We have two fantastic solar filters - one of which is extremely rare - a Hydrogen Alpha filter - Coronado Solarmax 40.

The Hydrogen Alpha filter allows you to see the chromosphere (similar to atmosphere) on the sun. You can see prominences or flares - leaps of flame off the side or front of the sun. You can also see surface detail, for example, the 'orange peel' effect of the burning sun. Larger sunspots are also visible. This highly specialised filter and special eyepieces is mounted on a refractor which is piggy backed onto the large tracking telescope.

Andy Dodson is a regular visitor at the Skydome Observatory. He is a world-famous solar photographer whose pictures are regularly featured on spaceweather.com and a number of other solar websites. Here is a picture he recently had featured on the website, taken through the H-Alpha Coronado Solarmax 40.

The Thousand Oaks filter allows you to see the sun in colour - a light yellow, but this is called "white light". This special glass filter allows you to see tiny sunpots, and the umbra and penumbra - grey areas (area around the sunspots - like the beach on a lake) on larger sunspots. The thousand oaks filter can be mounted on either the 8" SCT for portable travel or on the 14 inch tracking telescope for simultaneous viewing of the sun through two different telescopes.

Here are some pictures in White Light showing sunspots crossing the disc of the sun. Each picture represents a new day.

17 Nov 2005	18 Nov 2005
19 Nov 2005	20 Nov 2005
	22 Nov 2005