http://www.skyandtelescope.com.au 69focus.Thisiswheretheversatilityofthe
SS60C’sremovableetaloncomesinto
play.UsersoftheSolarScouthopingto
takesharpimagesoftheSunwouldbe
most successful by moving its Quark
filtertoanother,similar-sizedrefractor
withatraditionalfocuser.
AftersometimeusingtheSS60C,I
settledintoaroutineofobservingwith
itcoupledwithmyAstrovidStellaCam3
video camera. This monochrome
camerahasasmallchip,butafter
spending a lot of time focusing, I
wasabletoenjoyclose-up,contrasty
views on a small monitor of many
prominences, with occasional filaments,
arches,andactiveregionsvisibleeven
during this period of solar minimum.Likewise, I tried imaging with the
SS60C using a Celestron Skyris 236M
video camera. The 236M’s small 5.44 ×
3.42-mm chip could capture only about
25% of the solar disk with no additional
focal reducers. For increasing the field
of view, the manual recommends the
addition of a 1¼-inch-format, screw-on
focal reducer offered by several third-
party manufacturers when imaging
with video cameras. Using one I already
own enabled the camera to see about
75% of the Sun using the Skyris 236M.
With the versatility of the Solar
Scout 60C, there’s no need to be
discouraged when a spotless Sun is
the rule around times of deep solar
minimum like we’re experiencing now.
The lack of sunspots doesn’t mean there
isn’t a dark, sinuous filament stretching
across the Sun’s disk or dramatic
prominences dancing along the limb.
We just have to be tapped into the
hydrogen-alpha world to see and image
those very compelling solar attractions
within the chromosphere.■ Though he didn’t lose sleep reviewing
the Daystar Solar Scout, JOHNNY
HORNE may have lost some weight
using the SS60C in the hot summer Sun.SLeft: Attaching video or deep sky astronomy cameras can be accomplished using the 1¼-inch eyepiece adapter, though a better option is
Daystar’s Interference Eliminator mount (https://is.gd/cmount), which enables users to slightly tilt the camera to correct for interference banding
that often appears when using monochrome cameras. Right: The Quark unit of the SS60C can be removed and used on most small refractors with
the addition of a 1¼- or 2-inch nosepiece adapter (above).