Equipment for the Solar Eclipse

Mary and me (Bernie) will be on the Cork flight Friday evening so look forward to meeting you all......

I'm flying back to Cork on the Sunday morning but I think Mary booked to fly back to Dublin.

Bye the way, I'm thinking of just taking my Meade binoculars (from Lidl) and buy some eclipse sunglasses as well - is it possible to get filters for my binoculars do you think??

Oh and I have an old style 35mm camera (with good zoom though). Do you think I'll be able to take decent pics with it or is it worth investing in a digital camera (of which I know nothing!) and if so, any recommendations?

Thanks,

Bernie

Hi Berne

I am afraid I cannot help you on the camera front but, I know you can get a film called BAADER AstroSolarâ„¢ film which is suitable for making home made filters. Seanie moris made one for may small telescope, and I intend getting some and making filters for my lidl binos also....dont know where you can get it though...seanie....

See you on the flight from Cork

The A4 sheets, at about €30 each, can be bought directly from Andy McCrea of North Down Telescopes . They are probably THEEE safest product to use, next to a more expensive Thousand Oaks olar filter, and more robust than mylar, which is easily susceptible to scratches and pinholes.

If you wanted help on making a filter for your binoculars, give me a shout!

Seanie.

I bought 50 pairs of eclipse sun glasses direct from Rainbow Symphony in the US about ten days ago. If they arrive in time, I will have them for sale at the IFAS stand at the Connacht Star Party in Galway on the 28th.

I have to decide on a price at the moment as I'm hoping to bundle a little eclipse booklet with them. Nominally, the package will retail for about €3 to €4 euro . . . all profit to IFAS.

if this is your first eclipse Bernie I wouldn't bother about photography. There's too much to see of the event without having to worry about the camera settings, etc. I've heard of people at eclipses trying to load camera film during the event! Far better to just enjoy the experience and take in as much of it as you can. I videoed my first one in 1999, but you can waste too much time worrying about the recording.

a good idea too is to pre-record notes onto a dictaphone that will run in real-time during the eclipse. You can add prompts to tell you what to look for, and at what point during the eclipse to look (i.e., one minute in . . . use the binoculars to look at the Sun . . . two minutes in . . . look at the horizon colours . . . 30 seconds to go . . . prepare for the Sun to reappear . . . etc.)

I am planning to do a detailed drawing of the corona during this eclipse as it appears to the unaided eye. Pre-prep work involves flashing up photos of previous eclipses for 30 seconds at a time on a screen in a darkened room and doing rapid sketches. I then compare the drawing with the photo to see what detail I missed. It's a bit of a learning curve but hope it will succeed on the day! A reticle sized to the Sun's disk, with circles in ever increasing quarter- to half-degree steps superimposed, help position the coronal features better on the pad.

John

Bearnie and Mary I hope you have a great time and remember to take notes and Photos!

For your talk to DAS on your return!! :lol:

I have 1 Question! is there any chance the eclipse could be seen from ireland?
Matthew C