*Note: It is recommended that you use inexpensive eyepieces with two elements for projection. Eyepieces with multiple elements may trap the Sun's heat and crack.*
*DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN THROUGH ANY OPTICAL INSTRUMENT*
The easiest safe way to observe the Sun through a telescope
is to project the image. This works best if you have a small, inexpensive
refractor telescope like the one shown below.
*Note: It is recommended that you use inexpensive eyepieces with
two elements for projection. Eyepieces with multiple elements may trap
the Sun's heat and crack.*
Projection can also be used with most reflector telescopes, although the set-up is trickier. To avoid damage to your mirror or lens, minimize the amount of time the 'scope is pointed at the Sun.
Solar Filters are another way of viewing the Sun. A filter fits over the front of the telescope and allows only a very small percentage of sunlight to filter through. Make sure you buy from a reputable manufacturer. Do not use the "Sun Filters" that are sometimes supplied with small telescopes. These filters, which screw into the eyepiece, are prone to breakage, with disastrous results. Get a glass or mylar filter that covers the entire aperture of the scope. Also remember to cap your finder scope when viewing the sun and to carefully supervise any telescope being used for group solar viewing.
What can you see on the Sun? The Sun's face is ever-changing. Over periods of days, sunspot groups rotate in and out of view. The number of sunspots varies as well. Large sunspots can be differentiated into a dark center (umbra) and a gray outer region (penumbra). Bright patches are called faculae and are often glimpsed near the solar limb, which appears darker than the rest of the Sun. You may also notice that the overall texture of the solar image is mottled. This is referred to as the solar granulation.
Other features, such as solar flares and prominences, are not easily viewed. A special filter, called a Hydrogen-alpha filter, isolates the light from these features and brings them into view. H-alpha filters are available on the market, but are quite expensive.
A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's disk passes
in front of the Sun as seen from a particular place on Earth. A partial
solar eclipse occurs when only part of the Sun's light is blocked. These
eclipses are fun to view with projection devices. When the whole solar
disk is covered by the Moon, a total solar eclipse occurs. During
totality, which usually lasts for a few minutes at most, the usually-invisible
outer parts of the Sun's atmosphere become apparent. Contrary to popular
belief, it is not dangerous to look at the totally eclipsed Sun with the
naked eye. During the partial phases, the Sun has its normal blinding potential.
Schools that keep children inside during eclipses ought instead to have
projection boxes and filtered telescopes set up to allow kids to experience
these educational events. One or two solar eclipses occur in most years,
but are visible from only small sections of the globe. In any one location,
many years will pass between total solar eclipses.
