Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 July 2016
This paper continues the investigations carried out at the Royal Observatory Edinburgh into the microspot problem affecting Kodak Spectroscopic plates taken with the UK 1.2m Schmidt Telescope (UKST) at Siding Spring Observatory (SSO). Over 10,000 plate inspections have been made since the previous report. Analysis of all the available data shows that UKST plates on IIIa- emulsions processed up to January 1991 continue to show evidence of microspot contamination. Various changes to the processing procedures are listed and the effects on spot formation are analyzed. The effectiveness of Rapid Selenium Toner in the original processing line and post-processing is discussed.