Newbie here!

[Donga]

Gday all!

Just thought Id show my face. Im just starting in this honny and looking forward to get delivery of my first scope and trying to figure out what to do with it :)
Im from the SW West Aus and got no idea what I can see from down here but Im sure I will be kept busy for a while!
Loving the forum so far theres so much info to read and digest.

Cheers!

[JA]

Welcome to the forum Adam. Join in discussions and have fun

Best
JA

[bigjoe]

Get involved Adam ..where here to help you on your Astro journey.
bigjoe.

[ChrisV]

+1. Sounds like a good setup to start on. And everyone on IIS has been really helpful

[Andrew_Campbell]

Welcome aboard, Adam. There are a few of us sandgropers on the forum :)

[jenchris]

Lots to see and do - what scope did you plumb for?

[Donga]

Thanks for the welcomes :)

I ordered a skywatched 6 inch dobsonian. Not being sure I know where the interrst is going to take me I thought this might suit for now.
By all accounts telescopes seem to be like my fishing rods, always an excuse to buy more! :)

[xelasnave]

Welcome from me Adam.
Start looking at the Moon.
It changes from night to night and the 6 inch will show stuff that will excite you.
Others may disagree but slowly look around the sky and see what you find...don't rush.
At the moment you can also look at the large and small Magellan clouds. They are easy to spot in a dark site, just look south and you will notice them.
Orion is near above and not hard to find.
I started with a 6 inch and loved it.
Don't fuss about accessories for a while they can be a trap.
Alex

[StuTodd]

+1 Alex.
But ask a question here and you'll get 15 different answers lol.

You'll have so many wow moments with the 6" and Dob on the Moon (friends and family too!), plus some nebulae and double stars.
Download this http://www.deepskywatch.com/deepsky-atlas-release1.html, print it out and find stuff from it, eventually getting get a cheap pair of 10x50 bins to compliment your observing.

Just learn the main constellations and bright objects of interest therein, one at a time. See how Crux rotates hour by hour? The Pleiades rise and disappear again? Why is that etc..

Keep it simple, learn at your leisure and don't necessarily join your local club (mine is crap to be honest). (pre-empting any of the usual advice) :P

[Donga]

Thanks Alex and Stu for the tips and advice. Ill definately check them out :)

[ZeroID]

Another Welcome Adam, and even more advice. Get Stellarium (free) loaded onto your PC. It helps to learn the sky and is great when the clouds get in the way.

www.stellarium.org (http://www.stellarium.org)

Brent