently produces s

www.baader-planetarium.com

It seems Baader now has ready to use filters for spotters with their visual film at quite competitive prices...

Cheers,

Joachim

Of course you are absolutely right Mr. Ring:


I have the Lee filter system, but not this solar filter - yet.

 

[has530]

I have the thousand oaks white light 95mm threaded filter which threads onto my Kowa 883. Fun to see sun spots and as a bonus the 883 has the same filter thread as my sigma art supertelephoto zoom lens for photography. While I don't use it often or is fun to have around.

 

[Tringa45]

Some years back I bought a sheet of Baader AstroSolar filter film and cobbled up a filter for my Swarovski 65 mm scope with some black card and duct tape.
I missed the Venus transit in 2012 (it rained) but saw the Mercury transit in 2016 and set up the scope for the partial solar eclipse in 2021 for a junior school class.
Baader emphasise that for best optical results the filter film should not be stretched and fearing I had done this, I recently bought a complete filter assembly to fit the Swarovski, an ASSF 65 (Astro Solar Spektiv Filter). It was only €46, not much more than a €29 DIN A4 sheet of filter film.
A couple of weeks ago I observed some quite intense sunspot activity and didn't realize that this would result in northern lights that night at our 51° latitude.
The following night there was thin cloud cover.
Because you have no points of reference (everything is black with 99,999% absorption) it's very difficult to locate the sun in a scope with about 2° FoV.
The best one can do is to try and minimize the shadow of the scope and then search from there.

John

 

[Ignatius]

@Tringa45 Thanks for the heads-up. I will order one for my BTX85.