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Jennifer,

I apologize if I have arrived late to this discussion.

I have dealt with a few of these things - heliostats, solar telescopes
and the like, and though I am certainly no expert in this area I might
be able to provide a meager level of assistance.

Firstly, what do you hope to accomplish? What do you want to see? Will
it be an image of the sun, a solar spectrum or both?. How will the
visitor interact? How much do you have to spend.....?

A heliostat is a specialized telescope designed to observe the sun. In
many ways it is like any other telescope. And like any astronomical
instrument it can cost a few hundred dollars to easily tens of thousands
of dollars. In this area 'you get what you pay.'  If it is to be used as
a permanent exhibit with minimal staff oversight, it probably has to be
made with a fair amount of precision. Many planetarium people would
consider any lesser instrument to be useless.  In this case the surface
quality of the mirrors used, vibration isolation, mechanical stability
and precise polar alignment are critical... and to get them all up to
where they need to be, you're gonna have to pay for it.

...Then again, you can go to a auto junk yard and get most of the parts
you need, if you don't need all that precision.

Many small, portable telescopes could be used (with some modification
and adequate staff supervision) in temporary, special event or
'workshop' situations.

What visitors will ultimately see, how permanent you need the thing to
be, how much staff interaction you want to eliminate, all will have a
great affect on how much the thing is going to cost. Once you have an
answer to some of these basic questions you can call in the 'experts'
(local amateur astronomy group, professor from a local university, hired
consultant)  to help you purchase, design, build and/or operate.  good luck.

Joe Ruggiero
TheExhibitGuys.com



Jennifer Tuxen wrote:

>ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
>Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
>*****************************************************************************
>
>Hello!
>
>Does any science center have a solar telescope (Heliostat)?  Who makes them?
>Where could we get one?
>
>Thanks so much,
>Jennifer Tuxen
>Director of Exhibits and Programs
>Sci-Port Discovery Center
>
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>More information about the Informal Science Education Network and the
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