Astronomy Color Filter
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Petzl TacTikka Plus 4-LED Headlamp
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DescriptionA version of the Tikka Plus...this ultra-lightweight 4-LED headlamp features a red filter for discrete light and night vision preservation, 3 brightness settings (maximum, optimum, economic) and a blinking mode. It sports battery life of up to to 150 hours on regular settings (up to 400 hours on blinking mode). It's water resistant and comfortable to wear. Red filter for discrete light and preservation of user's night vision. 3 lighting levels (maximum, optimum, economic) and strobe mode, to adapt the light to the activity and at and light duration needs. Adjustable elastic headband for comfort and to secure it in place. Light beam can be easily aimed where desired. Water resistant for all-weather use. Batteries included (3AAA). Features
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Simple Laser Experiments to Share With your Kids
The word "LASER" stands for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. A laser is an optical light source that emits a concentrated beam of photons. Lasers are usually monochromatic – the light that shoots out is usually one wavelength and color, and is in a narrow beam.
By contrast, light from a regular incandescent light bulb covers the entire spectrum as well as scatters all over the room. (Which is good, because could you light up a room with a narrow beam of light?)
There are about a hundred different types of atoms in the entire universe, and they are always vibrating, moving, and rotating. Think of kids on sugar. When you add energy to these atoms (even more sugar to the kids), they really get excited and bounce all over the place.
When the atoms relax back down to their "normal" state, they emit a photon (a light particle). Think of the kids as coming down from their sugar high, and they all collapse on the couch.
A laser controls the way energized atoms release photons. Imagine giving half the kids sugar, and picture how they would bounce all over the place (like light from a bulb)when it took effect. They would be very high-energy among the other half who were contently sitting down.
Now imagine those sugar kids jumping in unison (a focused laser beam). The sugar-kids are infectious, and pretty soon, the kids around them are joining in and sharing in their excited energy. This is how a laser charges the atoms inside the gas medium.
Now imagine a cat-flap that lets out a limited number of kids out at a time, while the rest are bouncing around inside, charging up everyone. That cat-flap exit is the laser beam exiting the laser. The atoms remaining inside the laser bounce off mirrors as they charge each other up.
Before we start, you'll need eye protection – tinted UV ski goggles are great to use, as are large-framed sunglasses, but understand that these methods of eye protection will not protect your eyes from a direct beam. They are intended as a general safety precaution against laser beam scatter and spinning mirrors. (Yes, you will be wearing sunglasses in the dark!)
A very neat addition to the experiments below is a fog machine. (Rent one from your local party supply store.) Turn it on, be sure you have good ventilation, darken the lights, and turn on the lasers for an outstanding laser experience!
A quick note about lasers: keychain lasers from the dollar store work just fine with these projects. Do not use the green lasers sold in astronomy stores – they are too dangerous for the eyes.
Plastic Bottle Beam Fill up a plastic water or clean soda bottle with water and add a sprinkle of cornstarch. Turn down the lights and turn up the laser, aiming the beam through the bottle. Do you see the original beam in the bottle? Can you find the reflection beam and the pass-through beam?
Light Bulb Laser In the dark, aim your laser at a frosted incandescent light bulb. The bulb will glow and have several internal reflections! What other types of light bulbs work well?
CDs Shine your beam over the surface of an old CD or DVD. Does it work better with a scratched or smoother surface? You should see between 5-13 reflections off the surface of the CD, depending on where you shine it and how good your "seeing" conditions are.
Glass and Crystal Pass the laser beam through several cut-crystal objects such as wine glasses or clear glass vases. Is there a difference between clear plastic or glass, smooth or multi-faceted? Try an ice cube, both frosted and wet.
Microscope Slides Shine the laser beam through a flat piece of glass, such as a microscope slide or single-paned window. Can you find the pass-through beam as well as a reflected beam?
If you have it, fill a clear tank with water, add a sprinkling of cornstarch, and put the slide underwater. Shine the laser through the side wall through the slide and both beams will be visible.
Lenses If you have an old pair of eyeglasses, pop out the lenses and try one or both in the beam to see the various effects. Try one lens, and then try two in line with each other to see if you can change the beam.
Filters Paint a piece of cellophane or stiff clear plastic with nail polish (or use colored filers) to put in the laser beam. You can make a quick diffraction grating by using a feather in the beam.
If you have polarizer filters, use two. You can substitute two sunglass lenses – no need to pop out the lenses – you can just use two pairs of sunglasses. Just make sure they are polarized lenses (most UV sunglasses are). Place both lenses in the beam and rotate one 90 degrees. The lenses should block the light completely in one configuration and allow it to pass-through the other way.
Laser Maze Hot glue one 1" mosaic mirror (found at most craft stores) to each wooden cube. In a pinch, you can use aluminum foil or Mylar. Add a fog source, such as a fog machine, dry ice, or clap two (very chalky) chalkboard erasers together – just be sure to have proper ventilation, as you will also need the room to be very dark. Turn on the laser adjust the cubes to aim the beam onto the next mirror.
_____________________________________________________________
As a teacher, engineer and university instructor Aurora Lipper has been helping kids learn science for over a decade.
Want More Cool Science Activities?
Rocket-launch your kid’s education by downloading your free copy of the Science Experiment Activity Guide from the Supercharged Science website: www.SuperchargedScience.com
About the Author
By Aurora Lipper
_____________________________________________________________
As a teacher, engineer and university instructor Aurora Lipper has been helping kids learn science for over a decade.
Want More Cool Science Activities?
Rocket-launch your kid’s education by downloading your free copy of the Science Experiment Activity Guide from the Supercharged Science website: www.SuperchargedScience.com
Need helping With Color Photoshop Merge?
I have searched through a lot of tutorial websites and found no help.
I am working on an astronomy project. I used a CCD camera attached to a telescope to take pictures of Jupiter. I took 3 images using a color filter wheel, one in red, one in blue, and one in green. I saved these files as a 32bit PNG. I used a astronomy program to merge the images into a color image previously but my teacher said i could do the same in photo shop to a better effect. I cant for the life of me figure out how to do so.
I have been using automate to try to merge the images together but it does a horrible job. I also cant figure out how to assign each image to its color so when it merges it produces a color image.
I have CS4 by the way.
Thanks!
I don't know exactly how to do this but I can give you an idea of what to try. Try stacking the images in a single document on separate layers manually. Then set the top 2 layer modes to Overlay since that mode blends colors.
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Petzl TacTikka Plus 4-LED Headlamp
List Price: |
DescriptionA version of the Tikka Plus...this ultra-lightweight 4-LED headlamp features a red filter for discrete light and night vision preservation, 3 brightness settings (maximum, optimum, economic) and a blinking mode. It sports battery life of up to to 150 hours on regular settings (up to 400 hours on blinking mode). It's water resistant and comfortable to wear. Red filter for discrete light and preservation of user's night vision. 3 lighting levels (maximum, optimum, economic) and strobe mode, to adapt the light to the activity and at and light duration needs. Adjustable elastic headband for comfort and to secure it in place. Light beam can be easily aimed where desired. Water resistant for all-weather use. Batteries included (3AAA). Features
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MAGLITE AM2A016 Mini AA Flashlight Accessory Pack
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DescriptionGet the most out of your Maglite with the Mini Maglite Accessory Kit. This handy kit includes an anti-roll device, red, amber, and clear lenses, a wrist lanyard, and a pocket clip. Each piece is specially designed to fit your Mini Maglite. Features
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Celestron Accessory Kit
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DescriptionCelestron Accessory Kit Features
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Canon 18x50 Image Stabilization All-Weather Binoculars w/Case, Neck Strap & Batteries
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DescriptionCanon's 18x50 IS binoculars incorporate an optical image stabilizer for shake-free viewing and minimal eye fatigue. This technology was first developed for Canon video camcorders and is now available in many of Canon's binoculars. The system employs a Vari-Angle Prism, dual transparent plates, independent vertical and horizontal sensors, and a dedicated microprocessor to continuously adjust the prism to maintain a steady image. The 18x50 IS binoculars feature a water-resistant, shock-resistant rubber coating for a nonslip grip and better durability. If you get caught in the rain and still want to view, you don't have to worry about the optics fogging up. These binoculars deliver high magnification and wide-field viewing. Controls for focusing and image stabilization are centrally located and accessible by both hands. These binoculars provide long eye relief for extra comfort. Image Stabilization and More With any high magnification binoculars, most users will experience frustrating image shake. Unless fixed to a tripod, image shake can render high magnification binoculars useless. Canon's IS technology is remarkably effective at eliminating this problem and is widely used by the television industry with Canon's professional broadcast quality video recording equipment. A special VAP (Vari-Angle Prism) corrective IS system sits between the objective lens group and the porro prism on each side of the binoculars. Within thousandths of a second of the binoculars being moved from their optical axis by vibrations, a detection system activates the IS mechanism. The VAP shape alters to refract or 'bend' the light path by precisely the right amount, thus fully compensating for the vibration. It is this essentially immediate response that effectively suppresses image shake. Super Spectra Coating A number of optical factors affect the brightness of an image, including the amount of incidental light that is reflected by the lens. An uncoated lens will refelect away as much as 8% of the incidentail light, significantly dimming the image. Canon's Super Spectra Coating prevents that reflection. What do the numbers mean? 15x50? 8x25? The two numbers used to describe any pair of binoculars are their magnification — 8x, 12x, 15x and so on — and the diameter of their objective lenses — 25mm, 36mm, 50mm, and so on. The larger the first number is, the larger the object will appear to be in the objective lens. For instance, if you use a 10x lens and look at an object that is 100 yards away, it appears to be the same size as an object located just 10 yards away. The second number, the size of the objective lens, is important because the larger the objective lens, the more light it can admit for brighter, more detailed images, and the better suited they will be for lowlight situations. A look inside Binoculars, Canon, 18x50 IS , Binocular 18x50 IS All Weather, 4624A002 Features
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Orion 1.25" Premium Telescope Accessory Kit
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DescriptionElevate your telescope's performance potential with our Orion Premium Telescope Accessory Kit. This comprehensive set of quality accessories will greatly enhance the abilities of any telescope. Accessorizing your telescope with a variety of quality eyepieces, eyepiece filters, and a good Barlow lens significantly increases the versatility of any telescope. Having different focal length eyepieces and a Barlow lens lets you view at different magnifications through your telescope, while using filters on the aforementioned eyepieces help to enhance specific features of lunar and planetary targets. With our Premium Telescope Accessory Kit, you'll receive twelve 1.25-inch accessories in a foam-lined hard carry case to help you get the most out of each evening spent with your telescope. Features
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Celestron NexImage Solar System Imager
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DescriptionAmazon.com Review Celestron's NexImage combines a sensitive CCD imaging device with powerful image processing software in one affordable package. Now anyone with a telescope can take pictures that are simply amazing. An image of Jupiter taken with the Celestron NexImage Solar System Imager Amateur astronomers have been taking great pictures of the moon and planets by using modified Webcams. The favored Webcams for astro-imaging have been the hard-to-find Philips ToUCam and Vesta models because of their high-performance CCD chips. Now Celestron's Neximage puts the same CCD technology in a package that's ready to use with any telescope that accepts 1.25-inch eyepieces. The NexImage includes an anodized metal nosepiece that fits in a 1.25-inch eyepiece holder. When I installed the Windows based software, I also updated my Windows Media Player files. Then I simply plugged the NexImage into my computers' USB port, and I was ready to start taking pictures. The NexImage CCD is sensitive enough that I can take "snapshots" of the Moon or Sunspots (always use a safe Solar filter, of course!) even without a motor-driven telescope. The real power of the NexImage package, however, comes from its included Registax software which automatically aligns and stacks hundreds of individual AVI video frames into one sharp, highly detailed picture. I used my 8-inch Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope (similar to the Nexstar 8 GPS ) and my 2x Ultima Barlow lens to capture some beautiful pictures of Jupiter and Saturn. The sensitive Sony CCD chip in the NexImage easily shows color and detail on Jupiter that just doesn't show up when I use CMOS-based Webcams. The fine performance of the NexImage package is limited somewhat by its included video capture software. The AmCap software doesn't give me the precise control of exposure times I'd like; I wasn't able to photograph the moon Callisto next to Jupiter, for instance, without overexposing the planet. Celestron doesn't mention the other little drawback in its ads. You'll have so much fun that your hard drive will start filling up with pictures and AVIs! --Jeff Phillips Pros: Sensitive CCD chip Fits any telescope that takes 1.25-inch eyepieces Powerful image processing software Cons: Takes practice to get the exposure time just right Software is Windows only You'll fill up your hard drive with pictures The Celestron® NexImage astronomy is a complete CCD solar system imager capable of producing high quality planetary images with greater light sensitivity and color fidelity. The software automatically filters out video frames most affected by poor atmospheric "seeing" leaving only the sharpest, clearest frames to be stacked and aligned into one high-quality image. Features
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Canon 4624A002 Is All Weather Binoculars
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DescriptionIs All Weather 18 X 50Mm BinocularsFeatures:Optical Image Stabilizer Lock Switch Provided Objective Lens Includes A Ud Element Doublet Field Flattener Lens Super Spectra Coating Water-Resistant, All-Weather Design Rubber Skin For Secure Grip Closest Focusing Distance Of 19.7 Ft Includes Case, Neck Strap & 2 Aa Alkaline BatteriesInternational Info:? This item is suitable for use anywhere in the world. |
