Projects and Experiments
Astrophotography of deep sky objects
Astro photography employs scientific methods and precise measurement technology to capture stunning images of the night sky. Deep sky objects, such as nebulae and galaxies, are particularly spectacular. Although these vast structures are large enough to be seen by the naked eye, they are too faint to be visible. To capture them, multiple long-exposure images are taken and superimposed, corrected, filtered, and processed nonlinearly using software. The result is detailed images that reveal the physical processes in space as well as the universe's aesthetic beauty.
Spectroscopy of celestial objects
A fiber spectrometer analyzes the light emitted by celestial objects, such as stars and planets. A telescope collects light, which a beam splitter splits and directs onto a camera sensor and the optical fiber of a spectrometer. This allows the spectrometer to analyze part of the observed image spectrally while simultaneously tracking the object with the camera. Using this method, one can detect methane in the atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn and record star spectra to analyze their chemical compositions.
Observation and photography of the sun
Due to the sun's intense light, special filter techniques are necessary for observation and photography. Our refractor is equipped with a white light intensity filter that evenly attenuates the solar spectrum by approximately five orders of magnitude across the entire range. This allows for safer observation of the photosphere, sunspots, and solar granulation with the naked eye or camera. Additionally, our observatory has an H-alpha filter system that reveals stunning solar prominences.
Visual observation
The observatory can be used for direct observations, regardless of the measuring technology used. The computer-controlled mount automatically aligns the telescope with the desired celestial object, allowing you to focus solely on observing. Various eyepieces are available for this purpose.
In addition to the permanent observatory, there are other mobile telescopes available, including a 14-inch Dobsonian telescope and several more compact instruments for flexible on-campus observations.
Photography of the moon and planets
Capturing fine details of the moon and planets requires high magnification and relatively high light intensity. Therefore, telescopes and imaging techniques used for planetary observation differ significantly from those used for deep sky photography. In most cases, video recordings from "fast" cameras are used. Since each image has a short exposure time, atmospheric disturbances have little influence on the result. The best images are averaged to create a final image with a high level of detail.