ATM [Fwd: BOUNCE atm@shore.net: Non-member submission from [RRedden506@aol.com]]

[Mel Bartels <mbartels@efn.org>]

> From: RRedden506@aol.com
> To: atm@shore.net
> Subject: Solar Telescope
>
> I've been thinking of building a dedicated solar observatory for some
> time
> now and have finally decided to proceed.  I need some advice, though.
>
> I have an unused 8" f/8 reflector that I could turn on its side and
> feed the
> sun's image in by way of a coelostat.  Is this a good idea...is it
> workable?
>  I prefer this arrangement so that I can vary the image size and
> magnification to draw and photograph at differing image scales.  Would
>
> heating be too much of a problem for the optics?
>
> The observatory I plan to build would be a dedicated building for the
> solar
> telscope, so I would need a permanently mounted coelostat.  The only
> single
> mirror designs that I have seen involve the coelostat at the north end
> of the
> building.  That would put the noontime sun over the observatory and in
> its
> heat plume.  The only designs I've seen positioned at the south end of
> the
> building are two mirror systems (ATM Book 1).  For the sake of ease of
>
> construction I would prefer a single mirror.  Are there any
> south-side-single-mirror designs that really work, or should I just
> plan on a
> two mirror system?
>
> Also, there's the matter of what to do with the telescope's German
> equatorial
> mounting.  Is there a way to convert it into the coelostat?  Is there
> any way
> to modify the motor drive to run at half speed so it can be used as a
> coelostat drive?  If not, are there commercially available coelostats
> as
> reasonable prices?
>
> I'm just in the planning stages now.  I've not even picked out a
> suitable
> site in the back yard (nor told my wife about it).  Any help would be
> GREATLY
> appreciated.
>
> ~~Allen
>
> Allen Redden
> RRedden506@aol.com
> Lebanon, Tennessee



--
Clear skies, Mel Bartels    Programmer/Analyst, amateur astronomer
Eugene, Oregon, USA         homepage: http://www.efn.org/~mbartels
mailto:mbartels@efn.org     atm, atm-digest list-owner
Motorize A Dob: http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~mbartels/altaz/altaz.html