Highburymark

Just noticed you have a Quark - so it definitely sounds like a temperature issue to me. Every Quark is different. There are a couple of reports I’ve read by owners who say they don’t even turn the heater on in warm weather - the filters operate best without. Sounds like yours takes time to reach optimum heat.

Can’t say I’ve seen this effect, but Peter’s suggestion about the etalon warming up sounds the most likely explanation. Don’t know what set up you have, but the mica type filters (Quark/Sundancer/Solar Spectrum etc) are obviously very sensitive to temperature, so if the in-built ‘oven’ is taking a long time to reach the required temperature, it would certainly result in the gradual improvement in detail you are seeing. If you have one of the Lunt/Coronado solar scopes, it could be the temperature of the blocking filter that is affecting detail, particularly at this time of year. Lunt actually sells a heater to keep the blocker warm in cold weather, otherwise it won’t operate effectively.

Very sorry to hear this news. I don’t think there was anyone on this forum more knowledgable about how to make one piece of astro equipment work with another. He was a one-man help desk to so many members, myself included. Not only would he always know the right part or adapter to use, but he’d also know where to buy it at the best price. And then - as others have noted - there were his own mods. Within hours of receiving a new scope, it would be adorned with new accessories and often very simple upgrades which inspired me on more than one occasion. A great loss to SGL.

I can only presume that the gap between the doublet lenses is not fully sealed off to aid with temperature control? Glass expands and contracts in changing temperatures, so perhaps a small opening helps glass keep its shape?

I was surprised when I owned a DC that the gap between the lenses is not fully sealed off to the outside world. Maybe this is common knowledge (?) - but If I used a blower around the edge, I could make the few dust particles between the doublet lenses move around, and eventually succeeded in making them disappear. No guarantees using this technique - guess it could also make matters worse, but it worked for me.

Yes I did Stu - though it was only briefly. I only had one power out there tonight as I was testing the set up - with two extenders and microscope eyepieces - I think at 230-240x I was just overcooking it, and would have seen slightly more if I’d stuck at 200x.

I managed four, fleetingly. I was using TSA-120 with 25mm Leicas in a binoviewer and lots of power - Tak extender and Powermate 4x - about 230x I reckon. Seeing pretty good. Mars looked great tonight.

Lovely images Nigella. Just in from a Mars session myself. The limb effect is definitely atmospheric - though it’s pretty subdued in your pics.

What a nice find Mike, particularly with the library stamps at the front.

I am yet to be convinced that my 120mm refractor is better for white light than the 100mm frac it replaced. I think 90-100mm is the sweet spot for average seeing, though I will try and disprove this theory as often as possible in 2023. To answer your question, Baader film for me too, though I can’t claim to have used any other brand. I found it pretty sharp before I bought a wedge.

Well I waited 58 years to see it Jeremy, so I think I’m old enough. Sun’s a little quieter at the moment so it’s back to those tame PG-class flares…..

Absolutely. One day I’d love to experience views through a large dob at a dark site - something I’ve never done. Maybe in 2023. My astronomy highlight of 2022 was watching an X-class flare explode on the Sun - the first time that I’ve watched solar plasma move in real time - this particular example was many times the size of the earth and travelling at over 500km a second. Seeing it through an eyepiece was incredible.

Comfort - that’s one aspect of the hobby that visual astronomers lose every time.

Indeed it does accumulate. I have three different solar set ups. 85mm frac with two 70mm Ha filters. 120mm frac with Baader/Solar Spectrum filter. And same scope with Herschel wedge. The pairs of eyepieces I need for solar binoviewing are: 40mm, 32mm, 25mm, 20mm, 15mm, 11mm. With barlows, that gets me from 35x to 250x - 12 eyepieces. Mostly orthos and Plossls for solar. And that’s before I start thinking about night astronomy.

Beautiful shots! But it’s the live view through the eyepiece that fires up visual observers. Having said that, I enjoy night vision astronomy which upsets some of the purists, so always best to adopt a ‘live and let live’ approach…….

For many visual astronomers, it’s equally mystifying that people buy telescopes without intending to look through them Nigella! Anyone who has a hydrogen alpha solar scope and hasn’t tried binoviewing is missing the most extraordinary views.

I use them for solar binoviewing too. They’re great for eyepieces like the 25mm microscope pairs pictured left and centre which don’t have deep eyeguards. Also long eye relief eyepieces like 25mm orthos and 32mm Plossls. One of those simple ideas which should have been commercialised decades ago. But EPs with long eyeguards/deeply recessed lenses, like the Leica pair on the right, don’t need any further light blocking, I find.

Think Lunt sells a version of these. And probably many other brands.

Doesn’t get better than that - many congratulations.

Yes - Baader only makes a plossl at 32mm but it’s packaged with the classic orthos. And you’re right about the 30mm pseudo Masuyamas - they are glorious in a binoviewer

I have pairs from 4mm to 40mm - mostly Plossls, Delites and microscope eyepieces, but also Panoptic 24s and Morpheus 12.5s for wider viewing. Solar hydrogen alpha and white light, and lunar, are almost 100% binoviewed these days. I’m so accustomed to using two eyes for these purposes that I now find single eyepieces almost physically uncomfortable. I use binoviewers about half the time for planets, but still use specialist single planetary eyepieces otherwise. Magnifications are: Between 120x and 250x - lunar and planets. Between 40x and 150x - solar Ha. Between 140x and 225x - solar white light, depending on seeing. I haven’t used any BCOs, though hear they are excellent for binoviewing. Light, sharp and affordable. The 32mm Baader Plossls seem to work well for solar as the eye lens is nicely recessed to block out unwanted light. Generally, binoviewing is a great leveller - even cheap eyepieces and binoviewers tend to work well for most purposes - as Mike says above. Pricier gear gives you either wider views or a little better performance at high powers. The most important thing is to make sure they are perfectly collimated to make merging easier and ensure longer observations are comfortable without eye strain.

Thanks for the heads up Paul.

Congrats. You will be amazed how light these scopes are - have to say I rarely used counterweights with my DC visually. A fairly robust mount barely noticed any of the FC-100s.

I have the three TOEs, and Delites 4mm and 3mm. Both Delites are excellent - bright, sharp and superbly corrected for fast scopes. In an F/6 refractor, stars are pinpoint to the edge. In average to poor conditions, you won’t see a difference. But in steady seeing, the TOEs will show more detail on Jupiter and Mars. Festoons which were hinted at in Delites will reveal themselves, and subtle band detail will stand out. If the telescope’s optics (and the seeing) are up to it, all three TOEs are stunning. Comparatively wide for specialist planetary eyepieces (52 degrees or thereabouts), they are comfortable, and just as well corrected as Delites - no field curvature in my F/6-F/7.5 fracs, no astigmatism, no visible distortion in any of the TOEs. If you want pure performance at high powers, then the TOEs are an easy choice. If you want more than 10mm eye relief, slightly wider views, and comparable views to Delos/XW, then go for the Delite.

Thanks for the clarifications Steve