

In addition, the occurrence of stray light in their telescope was an "unpleasant effect" and was not as serious a

We have today, and therefore were unable to predict the stray light performance of a telescope to the accuracy that is now possible. Of course, some things have changed Euler and the Princess didn't have the massive computing power Treatments, field stops, and baffles) are still some of the primary methods used to control it today (see Chapters 6, 8, and 9, respectively). It is remarkable that the methods Euler discussed to control it (i.e., the use of black surface He also suggests that she "blacken, throughout, the inside of the telescope, of the deepest black possible, as it is well known that this colour reflects not the rays of light, be they ever so powerful." Though he calls them "diaphragms" and not field stops, Euler goes on to suggest their use as a further means of "diminishing the unpleasant effect of which I haveīeen speaking." This unpleasant effect is, of course, what we now call stray light, and this letter shows that it was identified as a problem hundreds of years ago. If by any accident the tube shall be perforated ever so slightly, the extraneous light would confound the representation of the object."

(enclose the telescope) in a tube, that no other rays, except those which are transmitted through the objective, may reach the other lenses. In a letter entitled "Precautions to be observed in the Construction of Telescopes" (shown in the second figure), Euler recommends that the Princess ". These letters were eventually published as a collection and became some of the first popular science writing.
#STRAY DEFINITION SERIES#
Euler agreed and began writing the tutorial as a series of letters to the Princess, about one a week, for nearly 250 weeks. In 1741, the great Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler was asked by King Frederick the Great of Prussia to write a tutorial on natural philosophy and science for his niece, the Princess of Anhalt-Dessau. The book also demonstrates how the basic principles are applied in the design, fabrication, and testing phases of optical system development.
#STRAY DEFINITION SOFTWARE#
The most-efficient ways of using stray light analysis software packages are included. This book addresses stray light terminology, radiometry, and the physics of stray light mechanisms, such as surface roughness scatter and ghost reflections. It is imperative that optical system designers understand its consequences on system performance and adapt the design process to control it. In a low-cost consumer camera, stray light may be only a minor annoyance, but in a space-based telescope, it can result in the loss of data worth millions of dollars. Stray light is defined as unwanted light in an optical system, a familiar concept for anyone who has taken a photograph with the sun in or near their camera's field of view. Be sure to take the SPIE online course Stray Light Analysis and Control, with author and course instructor Eric Fest.
