Any amateur astronomers post here?

[InstantDeath]

Damn! I am uber-jealous of your scope dude!

I am highly interested in space, and astro-physics. Unfortunately I live in the most light polluted area in the world - the NYC/Phila corridor - so seeing stars around here is pretty crappy.

This is my favorite astro-physics book though - check it out, its awesome, and really easy to read. He puts really complicated concepts into understandable terms, so you dont have to hold a quantum physics degree to 'get it'.

[pylon]

Originally Posted by SinceDay1

Nice scope Pylon. I've got a Nexstar 5i. It's the predessor to the Nexstar SE line and only a 5" aperture. Still gets the job done but struggles a bit with deep sky as it doesn't pull in as much light as yours. Looking to upgrade to 10" or 12" dob in the next year or so as my current interest is mainly visual deep sky. Any photography I've done has been strickly afocal. I joined the Calgary chapter of the RASC last year mainly to get access to the Wilson Coulee Observatory near Okotoks. It's only an Orange site on Bortle scale but still darker than my backyard. It would probably be equivalent to the place you observe in Springbank. You have to drive a ways to get to a green site or better. The RASC has turned out to be a great help. They have new observer nights where more experienced members are available to lend a hand. Here's a link to their site:
http://calgary.rasc.ca/
Another great website is the Cloudy Nights forum:
http://www.cloudynights.com/
I'd also recommend The Backyard Astronmer's Guide by Terence Dickinson and Alan Dyer. Very comprehensive book with a great section on astrophotography. Speaking of which, nice picture of Saturn. I'm guessing you used a Neximage CCD. Not really an expert but my colleague is an avid astrophotographer. Here's his site:
http://calastro.webs.com/
He's also started a private Yahoogroup dedicated to astrophotography in Alberta. Plenty of folks there who could help you out. PM me if your interested in a link to it.

Wow thanks for all the info.

I did join cloudy nights, since there seems to be a ton of info that is Scope specific. It is also where I pulled the Saturn pic from. And yes, it was catpured using a Neximage CCD using the same scope I bought. I do want to join the RASC, but once I am not such a massive noob and I get a few nights under my belt where I am starting to know what I am up to.

The book that Ken gave me when I bought my scope was "Nightwatch" by Terrence Dickinson. Very cool and informative starter book, and lots of star charts to study so I don't have to rely on the scopes computer all the time. I am having an equal amount of fun using my tripod mounted 20 X 80 binos and trying to find stuff using the star charts. To me part of the fun is being able to hunt stuff down and not just pushing a button. If I really get into this (which is looking highly likely), I will be looking at getting a 16" Dob, so knowing the sky will be a must as GOTO and autoguiders are not a practical option with them.

And PM sent. Thanks for the reply.

[pylon]

Originally Posted by Mike Oxlong

My wife and I went there a few years ago to see some celestial event that was happening. I think Mars might have been close to the earth at that time and people were lining up to catch a glimpse through the telescopes at the science centre. I can't tell you how underwhelming it was. It just looked like a slightly brighter star through their telescopes. No detail, you couldn't tell it was a planet at all. Dissapointing after lining up that long, I thought it would be far better.

I love that picture of Saturn that pylon posted. That is the type of stuff I would love to be able to go out and see. That really blows me away you can see Saturn that clearly with a relatively affordable telescope like that.

I never realized telescopes of that quality were available. This thread really makes me want to go out and buy one now. I've wanted one since I was a kid. Now that I have a kid I think it would be cool to take him out and for him to be able to see Saturn, Jupiter and yes even Uranus with his own eyes.

Keep posting pics Pylon. Love to see what you are able to see through that thing.

To clarify, that is not my picture of Saturn, it was taken with the same equipment I bought. Right now the rings of Saturn are more on edge than that. However, it is amazing what can be done with a consumer based scope now, a laptop and a few accessories. Here is a collage of pics using basically a 100 dollar webcam, and the same scope I picked up. The pictures have been modified using a post processing program called registax to enlarge them and clean them up a bit. To you eye through the viewfinder, at first the image looks pretty small, but once your eye adjusts to the scale it Jupiter and Saturn end up looking about the size of a loonie at arms length. But Saturns rings are clearly identifiable, and with the right filters, color is as well. Jupiter is frikkin awesome, as all you have to do is pretty much point at it to get impressive results. Great red spot is identifiable, and under the right conditions, shadows of the moons across the surface are easy enough to see.

Again, not my pics, but taken using the same equipment.

[firebug]

Originally Posted by InstantDeath

Damn! I am uber-jealous of your scope dude!

I am highly interested in space, and astro-physics. Unfortunately I live in the most light polluted area in the world - the NYC/Phila corridor - so seeing stars around here is pretty crappy.

This is my favorite astro-physics book though - check it out, its awesome, and really easy to read. He puts really complicated concepts into understandable terms, so you dont have to hold a quantum physics degree to 'get it'.

While the Whole Shebang is a terrific book, I don't know if I would consider in an 'easy' read.

Ferris' Coming of Age in the Milky Way I found much more approachable (of course that might be because I read it second).

To go another rung simpler than that on the pop-sci ladder, try Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything.

~firebug

[Russic]

My dad has one ... it's manual so there's no electronics involved. It's always bugged me that we didn't learn how to properly use it.

[SinceDay1]

Originally Posted by pylon

Wow thanks for all the info.

I did join cloudy nights, since there seems to be a ton of info that is Scope specific. It is also where I pulled the Saturn pic from. And yes, it was catpured using a Neximage CCD using the same scope I bought. I do want to join the RASC, but once I am not such a massive noob and I get a few nights under my belt where I am starting to know what I am up to.

The book that Ken gave me when I bought my scope was "Nightwatch" by Terrence Dickinson. Very cool and informative starter book, and lots of star charts to study so I don't have to rely on the scopes computer all the time. I am having an equal amount of fun using my tripod mounted 20 X 80 binos and trying to find stuff using the star charts. To me part of the fun is being able to hunt stuff down and not just pushing a button. If I really get into this (which is looking highly likely), I will be looking at getting a 16" Dob, so knowing the sky will be a must as GOTO and autoguiders are not a practical option with them.

And PM sent. Thanks for the reply.

I wouldn't be concerned with being inexperienced. If fact, the RASC is extremely welcoming of people new to the astronomy. There are no dumb questions and I think you'll find the members are very happy to share their knowledge. Perfect place to learn how to star hop when you get that big 16" dob. Check out this link to their NOVA nights held monthly at Wilson Coulee. http://calgary.rasc.ca/nova.htm

[SinceDay1]

Originally Posted by troutman

The Science Center has free telescope viewing Friday nights. You can talk to lots of telescope enthusiasts there for good advice.

I'm sounding like a massive shill for the RASC, but the Friday night viewing at the Science Centre is a public outreach program operated by the RASC. If you've ever gone to one of the those open houses at the U of C's Rothney Observatory, they also provide all of the scopes setup on the patio there too.

[troutman]

I spent Friday night at the Rothney Observatory, and was very impressed. Better than the science center, as it is much darker there.

We saw Venus, Mars, Saturn (rings), Orion Nebula, and the Space Station flew right over us while we there. There was no moon, the sky was clear, and it was warm - perfect conditions - scientists were coming out later to look at a star that has something "strange" in front of it. Others were looking for near-earth asteroids.

They seem to be regularly open to the public and host school and community groups. Open House March 20th:

http://www.ucalgary.ca/rao/

Added bonus - they were listening to the Flames game while gazing at the cosmos.

[SinceDay1]

I got out for observing sessions at Wilson Coulee on Friday and Saturday nights. Really good viewing conditions, especially on Saturday. The atmosphere was transparent and steady so I was able bump up the magnification more than usual. Got some great views of Saturn and Mars. Split some double stars and the Orion Nebula was pretty spectacular. Galaxies were faint and fuzzy but they always are in my telescope.

[SinceDay1]

Originally Posted by troutman

I spent Friday night at the Rothney Observatory, and was very impressed. Better than the science center, as it is much darker there.

We saw Venus, Mars, Saturn (rings), Orion Nebula, and the Space Station flew right over us while we there. There was no moon, the sky was clear, and it was warm - perfect conditions - scientists were coming out later to look at a star that has something "strange" in front of it. Others were looking for near-earth asteroids.

They seem to be regularly open to the public and host school and community groups. Open House March 20th:

http://www.ucalgary.ca/rao/

Added bonus - they were listening to the Flames game while gazing at the cosmos.

Probably Epsilon Aurigae.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epsilon_Aurigae
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100108.html

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by pylon

So my questions are these:

- As opposed to setting up in cemetary out in Springbank to get good dark skies, where do you guys set up?

/

I live on the side of a southwest facing hill southwest of the city, so I turn out the lights and step out the door into pitch black with binoculars in hand. I can pick out the bigger moons of Jupiter, see the rings of Saturn, including the Cassini division, and gaze with interest at the Orion Nebula. Most moonless nights the Milky Way is pretty awesome.

On warmer Spring or Fall nights, when the sun sets early enough and it's warm, I'll lay out in the grass with the dogs, staring up at the sky, focussing the binocs on something or other, listening to the coyotes howling and/or the deer/elk rustling nearby. Peaceful to watch the satellites criss-crossing the sky or checking ahead to see when the ISS/space shuttle is coming over.

I've thought of getting a telescope but didn't think it would make that much of a difference for most other things up there. A shiny point of light is a shiny point of light. Also, I'd freeze my ass off probably.

The most fun you can have though is getting a big flashlight and waving it out into the darkness of the field. There's usually something shiny looking back at you. Something terrestrial. The night is alive.

Good luck with that scope. Live the dream.

Cowperson

[pylon]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

I live on the side of a southwest facing hill southwest of the city, so I turn out the lights and step out the door into pitch black with binoculars in hand. I can pick out the bigger moons of Jupiter, see the rings of Saturn, including the Cassini division, and gaze with interest at the Orion Nebula. Most moonless nights the Milky Way is pretty awesome.

On warmer Spring or Fall nights, when the sun sets early enough and it's warm, I'll lay out in the grass with the dogs, staring up at the sky, focussing the binocs on something or other, listening to the coyotes howling and/or the deer/elk rustling nearby. Peaceful to watch the satellites criss-crossing the sky or checking ahead to see when the ISS/space shuttle is coming over.

I've thought of getting a telescope but didn't think it would make that much of a difference for most other things up there. A shiny point of light is a shiny point of light. Also, I'd freeze my ass off probably.

The most fun you can have though is getting a big flashlight and waving it out into the darkness of the field. There's usually something shiny looking back at you. Something terrestrial. The night is alive.

Good luck with that scope. Live the dream.

Cowperson

Saturday night was awesome for clarity. I set up on my parents driveway in Lake Bonavista, and Saturn was just awesome. With the red filter especially. I totally fluked out and managed to get it with a 6mm eyepiece and a 2 X barlow, which ended up being magnification of about 620 X. The apparent top useful mag is 480 X on an 8" F10 scope, but somehow by a total fluke, everything was perfectly focused, and the tracker managed to keep it in the eyepiece for a good minute, which is tough when you narrow the field of view that much. It was so good, you could clearly see two of the moons. So anyway, Saturn wanders just out of FOV and I manually adjust the motor to bring i back in, and it was barely out of focus, I didn't even move the focuser a micron, and it totally blurred out, and I spent a good hour trying to get it back in properly... couldn't do it. Even talked to the guy I work with that is expert on this stuff, and he said that was a 1/1000 chance to get it under that magnification, that clear. He said never adjust the collimation on the scope as it is perfectly collimated to get that result.

What was so cool, is my Mom, took a look at Saturn for the first time, and was blown away. She had never seen it from the ground before. She thought it was some sort of trick. A lot of people get pretty blown away when they see Saturn for the first time, especially when they realize they are looking at something 1.5 billion km's away. In perspective, if you jogged 24 hours a day in a straight line, you would get there in about 17,100 years, 35,000 if you walked. Mind boggling numbers.

Next night that is clear I am going to try my hand at some imaging, I will post the pics if I get some good results.

[pylon]

double post

[troutman]

Originally Posted by SinceDay1

Probably Epsilon Aurigae.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epsilon_Aurigae
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap100108.html

I think so.

[photon]

Thanks pylon, some of us get to live vicariously when you post this stuff

[pylon]

Originally Posted by photon

Thanks pylon, some of us get to live vicariously when you post this stuff

No worries. If anyone is ever interested, I can PM you next time I set up if you want to take a peak. I am like a kid in a candy store right now just touching the tip of the iceberg myself, and still find myself blown away at how cool it is.

And to clarify one thing, that post makes it sound like I live with my parents. Although I heavily contemplate moving into my folks basement after every home cooked Sunday meal, I'll still settle for skanky broads, sportbikes and all night Xbox marathons if it means living on a diet of Hungry Man dinners, Raisin Bran and Delissio Pizza.

[wooohooo]

That's so trippy.

[SinceDay1]

Originally Posted by pylon

Saturday night was awesome for clarity. I set up on my parents driveway in Lake Bonavista, and Saturn was just awesome. With the red filter especially. I totally fluked out and managed to get it with a 6mm eyepiece and a 2 X barlow, which ended up being magnification of about 620 X. The apparent top useful mag is 480 X on an 8" F10 scope, but somehow by a total fluke, everything was perfectly focused, and the tracker managed to keep it in the eyepiece for a good minute, which is tough when you narrow the field of view that much. It was so good, you could clearly see two of the moons. So anyway, Saturn wanders just out of FOV and I manually adjust the motor to bring i back in, and it was barely out of focus, I didn't even move the focuser a micron, and it totally blurred out, and I spent a good hour trying to get it back in properly... couldn't do it. Even talked to the guy I work with that is expert on this stuff, and he said that was a 1/1000 chance to get it under that magnification, that clear. He said never adjust the collimation on the scope as it is perfectly collimated to get that result.

What was so cool, is my Mom, took a look at Saturn for the first time, and was blown away. She had never seen it from the ground before. She thought it was some sort of trick. A lot of people get pretty blown away when they see Saturn for the first time, especially when they realize they are looking at something 1.5 billion km's away. In perspective, if you jogged 24 hours a day in a straight line, you would get there in about 17,100 years, 35,000 if you walked. Mind boggling numbers.

Next night that is clear I am going to try my hand at some imaging, I will post the pics if I get some good results.

Saturday was special for sure. Best "seeing" I've experienced and the transparency was above average too so the deep sky stuff was a little easier. Caught my first glimpse of the M81, M82, M104, the Leo triplet, NGC 2903 and the Owl Nebula. No luck with the Rosette, Flame or Horsehead though. I had Saturn at 159x and saw 1 moon (Titan I'm guessing). A fella with a 16" Meade Lightbridge remarked that he had 5 moons at 365x. I didn't wander over for a peak though as I was caught up in what I was doing.

Not surprised by your mom's reaction to Saturn. It's most peoples "Galileo Moment". First time I saw it I was hooked.

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by pylon

http://www.all-startelescope.com/

That shop has the 4SE model of that same one for $550 (which is currently less than half of the 8SE). As a complete noob I figure that would probably do the trick.

The thing takes batteries -- eight of them, and that seems like a hassle. I see you bought the Power Tank thing but I don't know if I'd need that. Can you plug this rig into a regular old extension cord instead of running on batteries or the Power Tank?

[pylon]

Originally Posted by SinceDay1

Saturday was special for sure. Best "seeing" I've experienced and the transparency was above average too so the deep sky stuff was a little easier. Caught my first glimpse of the M81, M82, M104, the Leo triplet, NGC 2903 and the Owl Nebula. No luck with the Rosette, Flame or Horsehead though. I had Saturn at 159x and saw 1 moon (Titan I'm guessing). A fella with a 16" Meade Lightbridge remarked that he had 5 moons at 365x. I didn't wander over for a peak though as I was caught up in what I was doing.

Not surprised by your mom's reaction to Saturn. It's most peoples "Galileo Moment". First time I saw it I was hooked.

That's what blew me away, the moons. I was thinking at first it was stars in the background, but they looked to "solid" to be stars. Then looked at the moon chart on my Iphone, and low and behold they matched up. Too cool.

You might know this... when does Jupiter come back? Mid-April?