6
Cleaning
As with most telescopes and equipment there will be a build up of dust and debris on the lens and
mechanical components after sitting out all day. For those who are familiar with cleaning telescopes we
recommend you use the same techniques. For those who are new to the care of these instruments we can
offer the following guidelines:
Blow off loose dust and dirt using a clean dry air source at low volume. Do not use shop compressed air,
which contains oil and will further contaminate the instrument. Stubborn particulates can be brushed from
the surface with a static free lens brush. Use gentle sweeping motions. Fingerprints and smudges can be
removed using lens tissue or a Kleenex type tissue product. Fold the tissue or cloth to make a "pad", apply a
cleaning product to the end of the pad dampening it evenly (do not apply solution to the lens), wipe in
circular motion starting at the center and working around the edge and off in one complete motion. Be firm,
but do not rub. Blow lightly to help remove residual solution before it "spots" the surface. Residual dust from
the cloth can be blown off.
Consult your local dealer or call Lunt Solar Systems with any questions or concerns.
Do not use Acetone or strong degreaser type products, household cleaning agents, paper towels, tissues
with added scent or color (plain tissues only), or bleach or acidic products which will damage the anodized
surfaces.
What can be observed on the sun in H-alpha?
The Sun is active on a daily basis. During solar maximum the Sun will put on awe inspiring displays that
include x-class flares, prominences, surface filaments, etc…
Prominences:
These look like eruptions from the disk (edge) of the Sun. Prominences can be small spiky
looking details, or large cloud like detail with fine feather like internal features. They are, in fact, ionized
hydrogen emissions being projected from the limb. Prominences are anchored to the Sun's surface in the
mesosphere, and extend outwards into the Sun's troposphere.
Filaments:
These are string like features on the surface of the Sun. At high resolution they take on a 3D
effect due to the cooler aspect of the filament contrasted against the bright, hotter, Sun. They are actually
prominences being viewed against the surface.
Spicules:
A spicule is a dynamic jet of about 500km diameter on the Sun. It moves upwards at about 20
km/s from the photosphere. Father Angelo Secchi of the Vatican Observatory in Rome discovered them in
1877. The chromosphere is entirely composed of spicules. These features can be seen as "fur" around the
edge of the disk.
Plage:
This is a bright region in the chromosphere of the Sun, typically found in regions of the
chromosphere near sunspots. The plage regions map closely to the faculae in the photosphere below, but
the latter have much smaller spatial scales. Faculae have a strong influence on the solar constant, and the
more readily detectable because chromospheric plage areas traditionally are used to monitor this influence.
Solar Flares:
A solar flare is a violent explosion in the Sun's atmosphere. Solar flares take place in the solar
corona and chromospheres, heating plasma to tens of millions of Kelvin and accelerating electron, protons,
and heavier ions to near the speed of light. They produce electromagnetic radiation across the
electromagnetic spectrum at all wavelengths from long-wave radio to the shortest wavelength gamma rays.
Most flares occur in active regions around sunspots, where intense magnetic fields emerge from the Sun's
surface into the corona. Flares are powered by the sudden (timescales of minutes to tens of minutes)
release of magnetic energy stored in the corona.
Chromosphere:
The chromosphere is a thin layer of the Sun's atmosphere just above the photosphere,
roughly 10,000 kilometers deep (approximating to, if a little less than, the diameter of the Earth). The
chromosphere is more visually transparent than the photosphere. The name comes from the fact that it has
a reddish color, as the visual spectrum of the chromosphere is dominated by the deep red H-alpha spectral
line of hydrogen.
Lunt-Solar-Systems - Exclusive European Distributor
Bresser GmbH
Gutenbergstrasse 2, D-46414 Rhede, Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 2872 – 80 740
E-Mail: [email protected]
www.bresser.de
