View Single Post
  #1  
Old 18-07-2012, 05:26 PM
skysurfer's Avatar
skysurfer
Dark sky rules !

skysurfer is offline
 
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: 33S 150E (AU holiday)
Posts: 1,181
Why are eyepieces getting larger and larger ?

It strikes me that modern eyepieces are getting larger, bulkier and heavier with a few exceptions.

Currently there are 120º FOV eyepieces available from Explore Scientific which weigh 1.3kg and require extra counterweights or other balancing devices on smaller and medium sized telescopes. Ethoses are not lightweright as well even the shorter FL ones, weight and size are at least like (filled) 500ml beer bottles/cans or (filled) jam jars.

No I don't want to go back to the crappy 24.5mm barrel Huygens or orthoscopic tunnel vision eyepieces, but currently some eyepiece sizes are outrageous. Myself I have relatively small eyepiecelets with the Panoptic 24mm as the largest (250g) and no 2" eyepieces at all.

Can the manufacturers not 'downscale' the large and long FL eyepieces like the Ethos 21 'downscale' (resizing all elements) retaining its design ?
E.g. make a '1:2 'scale model' of a 21mm Ethos which means a 10mm 'mini Ethos' with 100º FOV and fits well in a 1.25" (32mm) barrel (and even in an old 24.5mm) and weighs only 1/(2^3)*900 = 110-120 grams ?

Presumably I think too simply.
Reply With Quote