Lurie-Houghton Telescope
First Light
Here I am with the telescope on the mount ready for first light. The sky and
weather was not very cooperative that night, but it was good enough to give the
scope a first tryout. The scope was only partly collimated, but initial views
were quite satisfying. At high power, slight astigmasism and pinching were
visible, but otherwise the focal plane was sharp and flat across the field.
No secondary color was visible as it should be for this design. The atmospheric
seeing was poor, but the almost full moon was sharp. The defocused defraction
rings on stars were almost identical on either side of focus with only a small
indication of a turned edge. I plan on using the
scope for a few observing sessions before
disassembling it for final optical tuning to remove the residual aberrations.
During these observing sessions, I'll also learn of any mechanical modifications
or improvements that may be necessary.
This photo was taken 16 May 2000 with an Olympus D-600L digital camera at Mike's
shop.
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Updated: 19 August 2000
