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Baader Planetarium Oxygen III IR Cut 8.5nm Narrowband CCD/Visual Pass Filter

Baader Trademark (19,559 bytes) Baader 2 inch Oxygen III filter (42,388 bytes) The Baader Planetarium has developed several of the most precisely engineered very narrow bandpass Nebula Filters, and the Baader Oxygen III IR (Infrared) Cut is our best 8.5nm Narrowband Pass filter. Evolved from the original Oxygen III filters, this is made with features that are desirable for CCD imaging as well as for visual Pass Filter is among the best very narrow bandpass Nebula Filters. These are often referred to as light pollution rejection filters but their effect is more encompassing than that alone. This Oxygen III IR filter is a genuine bandpass filter made so that only a small portion of light in the visual doubly ionized Oxygen III portion of the spectrum is transmitted, in addition to this the filter blocks IR well beyond 1 micron to facilitate imaging faint emission nebula, diffuse nebula, and planetary nebulae.

Right: Baader 2 inch Oxygen III IR Cut filter with provided plastic case (89,185 bytes).
Click on image for enlarged view (102,167 bytes).

This filter will pass only 8.5 nanometer half width centered at 501 nm Oxygen III, with transmission of ninety three (93) per cent of that light in the portions of the spectrum commonly emitted by diffuse and emission nebula (the Veil, North American, or Dumbell Nebula for example), and planetary nebulae (Ring Nebula for example). By rejecting most other light this will cause certain nebula appear more clearly against a blacker background of space. This is among the first Nebula Filters generally recommended by Company Seven to our customers who have a suitable telescope or lens equipped with a CCD imaging system. This includes: premium quality Apo refractors of 80mm and larger, Achromatic refractors of 100mm and larger, or reflectors of 8 inch (20cm) or larger) for the task of hunting out fainter objects.

IR light resides in or affects the imaging of objects in the visible and invisible portions of the light spectrum. Some part of this is due to atmospheric dispersion while some telescopes may simply shift light in the deep red to plane outside focus of the other colors. The IR problem produces an unsharpening or ghosting effect of the image in the red, and even some shifting in blue and green portions of the spectrum. Most of the IR can be blocked (cut) from the reaching the CCD sensor with filters, while the atmospherics related shifting problem can usually be eliminated in post image capture processing. By incorporating both functions of an Oxygen III pass and IR cut into one filter then this filter eliminates the concerns of stacking two or more filters (backfocus, reflections, etc.) to achieve its desired result.

    Filters take away but they can not add - diminishing some parts of the spectrum
    so that we might see what is otherwise obscured...
 

How Do Nebula Filters Work?
These filters are a helpful accessory used with telescopes and binoculars to better view or photograph some types of the faint objects outside the Solar System. Filters of the Oxygen III variety specialize in showing diffuse emission and planetary nebula.

Street lights, especially the poorly baffled ones, cast a greenish or golden glow upon the otherwise black night sky. Particulates and humidity in the atmosphere refract and reflect that light rendering the sky background brighter, hence the fainter objects become harder to see against the brighter background. Nebular filters filter out a high percentage of the street lighting effects thereby making the background of the night sky appear blacker; faint objects stand out better against the darker background. While these are obviously beneficial for those who live near sky light polluted suburban areas, Nebular filters are helpful even when observing at darker rural settings since they also filter some of the naturally occurring background glow. Note, these filters can not help to attenuate light from neon sources since these emit across a wide bandwidth.

Narrower, and narrower bandpass filters become more and more specialized and may actually cut down the light coming from some of the brighter emission nebula; for example M42 the Great Nebula in Orion looks great with no filter, better with a broad band nebula filter, but much of the extended portions of the nebula disappear when observed with a very narrow band filter.

Baader 2 inch Oxygen III-IR 8.5nm filter (48,791 bytes)

Above: Filter spectrum of Baader Oxygen III-IR Narrowband 8.5nm CCD filter taken with MPI-DADIS Spectrograph (48,791 bytes).
Click on image to see enlarged view (112,586 bytes).

One can see the above result by simply holding this filter over the eye and looking up towards a fluorescent light. You will see only the greenish 501nm color (as above) coming through the filter with nothing else!

In the way these filters work, they will still absorb some light from desired object. And there are objects that they can not help one to see better including stars, star clusters and galaxies since these emit light from all wavelengths including those emitted by street lights. And so a pronounced darkening of these objects will be observed with the filter in place.

Observers with smaller telescopes will do best to operate at the lower magnifications, on the order of 10x or less per inch of aperture. While those with larger apertures or more efficient mid to large refractors will do well to span from low to higher magnifications.

Nebular filter coatings present a metallic, mirror like quality. As such one should use care to use the filters away from bright sources of stray light an with a well baffled telescopes. A darkening hood or blanket over the observer's head may help to keep reflections coming back to the observer, and darken the sky background seen even further.

How Are These Constructed?
Baader 2 inch Oxygen III IR Cut filter (34,838 bytes) The filter is made with a disc of transparent optical glass that has been ground to be plane parallel and then polished until very smooth. The glass undergoes a vacuum deposition coating process where numerous micron-thin coatings of various elements are applied one upon another in a precise order and thicknesses.

Right: Baader 2 inch Oxygen III IR Cut filter as viewed from eye/camera (male) side (34,838 bytes).
Click on image for enlarged view (116,675 bytes).

The filter element is housed in a machined aluminum cell, retained by a thread in retaining ring. The filter name, size and part number are in silver, and this mirror like print when combined with the small print size make this information difficult to read under dim red lighting. Company Seven recommends our customers keep these filters in well organized accessory cases, so that you know which filter is which. It helps to become familiar with how the elements appear too (read descriptions below).

Nebula Filters are made up of micron thin layers of materials deposited onto an otherwise transparent optical glass window. The coatings are calculated to transmit desired wavelengths (portions of the visible spectrum), while simultaneously rejecting a high percentage of other wavelengths. Depending on the type of filter (broad band pass or narrow band filters including Oxygen III) these filters pass light in the nebula lines which may include Oxygen III, Hydrogen Alpha, and Hydrogen Beta lines of the spectrum. In a more perfected nebula filter a higher percentage of light is transmitted in those desired wavelengths, as much as 80 to 90 percent being typical.

When tilted while exposed to bright light then both the filter surfaces will appear like a silvered mirror. And when tilted it will present with greenish undertone around the perimeter of the female side, and a magenta around the perimeter of the male side. When viewed with no backlighting and parallel to the eye from either side, then the filter element appears to impart a bright green cast, if the filter tilted to a steeper angle this changes from green to violet tones, and as the tilting advances it will ultimately show blue and then magenta tones.

The Baader Oxygen III filter is made available only in 2 inch (50.8 mm) diameter in a threaded cell so that it can be installed in line onto many accessories, or directly onto most popular eyepieces. Furthermore, the cell is threaded male and female so that other filters or devices may be attached in series.

What Does This Do For Me?
This filter is among the narrowest transmission O-III filters on the market as such it effectively blocks the entire visual spectrum with the exception of the O-III transmission lines. By means of its sophisticated optical fabrication and coating technologies it eliminates the annoying colored halos that often surround stars when seen though some other O-III filters. It is a surprisingly long lived, durable filter featuring the same ultra-hard, extremely durable vacuum-deposited dielectric coatings employed on the Baader UHC-S Nebula filters.

It is an amazing experience to see a faint planetary nebula clearly revealed in the field of view - obvious even to a child,
when before then there was not even the slightest suggestion of its presence without the Oxygen III filter in place

Diminished contrast results when definition is reduced or when light is spread out limiting the range of optical density and tone thereby making it harder to distinguish one object from another. The Baader Planetarium OIII is ideally suited for visual as well as CCD imaging applications due to it's unsurpassed contrast, it's ability to more clearly reveal variations in the intensity of an image. Compared to most other OIII filters the Baader filter improves upon:

  • Since the transmission of the light in the OIII is so efficient, fainter nebula seem to appear brighter and the extent of nebulosity that can be seen is greater - you will see more of the fainter components.

  • Since the transmission of the the other regions is so limited the background appears blacker, hence what is visible is more clearly contrasted against its background.

  • Stars appear more natural, smaller, and more intense - stars are not bloated or halated by this filter. No image degradation is perceptible even at the highest magnifications.

OIII Filter Graph (70,371 bytes)

Right: Baader Oxygen III IR cut filter transmission curve (70,371 bytes).

Features Of The Baader Filters:

  • The glass elements used to make the Baader Filters are free of striae, optically finely polished plane parallel to within 30 seconds of arc. This eliminates any double images or ghosting due to wedge errors in the glass. These filters tend to far supersede the quality of common color filter elements which are flame polished. The combination of their fine optical craftsmanship and a comparatively thin 2 mm profile allows these filters to be inserted anywhere into the optical path without introducing astigmatism or other noticeable defects into the image. For instance they can be installed in the front of a Binocular Viewer without degrading the image in any way.

  • All filters will thread into conventional slip fit eyepieces or accessories with the common 2 inch (50.8 mm) threading. These thread patterns have been tested and optimized to fit allmost all eyepieces on the market.

  • Stackable filters: each filter cell incorporates both a male and a female thread to allow stacking the filters to obtain even narrower passbands or special effects.

  • The Baader filter cells features the largest clear aperture of any 2 inch filters on the market - for complete freedom from vignetting at any focal length. The front crown of the cell incorporates milled notches which makes handling and threading the filter an easy operation in the dark.

  • For protection, each filter is provided with its own transparent plastic case. We are astonished however, that as outstanding as the filters are, plastic case latch tend to fail sometimes even when new. Company Seven therefore offer optional third party cases. And for the most discriminating clients, we even offer a custom made wood accessory case described below.

    Optional Wood Case
    optional wood case for Questar Color Filter Set. (52,803 bytes).

    The optional wood case is foam lined with cutaway spaces for filters, eyepieces and other small accessories for your telescope. Please refer to our price list for current prices for the filter set and the optional case or contact Company Seven for more information.

    Right: optional wood box for Color Filter Set (52,803 bytes)
    Click on the image to see enlarged view (190,049 bytes).

    FURTHER READING

    CLEANING & MAINTENANCE INSTRUCTIONS:

    1. It is best to protect the filter from sharp edges or any item that could cause a scratch or abrade the glass.

    2. When not in use, store the filter in a its provided rigid container, and it may help you to keep them organized in a fitted carrying case.

    3. Dew may form on the filters, if this happens do not store a wet filter into its airtight container for long periods of time; whenever possible let the filter "dry out" in order to reduce the potential for problems developing associated with Fungus, etc.

    4. Draw any large, loose bits of foreign matter from the surface of the glass with an air bulb or small vacuum. Stubborn particles can be removed with a soft camel's hair brush. Throughout the year, but especially in cold climates when static become more of a problem we particularly recommend the use of a Staticmaster brush.

    5. Place a few drops of an approved lens cleaning solution (by Carl Zeiss or Kodak) or mild soap solution of clear dish washing liquid diluted with distilled water onto a cotton swab. Then gently wipe in a circular motion with little or no pressure. The filter can be damaged if there are tiny abrasive particles on the surface which are pressed in by rubbing hard.

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