I need ideas for a science fair project using a telescope?
Kay asked:
I’m planning to build my own telescope from scratch.
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I’m planning to build my own telescope from scratch.
I need some help coming up with ideas of what exactly to DO for my actual project, after the telescope is completed. Any ideas? I need a high school level project.
Also, I want the telescope to be a medium size, not a really small one. I want one that stands up. How much would this cost approximately, if anyone knows?
February 2nd, 2009 at 4:41 am
If you build your own telescope, you will probably have to spend more than what you can buy a good telescope for. It’s not such a great idea if you are short on money. A lot of people who build telescopes are like people who like to customize cars. It’s not about getting a car cheaper, it’s all about having a unique car. And with telescopes it is the same. If you build your own, you will have a very special telescope. It might not be as cheap or as good as one that you can buy, but it will be unique.
If you need a telescope for a science project, I would suggest you buy one. Don’t try to do two things at the same time. Build a telescope and make that the project or use a ready to go one for a science fair project. But don’t try to overreach, you might end up without a scope and without a project.
OK… what would be a great science fair project? I think that detection of extra-solar planets with the transit method is an absolutely fabulous thing to do. It’s not too hard (you already know where and when to look), but you still have to do a non-trivial amount of observation and you have to learn how to precisely characterize your ccd/digital camera! And then you have to do some non-trivial data processing and analysis. By the time you are done, you will learned an amazing amount about astronomy and how to do precision measurements.
OK.. what size instrument should you get? I would suggest a six inch Newtonian. It’s simple, plenty good enough for a lot of things and still affordable. You can get a six inch Dobsonian for $300. Throw in an equatorial mount and you can have it for a little over $400. Add tracking and you are probably up for $500-600. If you add a digital camera adapter, you are ready for astrophotography. And with that and free astronomy software you are in the business of hard core science.
If you are going for the stars, get an 8″ instrument. You will have years of fun with that. And even more light and faster measurements.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:22 am
Your looking at a Dobsonian design, anything else will need some engineering. Your biggest cost will be the primary mirror - do you intend to buy it or grind it yourself?
Lets say an 8″. $250 for the main mirror, $100 for the secondary, $50 for the focuser, $60 for the secondary mirror mount, $60 for the Spider, $80 for the primary mirror cell then the tube and plywood for the mount and bits and pieces coming in at say another $50-$100.
Or you could buy an 8″ Dob ready made for $550. As you can see - you do not save anything making it yourself
Note that these are in $AU. Exchange rates will see the amount vary.
Projects: The most obvious would be variable star observations. You gauge how bright the star is over a period of time and plot the results out on a graph to determine it’s rate of variability, amplitude and perhaps what type of variable star it is. The AAVSO has all the information you need on these. If you are lucky and there is a bright Supernova available then you can plot it’s brightness change as it fades to determine what type of Sn it might be.
You might want to pick one of the planets that is visible at the time. Lets say Jupiter is up. You might want to watch the evolution of the major cloud patterns on it’s surface - or you might want to do what Galileo did and monitor the movement of the 4 main moons and calculate their orbital periods.
If there is a bright comet available you might want to monitor it’s physical properties over time. How bright is it, how big is it’s coma, does it have a tail, how many, in what direction dor they stretch, how long are they etc. Plotting the brightness of the comet can allow you to derive it’s brightness formulae. (CometML yahoogroup is a good place for this type of work)
Notes: You are NOT going to be able to look for and monitor an extrasolar planet transit visually. The brightness variations the naked eye can pick up for an experienced observer is 0.1mag. Extra Solar planet transits are in the 0.01 mag range. You will need an expensive telescope and even more expensive CCD camera to do it. This includes an expensive telescope to build and engineer for sky tracking at the pixel level.
February 6th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
The previous poster gave you some excellent advice. It is a big task to build a telescope and then also do the project. Here are a few sites with ideas for astronomy science projects. Best of luck with it.
February 8th, 2009 at 9:28 pm
Your project could be based on discovering an asteroid or comet, three teenagers recently did this.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:30 pm
Hello,
You will find lots of ideas on my personal web page - link below? Just click on ‘TELESCOPES’ near the top of this page. You can also click on ‘CONSTELLATIONS’ as well. I hope this is helpful for you.
Yours sincerely,
Chesmayne.