Observing the Sun with Coronado(tm) Telescopes (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780387681269)

The Sun provides amateur astronomers with one of the few opportunities for daytime observation. Observing the major features of our nearest star requires the use of special telescopes that have a very narrow visible bandwidth, as narrow as 1 ﾗ 10^-10 m (1 Angstrom) and centered on the absorption line of neutral hydrogen. This makes visible many major features of the Sun's chromosphere. Such narrow-band filters were too expensive for amateur use until the introduction of the Coronado range of solar telescopes. The entry-level Coronado telescope, the PST (Personal Solar Telescope) costs under $500. In this book, a team of contributors show just how much solar observation work can be accomplished with Coronado telescopes, and explain how to get the best from these marvellous instruments. The book shows that Solar prominences, filaments, flares, sunspots, plage and active regions are all visible and can be imaged to produce spectacular solar photographs.