Newbie viewing question

[Bruce Girrell]

This isn't solar specific, simply about telescopic viewing in general.

In microscopy, even with a single objective lens, for all but cheap or special purpose microscopes the light path is split and delivered to a pair of eyepieces. This not only makes viewing more comfortable, since you don't have to do the Popeye thing and keep one eye closed, but it improves the ability to see detail. Granted, there is no additional information provided by the second eyepiece, but the eye-brain system is capable of taking advantage of the duplicate image and can ignore such things as floaters in the eye and mitigate other vision deficiencies. The result is that more detail is apparent in the image. This really becomes noticeable when you start to use a camera. What a disappointment! Your brain does a fantastic job of cleaning up what your eyes see, something that the camera can't do.

So then, why don't telescopes use the same sort of thing - a split light path, providing a pair of images? The optics aren't complex and, of course, aren't in the path when a camera is used, so light loss and scattering by the additional optical surfaces shouldn't be a problem. Yet, nowhere do I see a binocular eyepiece system on any telescopes. What gives?

Thanks

Bruce G

[robert]

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/misc/w ... iewer.html

Some people like using them!
Robert

[Merlin66]

Binoviewers are available from many suppliers, I think it just comes down to the costs involved.
The Binoviewer body + a pair of matched eyepieces for each magnification you want to use.......

[GreatAttractor]

I have the Baader Maxbright binoviewer + a pair of Ploessls, and indeed the difference w.r.t. one-eyed view is very noticeable (more comfortable, details more easily visible); highly recommended if you're into visual observing.

[Bruce Girrell]

Thanks folks
I had not seen any bino viewers on manufacturers' nor suppliers' sites. I was thinking that they simply didn't exist. I appreciate the link robert.

"I think it just comes down to the costs involved. The Binoviewer body + a pair of matched eyepieces for each magnification you want to use......."
Yes. In microscopy, the bino is simply an expected part of the kit and we have the luxury of changing the objective rather than the eyepieces, so one or two sets of eyepieces is all you need. In astro, all of the money goes into one big objective, so you do indeed get stuck buying more duplicate eyepieces, but the cost is still bearable (although I have only 1.25" optics at the moment). And you can always go back to mono viewing if you don't have a twin for some of your magnifications.

"highly recommended if you're into visual observing."
Without a doubt, I'll be using cameras a lot, as I do with microscopes. Yet, for me at least, there is something awe inspiring with that direct view through the glass. In microscopy, I lean toward low magnification and macro because of all the stuff you can see and the knowledge that this stuff is all around you, if you only take the time to look. I suspect that in astro, I will be more attracted to the Moon and planets rather than DSOs for much the same reason - looking at our close neighbors in much higher detail. I must add though, I had the opportunity to stop by the Chaco Canyon observatory when it was first put into operation and the views of M42 were outstanding, so maybe there will be some more distant objects in my future