Practical Amateur Astronomy 2 Volume Paperback Set

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ISBN: 9780521524209 | 0521524202
Cover: Package
Copyright: 11/11/2002

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Together, this two-volume set provides amateur astronomers with all the information they require to set up their telescopes and embark upon an exciting exploration of the night sky. Complete with trouble-shooting advice, practical tips for observing over 200 interesting celestial objects, and information about the latest products and resources, this set of Covington's two books is an essential purchase for every new telescope owner.

Preface

Part I Telescopes in general

(130)

Welcome to amateur astronomy!

(3)

Using a telescope

(1)

Learning the sky

(1)

Is a computerized telescope right for you?

(1)

Material you can skip

(1)

Does this book cover your telescope?

(1)

How the sky moves

(13)

Daily motion

(2)

Coordinates

(4)

Right ascension and declination

(1)

Declination and latitude

(1)

Some terminology

(1)

Other coordinate systems

(1)

Degrees, minutes, and seconds

(1)

Distance between points in the sky

(1)

Annual motion

(1)

Why time of year matters

(1)

Sidereal time

(1)

Time of day

(4)

Solar time and time zones

(2)

Hints on using UT

(2)

UTC, ET, and other subtleties

(1)

Slow changes in R.A. and declination

(2)

Precession and epochs

(1)

How precession works

(1)

Proper motion

(1)

How telescopes track the stars

(20)

What's inside a computerized telescope

(2)

Computer

(1)

Motors

(1)

Encoders

(1)

Digital setting circles (DSC)

(1)

Altazimuth and equatorial mounts

(1)

Site information

(3)

Why it's needed

(1)

Obtaining site data

(2)

Why compasses don't point north

(2)

Setting up the telescope

(1)

Choosing alignment stars

(1)

Automatic setup with GPS

(1)

Tripods and piers

(3)

Steadiness

(1)

Other tripod and wedge hints

(1)

Observatories and permanent piers

(1)

Pointing accuracy

(4)

What to expect

(1)

Factors that affect pointing accuracy

(2)

Aligning the telescope tube in the mount

(1)

The double-GO TO trick

(1)

Meade high-precision mode

(1)

TPoint Software

(1)

What the telescope is calculating

(1)

Computer control

(1)

Electricity for telescopes

(2)

Using equatorial mounts and wedges

(20)

Why equatorial?

(1)

Must field rotation be eliminated?

(4)

Using an equatorial mount

(5)

Setting up the mount

(1)

Rough polar-axis alignment without sighting stars

(1)

Finding Polaris

(1)

Rough polar-axis alignment on Polaris

(2)

Initializing the computer

(1)

Refining the polar alignment

(1)

Iterating on Polaris and one other star

(1)

Fine alignment -- the drift method

(1)

Using wedges

(2)

Tracking in equatorial mode

(2)

Tracking rates

(2)

Periodic-error correction (PEC)

(1)

Setting circles

(2)

Southern declination limits

(1)

German equatorial mounts

(3)

Telescope optics

(20)

How a telescope works

(1)

Upside down and backward images

(2)

Light grasp and image brightness

(2)

Resolving power

(1)

Types of telescopes

(6)

Refractors, reflectors, and catadioptrics

(2)

Catadioptric quirks

(1)

``Fast'' and ``slow'' f-ratios

(1)

Does the central obstruction ruin the image?

(1)

Which design is best?

(1)

Collimation

(4)

Collimating a Schmidt-Cassegrain

(3)

Collimating a Newtonian

(1)

How often?

(1)

Star testing

(3)

Buying a telescope secondhand

(1)

Cleaning optics

(1)

Lenses

(1)

Mirrors

(1)

Eyepieces and optical accessories

(20)

What eyepieces do you need?

(1)

Barrel size

(1)

Field of view

(3)

Measuring field of view

(1)

Eye relief

(1)

Eyepiece designs

(2)

New-generation eyepieces

(1)

Anti-reflection coatings

(1)

Choosing eyepieces wisely

(1)

Eyepiece calculations and technical details

(3)

The exit pupil

(1)

Limits on low power

(1)

Limits on high power

(1)

Field stop and tube size

(1)

Eyepiece accessories

(6)

Diagonals

(2)

Barlow lenses

(1)

Focal reducers (compressors)

(1)

Filters

(2)

Eyeglasses

(1)

Finders

(2)

Astrophotography

(23)

Overview

(1)

Attaching cameras to telescopes

100

(3)

Optical configurations

100

(2)

Brackets and adapters

102

(1)

Two simple projects to get you started

103

(4)

Project #1: the Moon, afocal method

103

(1)

Project #2: the stars, piggybacking

103

(4)

Equipment for astrophotography

107

(4)

Telescope requirements

107

(1)

35-mm SLR cameras

107

(2)

Other film cameras

109

(1)

Digital and video cameras

109

(1)

Astronomical CCD cameras

110

(1)

Focal length, image size, and f-ratio

111

(4)

Finding the effective focal length

111

(1)

Image size and field of view

112

(1)

Finding the f-ratio

113

(1)

Exposure, film, and development

113

(2)

Focusing and sharpness

115

(1)

Deep-sky techniques

116

(3)

Digital image processing

119

(3)

Troubleshooting

122

(9)

Electrical and computer problems

122

(1)

Keypad problems

123

(2)

Motor and slewing problems

125

(4)

Optical problems

129

(2)

Part II Three classic telescopes

131

(88)

Three that led the revolution

133

(1)

Meade LX200

134

(35)

Introduction

134

(2)

Evaluation of the LX200

134

(1)

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Practical Amateur Astronomy 2 Volume Paperback Set

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials