Comet seeker

A comet seeker is a type of small telescope adapted especially to searching for comets: commonly of short focal length and large aperture, in order to secure the greatest brilliancy of light. This style of telescope was used to discover the asteroid 9 Metis in 1848.

Design
Comet seeker telescope, Helsinki observatory. Made by Utzschneider and Fraunhofer in 1830s.
A comet closeup, visited by a probe in the early 21st century
A comet as seen from Earth

A comet seeker telescope is a type of optical device that is known for having a short focal length but a wide field of view.[1]

Examples

A comet seeker with about 3.9 inch aperture was installed at the United States Naval Observatory in 1843, and later transferred to the Smithsonian Museum in 1866.[1] It had an aperture of 4 inches (10.2 cm) and was made by Utzschneider & Fraunhofer in Munich.[2] This was operated as part of suite of several other instruments including a larger refractor on an equatorial mounting, a meridian transit, mural circle, etc.[2]

Markree Observatory added a 3-inch aperture Comet Seeker on an equatorial mount by Ertel.[3] It was ordered in 1842, and in place until 1874.[3]

The Markree Comet Seeker was used to discover 9 Metis in April 1848.[4] It was discovered by Edward Cooper's assistant Andrew Graham, who worked at that observatory until 1860.[3][4] Graham also observed and sketched the Orion nebula with this Ertel Comet seeker.[4]

An 8.6-centimetre (3.4 in) aperture Comet Seeker was used, with some customizations, to produce the Bonner Durchmusterung star catalog from Bonn Observatory, in the 19th century.[5]

In 1866 a Comet Seeker telescope of 18 centimetres (7.1 in) aperture by Martin was acquired by the Marseille Observatory in France.[6]

See also

References
  •  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Comet-seeker". Encyclopædia Britannica. 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 763.
  1. "Utzschneider & Fraunhofer, Merz & Mahler Refracting Telescope (Comet Seeker)". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2019-10-01.
  2. The General History of Astronomy. Cambridge University Press. 1900. ISBN 9780521242561.
  3. Doberck, William (1884). "Markree Observatory". The Observatory. 7 (91): 329–332. Bibcode:1884Obs.....7..329D.
  4. Steinicke, Wolfgang (2010-08-19). Observing and Cataloguing Nebulae and Star Clusters: From Herschel to Dreyer's New General Catalogue. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781139490108.
  5. "Joseph Fraunhofer (1787-1826)". Journal of the British Astronomical Association. 97 (6): 339. 1987. Bibcode:1987JBAA...97..339H.
  6. Lequeux, James (2013-03-15). Le Verrier—Magnificent and Detestable Astronomer. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9781461455653.


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