Wed, 04/13/2022 - 16:13
Hi,
We're the Westport Astronomical Society in Westport CT and a local student in middle school reached out to us asking to use a spectrometer on 5 stars. We want to help except the 2 spectrometers we own do not attach to any of our telescopes. Our main telescope is a 14" Meade EdgeHD with a 2" and 1.25 adapters.
Does anyone have a spectrograph we can temporarily use to help the student? We can pay for US shipping if you're not local.
Thanks,
Dan Wright
Hi!
I write from Brazil, so I wouldn’t be able to loan equipment to you. It would be cumbersome and too expensive, but I would suggest you consider this more permanent solution for your needs: the Star Analyser 100 grating low resolution “spectrometer”, at US$ 195.00.
You will find all the details and instructions at: https://realtime-spectra.com/collections/for-your-classroom/products/star-analyser-100-grating.
This simple grating is 1.25 inches in diameter and may be connected to just about any telescope and camera. Even a DSLR with a lens having a focal distance of 100 mm or more may be used, no telescope is needed.
Watch this video: https://youtu.be/Fv5fFSacVO8.
There is also excellent software for the analysis of the spectra obtained with Star Analyser or just about any other spectrometer, RSpec, at US$ 109.00, but it is free for 30 days. Follow this link: https://fieldtestedsystems.myshopify.com/collections/astronomical-spectroscopy/products/copy-of-rspec-astronomical-spectroscopy-software.
You may want to contact Tom Field, the software developer and president of Field Tested Systems, to obtain all the information you may need: tom@fieldtestedsystems.com. Tom is quite an enthusiastic amateur astronomer, very helpful, and quite a teacher.
Best of luck,
Ari Siqueira
Thanks for the…
Hi Ari!
Thanks for the thoughtful and very helpful response - it's greatly appreciated! I reached out to some local observatories and Rick at the Greenwich Astronomical Society has this exact gear you're recommending.
I do think that we should add this kit to our observatory as well and we'll be looking a lot closer at this possibility soon.
Again, thank you for your quick and helpful advice.
~ Dan
Hi Folks--
On Tuesday, April 5, Tom Field, the proprietor of the RSpec firm (provider of the simple but neat "Star Analyser" spectroscopic telescope attachment), shared a great 15-minute recorded talk at the weekly, free "Global Star Party" Zoom session that's hosted by Scott Roberts of Explore Scientific. This inexpensive product could be ideal for students and teachers to introduce themselves to basic stellar spectroscopy. See the website:
https://www.rspec-astro.com/star-analyser/
Tom is a frequent and enthusiastic speaker at many events, and I expect he has useful links to his presentations on the RSpec website. I believe a link to the recorded April 5 Global Star Party (the 89th in a long series) is available at Scott's Explore Scientific website. I hope this helps! --John W. Briggs.