A public observation of the Sun at RochesterFest was planned for Tuesday 6/24 and for Saturday 6/28.
Tuesday 6/24 we planned a public observation of the Sun at RochesterFest from 5 to 7 p.m. Actually, 2025 was the first year that RAC participated in RochesterFest. We were pleasantly surprised by the organizers, who provided transportation for our telescopes and other equipment. All we had to do was ask, and they were happy to transport everything we needed in electric golf carts.
The weather was not very favorable at first, as it was cloudy. Later, the sun did shine through, but its intensity was not sufficient for the H-alpha telescope. In the end, however, the sky cleared up and we were able to show visitors the Sun in H-alpha light, as well as sunspots in integral light through the appropriate filters. Mike C. and Mike Q. participated in the observation with their telescopes. Rob played an important role, helping to talk to people and watch over our equipment. John M lent his H-alpha telescope for this event, even though he couldn’t be there himself. This was important because visitors could compare the view of the Sun in different telescopes through different filters.
Saturday 6/28 we planned a public observation of the Sun from 11 a.m. till 2 p.m.
Here is what people could see in H-Alpha telescopes taken from professional observatory participating in project GONG.
H-Alpha is real color. Good representation can be RGB #FFC0CB (light pink) or #FF69B4 (hot pink).
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