Baader Morpheus 17.5mm Eyepiece

Further details

The longest focal length Morpheus, perfect mid to low power eyepiece for virtually any telescope. The eyepiece is half the optics of a telescope - and when trying to use the optical system to its limits even good middle class eyepieces are becoming the limiting factor. Morpheus® eyepieces provide a sharp image right to the edge of the (true) 76° field of view. The brightness and richness of contrast offers a new dimension in eyepiece design. These eight-lens eyepieces with Phantom Coating® Group excel at planetary observation as well as deep-sky objects - especially when serving as photographic projection eyepieces due to their flat field design.

New Features

Metal / Rubber eyecup: The folding rubber eyecup now comes with an integral M43 threaded metal ring (this accounts for the complete line of Morpheus-eyepieces). The threaded attachment enables the eyecup to stay soft and compliant, while keeping the eyecup securely attached to the eyepiece while folding it up or down.

M43/M43 extension: all Morpheus eyepieces now include the M43 extension #2954250. It is used for optimizing the position of the eyecup in setting the personal viewing position as well as for adapting a camera with M43-thread (eg. Sony / Panasonic). In addition this extension serves also as clamping surface for smartphone holders

10-page manual: a manual with many application examples and a list of optional accessories (similar to the Hyperion manual) is included

All Morpheus® wide-field eyepieces with 4.5 to 17.5 mm focal length form the perfect complement to your low magnification eyepieces. Even at highest magnification, each Morpheus® eyepiece does provide a larger field of view than what is claimed for by many eyepieces with over 80 degrees of apparent field of view. The absence of distortion in the eyepiece enables you to oversee the full field at once and to easily find the best viewing position, while enjoying a spacewalk feeling unmatched by others. You will see deep sky objects wonderfully embedded into their stellar surroundings. In addition, the large, sharp field of view gives you much more viewing time on non-motorized (Dobsonian) telescopes without touching the telescope and w/o changing the eyepiece. All Morpheus® eyepieces feature both 1.25" and 2" nosepieces without the much hated undercuts. Still all Morpheus® eyepieces are perfectly safe against slipping due to their multitude of individual Safety-Kerfs cut into the barrels. The 2" nosepiece is integrated into the eyepiece body which saves about 21 mm in focus travel. This becomes especially useful with ultra low focal plane (visual Newtonian) telescopes. And for many other scopes it does eliminate the need for a 2 "/ 1¼" reducer adapter.

Due to their shape, design and low weight, the Morpheus® eyepieces are the best eyepieces to use in a binoviewer. No other eyepiece series has been designed consistently for this use, while offering the same (true) field angle, minimized vignetting and providing a 55 mm outer housing diameter throughout, to allow binoviewing even for children with just 55 mm interpupillary distance. The slim outer body has been made as small as possible, without any metal added simply for look or feel. The "eye-lens-group" is sized so very large, to make the viewing behavior totally stress-less. Even at too large a viewing distance the object remains visible - a feature very appreciated by public observatories with lots of untrained visitors. You will not find an eyepiece that gives a better "space-float effect". Especially when using both eyes, the edge of the field of view virtually disappears, creating that famous spacewalk-feeling - like "floating in space".

Just like the modular Hyperion® eyepiece series with 68° field of view, the 76° Morpheus® eyepiece series is also especially suitable for photography. The distortion is even lower than in the Hyperion® eyepieces, despite the larger field of view. The M43/T-2 Photo/Video adapter ring(# 2958080) fits onto all Morpheus® eyepieces. With this optional M43/T-2 connector, you can use virtually any DSLR or system camera for classic eyepiece projection through the established system of T-2 bayonet rings and attach the eyepiece instead of a lens at the correct projection distance in front of the camera. For the so-called afocal eyepiece projection, an M43/SP54 extension ring (# 2954251) is also available, opening up to a world of SP54 camera-lens step up/step-down rings (Hyperion® DT-rings) . With this system of rings any Morpheus® eyepiece can be mounted so closely onto the front lens of a large photo-objective that the eyelens of the eyepiece and the camera front lens almost make contact - but just almost! Exactly this precise distance control allows for good illumination of the camera sensor during afocal projection.

Optical Features

Full Field Sharpness: The sharp, flat 76° field is unsurpassed by any other modern wide field eyepiece. On-axis sharpness and contrast rivals the Zeiss Abbe II eyepieces, while delivering nearly equivalent performance over the full field. Stars remain diamond pinpoints as you move away from center, and the field remains flat and in focus, even in short focus telescopes.

Long Eye Relief: Morpheus® pushes the envelope of comfortable wide field viewing further than ever before, delivering close to 20mm of eye relief along with best-in-class optical performance. Eyeglass wearers can comfortably take in the full field, and users of Binoviewers will find that Morpheus® are the ultimate eyepieces for viewing with two eyes.

Low Distortion: The highly sophisticated optical design delivers exceedingly low distortion (angular magnification distortion). Planets and lunar features retain their shapes as they transit the field and the true field sizes match the theoretical value. Many companies exaggerate at this point and deliberately use off axis distortion magnification as a means to advertize blown "apparent" field sizes . You will be able to compare this given field size of 76° and find it to be the true value, calculated from the apparent field size and focal length.

Immersive Views: As avid observers ourselves, we have studied the behaviors of most commonly available wide field eyepieces and listened to other observers comments on what eyepieces give the most palpable and engaging wide field viewing experience. What we found is that the subjective ‘spacewalk’ feeling is not just a function of field of view. Interestingly, some wide-field eyepieces with fields of 82 degrees failed to deliver the same viewing experience as others with similar fields, or even some with smaller fields. We found two additional primary factors played into the equation – Eye Relief (and the related large eye lens size) and Ease of Viewing (a combination of long eye relief and control of pupil aberrations). We also found that fields much below 74 degrees tended to have a reduced effect. So, with this information in hand, we set out to design the Morpheus® series with a field of view of 76° that met all of the other optical parameters necessary to deliver a truly "immersive" viewing experience where the eyepiece essentially disappears.

Phantom Coating® Group: Pioneered in the Hyperion® lineup, the Phantom Group Multi-coatings have been further optimized for use in the Morpheus® and index-matched to each of the different glasses.

Optimized Internal Baffling: As with all Baader Planetarium eyepieces, the internal mechanicals have been fully ray-traced and baffled to eliminate the effects of stray-light and reflections.

Mechanical Features

Optimized for Binoviewing: Every last bit of space has been squeezed out of the main body to minimize its size, giving maximum nose clearance for binoviewing.

Weight reduction: Every effort has been made to eliminate unnecessary weight - especially in view of effective binoviewing. The weight of all Morpheus® eyepieces essentially are the lenses inside plus the best protection and water resistance we can supply.

Foldable Eyecups: The round folding rubber eyecup incorporates an integral M43 threaded metal attachment ring. This threaded attachment enables the eyecup to be soft and compliant, while keeping the eyecup securely attached to the eyepiece when folded or extended. The second included special winged version provides the ultimate comfort and exclusion of stray light necessary for binoviewing with eyeglasses. These eyeguards have been developed to provide the optimal comfort and eye spacing for most users and eye glass wearers. The eyeguards also protect the M43-thread which is used for adapting a camera, as described on the back of this brochure. The M43-extension can be used for setting the eye relief as well as for adapting a camera.

Safety Features: The 1¼" and 2" Barrels of each Morpheus incorporate our Slip-Protect Safety-Kerfs. The ideal safety compromise between smooth barrels and wide undercuts. The numerous shallow kerfs give additional grip and security from inadvertent drops from smooth sided barrels, without the annoying problems sometimes caused by traditional wide undercuts. Wide waffle-patterned rubber grip ring gives an extra measure of handling security.

Luminescent Labeling: The labeling glows in a soft green, if the eyepiece has been in the light for some time, or if it has been illuminated directly with a flashlight. This allows you to recognize immediately which focal length you have in your hand – even in the darkest night.

Belt pouch: Not enough space at the telescope? The pouch does not only protect the eyepiece – you can even use it as a belt pouch or attach it to your tripod.

Photo-Video Adaptation: Like their Hyperion siblings, all Morpheus eyepieces make superb imaging projection optics. Each Morpheus includes a hidden M43 photo-video eye lens thread that permits use of our extensive range of Hyperion Digital T-Rings. These rings permit direct-thread attachment of practically any imaging device for the ultimate in rigidity and close-coupling for minimal vignetting.

Delivery charge £5.95

Reviews

  Baader Morpheus Eyepiece 17.5mm  Used this to upgrade from my standard lens supplied with the telescope and I am well pleased. Quality is good, love the eye relief and the flexibility. Well presented and a handy pouch. Excellent service.   (10/08/2018) Bob - South Wales

  Impressive  The eyepiece did not disappoint, feels well-constructed, and weighing about 400g it is relatively light compared to some 2in wide field eyepieces It gave a nice view of the Orion Nebula through my 14in f5 Newtonian, there was only a slight falling off of image quality towards the edge of the field.   (10/02/2018) John Turley - Sheffield