Speaker: Dr. Howard Eskildsen
Topic: Observing and Photographing the Sun
Synopsis:
This presentation will provide a brief overview of current solar cycle activity and then concentrate on imaging the Sun. Various techniques will be discussed along with a demonstration of processing high quality solar images will be given during the session.
About the Speaker:
Alachua Astronomy Club (AAC) and Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO) member, Howard Eskildsen, has been interested in the stars, Sun and Moon since childhood. In grade school he learned the stars from star charts in a book and spent hours looking at the sky and watching for meteors. His first telescopic views came from his high school’s sadly abused Dynascope that he restored to working condition. Later he made a 6” reflector and placed it on a pipe fitting mount per designs by Sam Brown and used it for observing when time permitted.
In the years that followed, he attended medical school and raised a family, which left little time for stargazing. Finally, after a quarter of a century hiatus, he returned to regular observing in 2002 when his wife, Fairy, purchased him a Meade ETX-125. Since then he has observed the Sun and Moon regularly and anything else in the sky when time permits. He has sent nearly 5,000 observations of the Sun to the ALPO Solar Section and has written a piece on solar photography for their website. He also provided photos and written material for Jamey L. Jenkin’s book, The Sun and How to Observe It, and has given several presentations on solar activity.
Howard also observes the moon and has submitted more than a thousand lunar photos to the ALPO Lunar Section. He has also written articles for Sky and Telescope, The Strolling Astronomer, Selenology, and The Lunar Observer. His photos have appeared on spaceweather.com, LPOD, Astronomy Magazine’s Photo of the Day, National Geographic, and other web sites.
