The Sun-Geometer Sun Finder for Telescopes is a unique, purpose-built accessory to mount on your telescope to help view the Sun. It is designed to be esthetically pleasing as well as functional.
The Sun-Geometer Sun Finder for Telescopes was created by Bob Schalck, an optical research engineer who, for over 30 years, was one of the instructors at the Chabot Telescope Makers Workshop and a judge at RTMC. In his spare time, he offers practical astronomy accessories like the TELMAT (Telescope Mirror Alignment Tool) collimation tool.
As Schalck notes, “With the upcoming solar eclipses in October and April 2024 and the strong interest in observing the solar max activity, we designed a simple, easy to use, sun finder to mount on your solar telescope. It could also be used for solar panels or stove. It’s called the Sun-Geometer offered in a laser cut kit. The front face has a whimsical art image of the sun with a projection cross and target.”
The Sun-Geometer Sun finder offers a unique auto-cross feature. After the finder is mounted and adjusted to the field of view (FOV) of the telescope, the projected image is displayed on the target face. If the image is left or right horizontally of the circle, a horizontal line is visible. If the image is up or down vertically, a vertical line is visible.
As the telescope is adjusted and the image is positioned closer to the circle the cross appears, then move the telescope until the cross is superposed on the target. The target is a standard alignment cross for easy positioning of the image to the center circle. The face and target have mounting wings (mouse ears) to fit a wide range of surfaces, curved and flat. The finder’s dimensions are 85 X 40 X 50 mm.
The Sun-Geometer Sun finder kit contains the following: front face, target, mounting /spacer dowel bar and two brass screws for the assembly. The easy-to-follow instructions will show how to complete the kit assembly and align the face to the target. The parts are made of precision laser cut birch plywood and a pre-drilled dowel spacer with a 5 mm hole for screw mounting. Rubber bands could also be used. The target back is flat for solar panels or stove mounting.
To learn more about the Sun-Geometer Sun Finder for Telescopes you can email oceaniclaserworks@gmail.com.
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