TheSkySearchers

Posted: **Fri Jul 02, 2021 6:00 pm**

I found this one:
https://www.telescope-optics.net/index.htm
Amateur Telescope Optics by Vladimir Sasek.

it seems all right and several or many others must be out there.
Any other leads?

(I have Harrington's Star Ware. I also downloaded William Paolini's review of the TAL eyepieces that was cited in the Eyepieces forum here on TSS. I also have a couple of books on mathematics for amateurs such as Fleisch & Kreganow (Cambridge) and James H. Fox (Astronomical League) and they go into some calculations for instruments. However, the website cited above is far more detailed.)

Posted: **Fri Jul 02, 2021 6:16 pm**

Evolution of eyepieces which is available in the eyepiece forum (sticky)

Mr. Suiter book on optics is a excellent place to start: https://www.willbell.com/TM/tm5.htm

If you search online you can find a copy of Max Born and Emil Wolf; Principles Of Optics

Depending on how indepth you wish to get immediately I would star with Mr. Suiter book.

Posted: **Sat Jul 03, 2021 8:01 pm**

Posted: **Sat Jul 03, 2021 8:32 pm**

Some moderator make this a sticky please.

Posted: **Sat Jul 03, 2021 10:53 pm**

I would edit my post, but I cannot find an edit button.
Discard the following links:
http://www.cityastronomy.com/rez-mag-contrast.htm
http://geogdata.csun.edu/~voltaire/roland/index.html
http://www.hoflink.com/~mkozma/obstruction.html
http://blog.astrofotky.cz/pavelpech/fil ... tretch.jpg
http://legault.perso.sfr.fr/obstruction.html
http://www.willeyoptical.com/pdfs/AO90294540.pdf

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 3:06 am**

SkyHiker wrote: ↑Sat Jul 03, 2021 8:32 pm Some moderator make this a sticky please.

Done….

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 4:27 am**

You could not sleep Don??
Thank you for all of the links, they should be some interesting reading.

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 12:14 pm**

One of the best tutorials on optics and optics design in a nut shell the traditional way comes from the University of Arizona, The Wyant College Of Optical Sciences,
https://wp.optics.arizona.edu/jgreivenk ... -hdbk-141/
These lectures, next to the ray tracing, cover also the classic wave theory of light, and its applications to the optics design.

The modern Fourier optics analysis and design methods are best covered by the Universities of Erlangen (close to my location), and of Jena.
A very good starter are the Herbert Gross lectures at the IAP Jena
https://www.iap.uni-jena.de/Institute/T ... chive.html
Most of the young optics designers are today recruited by ZEISS and Leica from the universities in Erlangen and Jena,
and here is one of the publications lists from the university research: https://www.iap.uni-jena.de/Institute/P ... p-110.html

The Herbert Gross books on the optical systems are here, https://www.iap.uni-jena.de/Optical+Sys ... Books.html
These are the reference books for the modern optics design.

Best,
JG

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 2:57 pm**

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 3:00 pm**

And, finally, the eye--the natural optical system:

https://skyandtelescope.org/wp-content/ ... tacles.pdf
http://www.brayebrookobservatory.org/Br ... _AFOV.html
https://www.skyandtelescope.com/wp-cont ... tacles.pdf
http://www.mvr.mcgill.ca/Kathy/PDF-85-9 ... i-1990.pdf
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/wp-conte ... tacles.pdf
http://vsri.ucdavis.edu/research/psychophysics
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corneal_topography
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The ... _275891163
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ar ... 8911003105
http://lasikcomplications.com/images/pu ... r2011).jpg
http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/physics/Q ... hoton.html
https://www.ecse.rpi.edu/~schubert/Ligh ... hapter.pdf
http://simonwinder.com/projects/simulat ... human-eye/
http://www.aoa.org/x5352.xml
http://www.pixiq.com/article/eyes-vs-cameras
http://vision.arc.nasa.gov/personnel/al ... ion/17.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naked_eye
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:AcuityHumanEye.svg
http://webvision.med.utah.edu/book/part ... y/#factor2
http://www.opticampus.com/files/progres ... byopia.pdf
http://lugt.home.xs4all.nl/tnp/starting ... s_work.htm
http://www.rochester.edu/news/show.php?id=2299
http://duchekconsult.com/pupil_gauge.htm
http://psy.swan.ac.uk/staff/carter/unix ... lgauge.htm
http://www.reinervogel.net/index.html?/ ... on1_e.html
http://homepages.uni-tuebingen.de/marti ... p_age.html
http://books.google.com/books?id=FTUqAA ... my&f=false
http://www.redalyc.org/pdf/570/57062813.pdf
http://www.darksky.org/assets/documents/is136.pdf
http://vision-lab.tp.chiba-u.jp/~yaguch ... vision.pdf
http://homepage.psy.utexas.edu/HomePage ... Color3.pdf
http://arxiv.org/pdf/1405.4209.pdf
http://www.sff.net/people/j.oltion/Cata ... nomers.htm

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 4:24 pm**

Lady Fraktor wrote: ↑Fri Jul 02, 2021 6:16 pm Evolution of eyepieces which is available in the eyepiece forum (sticky)

Yes, Milady, I did download "The Evolution of Eyepieces" some time back in December 2020 and then again last month. I have it in several /folders on my computer: History, Instruments, etc. I should have mentioned that. It is a valuable essay, easy to read. At 61 pages, it is a bit involved, but I have referred to it as a reference for geometries.

Lady Fraktor wrote: ↑Fri Jul 02, 2021 6:16 pm Mr. Suiter book on optics is a excellent place to start: https://www.willbell.com/TM/tm5.htm

But it is a Willmann-Bell book and they are out of business.

However, I found the book for sale in the aftermarkets. I prefer Abe Books to Amazon and certainly either of those over eBay, but in any case, the book can be found. Oddly enough, I searched the University of Texas Libraries - I will have a library card once more when the campus open up after Covid is declared to have passed - and the only copies are at the McDonald Observatory (by appointment only). For those in Europe, the distance from Austin to Fort Davis is the same as Paris to Prague.

However... I tried the city library (without much hope) and Lo! they have it! So, I placed a hold request for myself. Personally, this will be a one-time check-out. (Maximum is three renewals and I have done that often, but probably not this time.) Anyway, thanks for the recommendation!

Lady Fraktor wrote: ↑Fri Jul 02, 2021 6:16 pm If you search online you can find a copy of Max Born and Emil Wolf; Principles Of Optics
Depending on how indepth you wish to get immediately I would star with Mr. Suiter book.

Thanks, once more, the Max Born book will be very far from helping me select eyepieces. However, I note that it is still in print with a new 60th Annivesary Edition just released (Febraury 2020). It must be selling like hotcakes.

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 4:32 pm**

Don Pensack wrote: ↑Sat Jul 03, 2021 8:01 pm There is this (and the pages that follow):
http://www.handprint.com/ASTRO/ae1.html
[etc x 50]
then again... and again...

Wow! I am amazed because your posts say that either you spent an hour three times online searching for titles (unlikely) or else (more likely) you have this all at your fingertips in /files in a /folder on your computer. You are quite a collector!

One note, if you will permit me: All of your links are http and none is https. So, these are old listings and not secure-socket. Anyone who wants to follow these should edit the URLs to https and see what still works.

(I am still astounded.)

Best Regards,
Mike M.

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:01 pm**

Michael,
I have over 4000 bookmarked pages and sites in over 80 folders related to astronomy.
I am often called to provide information for a particular purpose (like limiting magnitude), and it's easier to save the links than to find them again.
However, I don't continually check them, so I apologize for any dead links.

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:07 pm**

mikemarotta wrote: ↑Sun Jul 04, 2021 4:32 pm
Don Pensack wrote: ↑Sat Jul 03, 2021 8:01 pm There is this (and the pages that follow):
http://www.handprint.com/ASTRO/ae1.html
[etc x 50]
then again... and again...
Wow! I am amazed because your posts say that either you spent an hour three times online searching for titles (unlikely) or else (more likely) you have this all at your fingertips in /files in a /folder on your computer. You are quite a collector!

... and also a contributor. I have forwarded a link to his treatise on collimation https://www.catseyecollimation.com/pensack.pdf at the astronomy forum several times, and here too. Very useful how your Newt's optical axis might not be pointing where you thought it should especially when doing astrophotography. Thanks Don for that article.

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:27 pm**

mikemarotta wrote: ↑Sun Jul 04, 2021 4:24 pm the Max Born book will be very far from helping me select eyepieces.

The book explains optics and okulars are optics.

Besides you did not ask for information about okulars, just optics.
Enjoy Mr. Suiter book when you get to read it.

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:46 pm**

SkyHiker wrote: ↑Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:07 pm
mikemarotta wrote: ↑Sun Jul 04, 2021 4:32 pm
Don Pensack wrote: ↑Sat Jul 03, 2021 8:01 pm There is this (and the pages that follow):
http://www.handprint.com/ASTRO/ae1.html
[etc x 50]
then again... and again...
Wow! I am amazed because your posts say that either you spent an hour three times online searching for titles (unlikely) or else (more likely) you have this all at your fingertips in /files in a /folder on your computer. You are quite a collector!
... and also a contributor. I have forwarded a link to his treatise on collimation https://www.catseyecollimation.com/pensack.pdf at the astronomy forum several times, and here too. Very useful how your Newt's optical axis might not be pointing where you thought it should especially when doing astrophotography. Thanks Don for that article.

Thanks for pointing that out. I downloaded the article to the relevant /folders.

This saved me $200. I joined Astronomers Without Borders and I have been considering their OneSky reflector. (See the User Manual here: http://archive.astronomerswithoutborder ... Manual.pdf Note that the current version of the telescope comes with a Celestron collimation eyepiece.) The 5.3-inch (135mm) mirror is marketed as f/5 (actually f/4.8). In any event, it clearly requires more fussing with expensive equipment than I care to invest. I would rather read a book and leave the instrumentation to the machinists at the observatory. That's what we pay them for.

My refractors are fine. And Explore Scientific promises to collimate theirs free of charge if you pay the shipping both ways. Even at my low wages, the time invested is better spent working at my paying craft than being a self-taught apprentice in opto-mechanical systems. So the shipping charges are cost-effective against the required collimation tools and learning time.

I know that Lady Fraktor insists that she can collimate her reflector with a 35mm film can with a hole punched in the bottom. That was my first attempt six years ago when I first owned a Celestron EQ 135 reflector. I donated that instrument to the Goodwill earlier this year after another session of headaches with a Celeston collimation lens.

Nature distibutes her gifts unequally.

Posted: **Sun Jul 04, 2021 6:44 pm**

I am here in a wrong movie with the optics lectures from Arizona and Jena, ha, ha, ha.

Sorry,
JG

PS: Thank you Gabby for reminding the Born and Wolf's Principles Of Optics!

I have the 7th edition of that book, which Emil Wolf has signed for me during the SPIE-Society (Orlando, Fl) at the Erlangen University, in 2001, held on the 75th birthday of Professor Lohmann.
Wow, It's been already 20 years ago.

Posted: **Sun Jul 11, 2021 12:56 am**

Lady Fraktor wrote: ↑Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:27 pm Enjoy Mr. Suiter book when you get to read it.

Star Testing Astronomical Telescopes: A Manual for Evaluation and Adjustment by Harold Richard Suiter (Willmann-Bell, 1994, et seq., 2008) has one paragraph on page 26 about the historical development of refractors as that relates to spherical aberration.

The book is actually a very detailed examination of theory and practice for reflectors, primarily Newtonians, but other configurations, also. The book is all about the mirror. By running the focus up and down and evaluating the images produced, you can make sure that your reflector is properly aiigned and collimated. You can also diagnose misalignments. The recommended solutions can be surprisingly simple. In the Foreword, telescope optics guru Richard Berry tells of a final adjustment achieved by just shaking the telescope and letting the mirror settle into place.

To achieve the best presentation of images, the book was printed on clay paper, which was faily expensive for 364 pages, but well worth the investment for those who can benefit from the accuracy and precision.

Posted: **Sun Jul 11, 2021 2:35 pm**

mikemarotta wrote: ↑Sun Jul 11, 2021 12:56 am
Lady Fraktor wrote: ↑Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:27 pm Enjoy Mr. Suiter book when you get to read it.
Star Testing Astronomical Telescopes: A Manual for Evaluation and Adjustment by Harold Richard Suiter (Willmann-Bell, 1994, et seq., 2008) has one paragraph on page 26 about the historical development of refractors as that relates to spherical aberration.

The book is actually a very detailed examination of theory and practice for reflectors, primarily Newtonians, but other configurations, also. The book is all about the mirror. By running the focus up and down and evaluating the images produced, you can make sure that your reflector is properly aiigned and collimated. You can also diagnose misalignments. The recommended solutions can be surprisingly simple. In the Foreword, telescope optics guru Richard Berry tells of a final adjustment achieved by just shaking the telescope and letting the mirror settle into place.

To achieve the best presentation of images, the book was printed on clay paper, which was fairly expensive for 364 pages, but well worth the investment for those who can benefit from the accuracy and precision.

Alas, like all Willmann-Bell publications, it is now out of print with the closing of Willmann-Bell. So many books on optics are now history.
And the used market has been thoroughly scoured for the available titles by now, 9 months later.
We are all hoping someone else buys his company and keeps the books in print, but, as time passes, this is looking less and less likely.

TheSkySearchers

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