A good demonstration of the Herschel Wedge but a wind filter on your mic would be really helpful in cutting out noise and "kill the background music - it's not necessary". As Jack Webb said in Dragnet "Just the facts ma'am."
Seems like solar filters vary. The one I have just makes the sun look yellow with no sun spots showing. Might be too dark or something. This one works well.
Hello Galacticus! The Eagle 2 is definitely worth it! I have had it operating outdoors for the last 7 months or so virtually non-stop (I shutdown the Eagle 2 for OTA changes). It is robust and has handled the elements very well. I use it for imaging system control and power management (I will be adding more functions soon). I am still trying to get the Sesto Senso to work with the Meade ED APO; I am experiencing some slippage in the focus - the weight of the camera pulls things out of focus. I can lock the screw for the focuser down, but then I can't focus. I hope to have this figured out in the fall. Stay tuned!
@@spacetravelerx Great video. I have a similar WL setup using the Baader wedge. They all work the same way. The Solar Continuum filter and k-line filters are good options to explore. Your info on easily seeing what the eye sees at the EP is a good one. The SESTO SENSO was something I tried too. It has a direct drive mechanism through the mini/micro 10:1 or 11:1 Reducer on your scope. The slippage that you have is a function of how good (or otherwise) your focuser is. I found my refractor would slip when pointed at the zenith (if not in the Home position) - the scope was replaced. The SESTO SENSO is good for moving up/down the focus range but not for setting up and using "presets". You may have noticed that it requires "calibrating" - that is because the step counts do not match the physical movement of the focuser exactly. The combination of a slipping focuser and this type of design will limit the accuracy you can achieve. Alternative designs e.g. the Pegasus Astro version use an internal gearbox with a 120:1 reduction. The motor can drive the focuser but the weight of the focuser does not have the ability to move the motor. So the gearbox also acts as a giant brake. So the step count does translate exactly to a position on the focuser. One disadvantage is that you can't use the manual focus controls but this is a small price to pay for reliability. There is an electronic equivalent function on the hand controller. A second advantage is it bypasses the 10:1 or 11:1 reduction so it also bypasses any backlash in this part of the system. One thing to be wary of is the amount of reduction that the polarising filters achieve. An ND filter reduces light and IR by about the same amount, but a polarising setup is largely transparent for IR. If you require the polarising filter to act as an extreme ND filter, it may be a good idea to introduce an ND filter to limit how much the polarising filter cuts the light - safety first. Simon
Hello James, unfortunately the Herschel Wedge ONLY works with a refractor. Yes, you can see a granular surface on the Sun in White Light. Of course the SolarMax II shows all the surface details on the Sun.
Advice from manufacturers of these is under no circumstances point a reflector at the sun. That's any Newton, Cassegrain etc. Use refractors only and take extreme caution during setting up and remove or cover any lens based finders.
A good demonstration of the Herschel Wedge but a wind filter on your mic would be really helpful in cutting out noise and "kill the background music - it's not necessary". As Jack Webb said in Dragnet "Just the facts ma'am."
Pretty cool....!!
Seems like solar filters vary. The one I have just makes the sun look yellow with no sun spots showing. Might be too dark or something. This one works well.
Hi a great video. I notice you have an Eagle hooked up to a sesto senso motorised focuser. How do you find this works? Is the Eagle worth it?
Hello Galacticus! The Eagle 2 is definitely worth it! I have had it operating outdoors for the last 7 months or so virtually non-stop (I shutdown the Eagle 2 for OTA changes). It is robust and has handled the elements very well. I use it for imaging system control and power management (I will be adding more functions soon). I am still trying to get the Sesto Senso to work with the Meade ED APO; I am experiencing some slippage in the focus - the weight of the camera pulls things out of focus. I can lock the screw for the focuser down, but then I can't focus. I hope to have this figured out in the fall. Stay tuned!
@@spacetravelerx Great video. I have a similar WL setup using the Baader wedge. They all work the same way. The Solar Continuum filter and k-line filters are good options to explore. Your info on easily seeing what the eye sees at the EP is a good one.
The SESTO SENSO was something I tried too. It has a direct drive mechanism through the mini/micro 10:1 or 11:1 Reducer on your scope. The slippage that you have is a function of how good (or otherwise) your focuser is. I found my refractor would slip when pointed at the zenith (if not in the Home position) - the scope was replaced. The SESTO SENSO is good for moving up/down the focus range but not for setting up and using "presets". You may have noticed that it requires "calibrating" - that is because the step counts do not match the physical movement of the focuser exactly. The combination of a slipping focuser and this type of design will limit the accuracy you can achieve.
Alternative designs e.g. the Pegasus Astro version use an internal gearbox with a 120:1 reduction. The motor can drive the focuser but the weight of the focuser does not have the ability to move the motor. So the gearbox also acts as a giant brake. So the step count does translate exactly to a position on the focuser. One disadvantage is that you can't use the manual focus controls but this is a small price to pay for reliability. There is an electronic equivalent function on the hand controller. A second advantage is it bypasses the 10:1 or 11:1 reduction so it also bypasses any backlash in this part of the system.
One thing to be wary of is the amount of reduction that the polarising filters achieve. An ND filter reduces light and IR by about the same amount, but a polarising setup is largely transparent for IR. If you require the polarising filter to act as an extreme ND filter, it may be a good idea to introduce an ND filter to limit how much the polarising filter cuts the light - safety first. Simon
Will it work for a reflector and can you see convection cells?
Hello James, unfortunately the Herschel Wedge ONLY works with a refractor. Yes, you can see a granular surface on the Sun in White Light. Of course the SolarMax II shows all the surface details on the Sun.
Advice from manufacturers of these is under no circumstances point a reflector at the sun. That's any Newton, Cassegrain etc. Use refractors only and take extreme caution during setting up and remove or cover any lens based finders.