Baader Planetarium 2" Herschel Safety Wedge Solar Prism.

The New Baader Planetarium 2" Herschel Safety Wedge Solar Prism offers the finest white-
light solar views obtainable, and is the only white light filter that we have found to noticeably
exceed the performance of Baader AstroSolar Film. The Herschel wedge prism provides safe
full-aperture solar views without absolutely no image degradation. Views are noticeably
superior in resolution and contrast to even the very finest and most expensive glass objective
solar filters and films. The amount of Sunspot detail and surface granulation will surprise
even the most experienced solar observer. Penumbra resolve into a staggering range of
contrasts and fine wispy details. The solar disc is set against a jet-black sky, like observing
the full moon at night! With our Herschel Wedge Prism, it becomes obvious that the lack of
detail and contrast experienced with most other white-light filters was not so much due to
the atmospheric seeing as you had thought... A further benefit is the true unfiltered nature of
the spectrum passed by the filter. Unlike all objective solar filters, the Baader Herschel
Wedge does not selectively filter any of the visual wavelengths. This provides a true white-
light view, and permits the use of additional eyepiece filters to selectively study any bands
desired, without the compounding effects of a pre-filter.

The Baader Safety Herschel Wedge is the finest solar wedge ever produced for amateur use.
It is the culmination of Baader's many years of experience in the design and production of
Herschel Wedges. Utilizing a precision 2" genuine Zeiss ultra-smooth wedge prism and
proprietary Baader optical design for stray light elimination, the Baader Safety Herschel
Wedge maximizes image contrast and sharpness. While other herschel wedges use a low
-quality Chinese or other generic glass wedge prism, the large first-surface Zeiss produced
prism has high surface quality and smoothness over its entire surface which will not break
down at magnifications over 100x, permitting full-disc photography and imaging with no
resolution or contrast loss across the full field.

As supplied, a special precision polished and coated Baader ND=3.0 filter is permanently
pre-installed within the wedge housing (it MUST be present for any and all visual
observation). This critical safety feature ensures that the ND filter will always be present, with
no chance of accidentally viewing the unfiltered light as with some other herschel wedges.
The genuine Baader ND filters have been designed and produced specifically for Herschel
usage, and are the only ND filters ever to be produced with both surfaces fineoptically
polished and anti-reflection multicoated. These additional steps provide the highest image
quality across the entire field, preventing any image breakdown and scattered light which are
inherent in standard ND filters.

The modular design of the Baader Herschel Wedge incorporates a removable 2" nosepiece
and Deluxe 2" Clamping eyepiece holder (with integral brass clamp ring and dual clamp
screws). The threaded machined aluminum body permits attachment of a full range of
Baader accessories, as well as for close-coupling of cameras and Baader binoviewers. A full
system chart can be found by clicking this More Info link.

NEW FEATURES:

Our latest version incorporates an innovative Light Trap developed by Baader Planetarium.
This development takes the Herschel Wedge into the 21st Century, by rendering the output
energy cool and diffused! In all other herschel designs, the waste energy is simply
deflected out of the rear face of the prism by an angled mirror. Though quite safe with careful
use, the user still had to be aware not to place any object (or body part..) into this output
beam (and to prevent any casual onlooker from carelessly staring up into the beam). Thanks
to Baader Planetarium, this concern has now been completely removed. In place of the
typical output mirror is a coated multi-layered perforated steel screen. The bright light and
heat energy are harmlessly diffused. Even after prolonged observations through large
refractors, the light trap remains cool. You can even place a hand below the output and no
heat can be felt (also, no tempting or hazardous bright output for careless eyes to see).

Each Baader Safety Herschel Wedge now includes a pre-installed 2" Solar Continuum Filter!
With the Solar Continuum, the contrast and image stability is further enhanced in all
telescopes. The combination of the Herschel Wedge and Solar Continuum Filter delivers the
finest solar views obtainable with any white-light telescope. The Solar Continuum filter may
be removed by the user, if desired (but the ND=3.0 must not be removed).

We now offer two versions of the Herschel Wedge: The lower priced Version-V (visual) comes
with the pre-installed ND=3.0/1:1000 (required for safe viewing), and a pre-installed 2" Solar
Continuum Filter. The Version-P (photographic) starts with the Version-V and adds 3
additional Baader ND filters (ND1.8/1:64, ND0.9/1:8, ND0.6/1:4 ). The additional ND filters
are handy for further dimming the image by using in place of the Continuum filter for white
light viewing, or attaching to eyepieces or a T2-15 Reducer, and are particularly useful for
imaging.

All of the fine-optically polished genuine Baader ND filters now incorporate special anti-
reflection multi-coatings, to further eliminate light scatter and ghosting for maximum image
contrast. The result is image quality unachievable with any other ND filter.

Please Note:

The Herschel Wedge is only recommended for use with refracting telescopes, NOT Schmidt
-Cassegrain, Maksutov, or any other Reflecting Telescopes. This is a professional-quality
white light (not H-Alpha) solar filtration system, whose basic design concept has existed for
almost as long as the telescope itself. Like glass or mylar film objective solar filters, it is
completely safe if used properly and common sense precautions always observed. Please
click on the More Info link for additional safety information.

Similar in length to any 2" diagonal, the Baader Herschel Wedge requires more back-focus
than a 1.25" accessory. The path length of the Herschel is 128mm, as measured from it's
front face to the top of the 2" eyepiece holder. Since most 2" eyepieces have their field stops
well below the main eyepiece body, most telescopes will need less than 128mm of back
focus to accommodate the Herschel. Most telescopes with 2" focusers will have no problem
providing this amount of back-focus (in-travel). However, some telescopes, such as many
TeleVue refractors, provide limited back-focus that may require a shorter path length for some
eyepieces. For these scopes the path length of the Herschel may be reduced to 108mm for
1.25" eyepieces by the attachment of a T2-27 adapter and T2-08 1.25" Clicklock eyepiece
clamp.

"I received the Herschel prism Tuesday afternoon. Thanks for shipping it so securely. I have
read the additional safety information and I will be sure to check that the D=3.0 ND filter is
always installed correctly. I absolutely love the views through it with my AP 4" f/10 . It is
better than I expected. Thank you again." Stan Jung

"I recently bought a Baader Herschel wedge from you and would like you to know that I am
101% happy and contented with its performance, optical quality, as well as fit and finish. I
would unhesitatingly recommend it to anyone interested in the finest available white light
solar filter. Several of the images I took with the wedge have already been featured in
spaceweather.com ." John Nassr, Philippines

Prices:
Baader Herschel Wedge Solar Prism 2", Visual - £391.00 + £10.00 shipping & insurance
Baader Herschel Wedge Solar Prism 2", Photographic - £455.00 + £10.00 shipping &
insurance

Herschel Wedge Accessories: Polarizing Filters

A particularly handy attribute of the Herschel Wedge is it's partial polarizing effect on the
solar image. This permits a very convenient means of variably adjusting the image
brightness, simply by using a single polarizing filter between the Herschel and Eyepiece.
The filter/eyepiece combo can then be rotated, and the image is variably dimmed. We use a
Baader polarizer in our own observations, finding this very useful to easily achieve the
optimum brightness for maximum visual contrast at any magnification.

We sell two sizes of Polarizing filters for visual use with the Herschel (both are produced in
Japan for Baader Planetarium). The 1¼" version can be threaded onto an eyepiece directly.
The 2" can, of course, be attached to a 2" eyepiece. For the ultimate in convenience, we
recommend the 2" Polarizer attached to a T2-15 (2"/1¼" reducer). This allows you to
conveniently switch between 1¼" eyepieces without removing the filter, and still maintaining a
close position between the eyepiece and filter. Use of a T2-15 also gives you a very
convenient means of attaching and removing the Solar Continuum filter.

Please Note: Polarizing filters are intended for visual use and must only be used in
conjunction with the existing internal ND=3.0 filter. A polarizing filter does not provide
sufficient blocking by itself, nor is it able to block IR wavelengths as completely as an ND
filter.

Herschel Wedge Accessories: Adapter 2"/T-2 Filterholder T2-27

The Herschel Wedge housing incorporates internal 2" threading on the output. As supplied,
the Herschel Wedge includes a 2" filter holder and 2" Eyepiece clamp on the output of the
wedge. The T2-27 2"/T-2 Filterholder may be used to convert the output of the Herschel
Wedge to an external T-2 thread. This allows closer direct attachment of cameras, T2-08
Clicklock Eyepiece Clamp 1¼”/T-2 , or Binoviewers (use a T-2 Quick Change Ring for the
Baader MkV). Please Note: The ND=3.0 filter supplied with the Herschel MUST be
transferred to the T2-27 for visual use (or other ND filters for photographic use)

The Astronomy Shop

1 Tone Hill. Wellington

Somerset TA21 0AU

United Kingdom

Telephone: +44 (0)1823 665510