SOLAR TELESCOPE

		The heliostat mounted on the roof (shown at left) tracks and reflects sunlight into a solar telescope room where the light is split into three beams. One beam is used to display a white light image of the Sun, a second beam is used with a hydrogen-alpha filter to show solar surface activity, and a third beam is used with a spectrometer to display a real-time view of the solar spectrum.

		The light from the Sun is sent into the solar telescope room (shown at left) directly below the heliostat. The sunlight is split into three beams by a beam-splitter (middle of picture). One beam is sent to a hydrogen-alpha filter (middle beam in picture). The h-alpha image of the Sun shows much of the solar surface activity such as prominences, spicules, and flares.

		(click on the image to see a schematic of the light path configuration)
		A second beam is sent to a spectrometer. The spectrometer is a device that sorts out the individual wavelengths of the Sun's light (much like a prism) showing the solar spectrum (shown at left). The solar spectrum has dark lines crossing it caused by the absorption of light by the various atoms that make up the chemical compostion of the Sun.

		A third beam of sunlight is used to display a white light image of the Sun (left). This view of the Sun usually displays any sunspots that are visible.

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