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Old 01-05-2017, 11:17 AM
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Nebulous (Chris)
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Lengthy Newbie Progress Report - 3 weeks in.

Hi all,

Please excuse the length of this. My enthusiasm ran away with me..

Three weeks ago I’d never heard of the IceinSpace website. And, frankly, where the night sky was concerned I didn’t know my Aries from my Eridanus.

But now - thanks to your collective corrupting influences - I’ve been inspired to dive headlong into the murky world of amateur astronomy. And all I can say is “thank you”. And “Look out NASA”….


Week 1:

April 11th. Took a few blurry time exposure pictures of the stars above our house, and became intrigued….

Made a solemn vow not to buy any gear - especially not a telescope - until I’d paid my dues for a month or two and learned a lot more about the night sky.

Week 2:

The nearest equipment shop was shut for several days over Easter so I was able to keep my vow for almost a whole week before I bought a telescope. My Grand Plan for something elaborate shrunk dramatically at the sight of the price tickets and I slunk out of the shop with a very basic Skywatcher 80x400 refractor on an AZ3 mount, for around $300. It can double for earthbound viewing as it shows everything the ‘right’ way up instead of the usual astronomers inverted view. As if being 70 with lousy eyesight and creaking bones wasn’t already enough of a challenge to my wobbly attempts at astronomy...… You want me to cope with upside-down as well?? If there isn’t already a cheesy bumper sticker that says “Astronomers do it upside down in the dark” then there ought to be.

Luckily, it turned out to be an OK choice. No problems finding the Southern Cross and Orion or focusing on bright targets like Jupiter, Canopus, Sirius etc. especially as they seem to stand well out in their own patches of sky. In the first few days I was able to see Jupiter and its moons, a tiny but impressive crescent Venus, and eventually - after a long hunt in completely the wrong location - Saturn. Well pleased with the new toy.

Couldn’t quite see Cassini diving through Saturn’s rings though. Actually the rings looked more like modest bumps around the middle, but at least it was Saturn. So that’s four planets spotted already (naturally, as it’s also a terrestrial scope I’ve been viewing the planet Earth, so I count that one as well…) And of course various aspects of the moon and its craters. Plus the ‘Jewel Box’, The Southern Pleiades, and a chunk of, well, other random starry stuff.

Even with such a modestly magnifying piece of kit it was still dead easy to get hopelessly lost though. For instance, orienting myself in the old familiar Southern Cross proved initially challenging when only one of the four main stars could be seen at the one time. But which one did I land on? It’s OK, I figured it out now…

Getting a reflector had also been part of the Grand Plan. Maybe an 8” Dobsonian? They seem to feature in most of the polls on “Which telescope should I buy first?” But I really didn’t want to rush it.

So I waited…..oh, quite a few more hours before cracking on that one. The shop didn’t have a suitable Dobsonian in stock on the day, and anyway I was rather taken with something that looked more portable, and actually more practical in our location. And it had a properly sturdy and fancy looking mount. So I handed over some more cash and came home with a Skywatcher 150x750 reflector that came on an EQ3 mount.

And, now, for the past two weeks I haven’t bought another telescope. I’ve completely kicked the habit. Honestly. The rush of blood to the head seems to have subsided for now. Which is good, because I really don’t want to add a total eclipse of the bank account to my achievements list. Yet.

Setting up the EQ3 was fun, even though the South Celestial Pole proved to be hiding behind a jacaranda tree, and it wasn’t marked by a convenient signpost or handy star. But I got close enough and duly dropped three dots of paint on the driveway to mark the spot for the tripod. Pondering the wonderful geometry of the thing was fun too.

Week 3:

At least, setting up was fun for about a week. Then the gloss went off spending time fussing about re-aligning it each evening and I began to wonder if it was worth the bother. Especially as I wasn’t ever going to motorise it or use it for anything more complex than straightforward beginner viewing and perhaps an occasional basic single shot picture. And over-taxing the ageing brain by swapping repeatedly between using an Alt/Az mount and an Equatorial was getting to be a bit of a pain, especially at certain angles.

So I levelled the EQ’s latitude dial back to zero, made some other small adjustments, and now I can use it in a roughly similar way as an Alt/Az mount - up and down or side to side. It’s still a lot sturdier than the Alt/Az than came with the smaller scope and the control mechanisms are better quality and nicer to use. And just so that the smaller scope didn’t feel insulted or left out, I mounted it on top of its bigger mate. Not perfect but fine for now. Doubtless, I'll adjust it all back again later...

So now I have 4 stages of option.

1. Do some initial scanning with binoculars
2. Line something up with the small finder-scope.
3. Look a bit closer with the refractor, do a bit of basic star hopping, and then
4. Get up closer again with the reflector. And the reflector can see the rings of Saturn as clear as a bell. Splendid sight.

Books have also been bought - including Cosmos by Carl Sagan, plus Turn Left at Orion, and The Southern Sky Guide. The Stellarium software has been installed and has proved to be a great tool for learning and identification. As has Sky Safari. The reading and research is proving to be every bit as enjoyable as the stargazing, if not more so. And essential if I’m to bring to life the sight of all those little white dots.

And here’s the “Observatory”.

1. The camera — mounted backwards on the plate to allow tilting right up. Under the prevailing Pensioner Rules - (which state that it’s forbidden to buy anything that you could make out of a bit of old junk you have lying around in the shed) - bits of plumbing pipe have been used to provide a free sighting tube, and also to make an extender to one of the setting knobs to allow for finer adjustment. Sadly, an all-cardboard toilet roll telescope never saw the light of day. Or night.

2. The current kit and caboodle, including Stellarium, just in case I should get a little lost….as if that would ever happen…. And a small red light torch just in case I drop a lens cap and need to find it, or forget exactly which side the adjusting knobs are and need a prompt….as if that would ever happen…. And of course some imported Scottish warming fluid for medicinal purposes on those cooler nights. Also handy to cheer up the viewer when viewing conditions are disappointing.

Now to boldy go where…… where most of you have already been…. So I hope you left it tidy.

Cheers, and thanks again to you all for the inspiration and encouragement. It’s proving to be a fascinating hobby. And if you read right to the end of all that waffling then award yourself a star.

Chris
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  #2  
Old 01-05-2017, 01:06 PM
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iborg (Philip)
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Thank you for a very enjoyable read!
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Old 01-05-2017, 01:33 PM
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Chris, I can totally relate to your short, to date, journey.

I've always had an interest in 'things up there' mainly birds, planes and the night sky. About two tears ago I decided to try some astro shots of the Milky Way, Eta Carina etc with rather underwhelming results. Joined this forum and several others and started reading and asking dumb questions, although it was pointed out to me that the dumbest question is the one that you don't ask.

I'm a hard marker on my own work and it soon became apparent that if
I was to be satisfied with my results I needed the 'right gear'. My main areas of interest are the Milky Way with a terrestrial subject in the foreground, and the various nebula that I can photograph without a monster 'scope.

Hmm, I need a tracking mount for Nebula. Researched and rejected heaps, and finally decided on an HEQ5 Pro. Bought one, it arrived, it wasn't the 'Pro' version, and faulty, so returned it. While looking for a replacement I came across a new EQ6 at the right price. It arrived with a colour-mismatched tripod and head, and missing a counterweight and a saddle locking bolt. Got the missing bits sorted and fitted a stepper motor kit and was ready to go, sort of, when I worked out how to mount my DSLR.

Being a couple of hours up the road from the big smoke it wasn't as easy as ducking down to the local Bintel or whatever and sourcing the right bits.

And it was slowly seeping into my seventy-five year old cranium that a 16KG head was not going to be easily manageable for too much longer. Bit the bullet and put it up for sale and it's now gone to one of our members in the north of WA. Back to a new HEQ5 Pro, a real one this time, bought locally from a B&M store and I was ready to go again, sort of.

I was not only having trouble finding what I wanted to photograph but also getting sharp focus while squatting at weird angles. My solution was a laptop, bought a cheap Toshiba Satellite (what else huh) upgraded the RAM from 2GB to 8GB and fitted a SSD so I can now tether my camera to my laptop via 'Control my Nikon' (tried a couple of others) and focus using the laptop screen with a Bahtinov mask on my lens to make life easier.

"Are we there yet?" Not quite. Since I started my journey buildings have gone up on adjoining properties and trees have grown. I cant have a set-up with a clear view of the SCP so I've had to mark a shadow line at solar noon for aligning my tripod and use Sharp Cap to polar align.

I've also acquired a WO Guide scope for when I'm up to using it, however I intend to start off with just tracking.

I've probably been ready to start some imaging for about six weeks but between the moon and the weather I've had three clear nights, one I had a previous engagement and the other two were after 45°C days with the night sky shimmering like a desert mirage.

I'm sure that most who have got into this night sky caper can relate to both our stories. Patience is not one of my long-suits but I'm learning.

Cheers

Kev

PS: The below pic of my set-up to date was taken in my lounge room that has been ready to paint for ages, but I always seem to find something more interesting to do. If the truth be known, I've probably elevated procrastination to an art form.
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Old 01-05-2017, 03:04 PM
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Chris, great read and even better to know you havent been put off by some of this hobbies eccentricities. I don't know if a dob should be on your shopping list just yet now and when you do maybe a 10" minimum would be what to aim for. A small dob is great to get you around the sky easy, eq mounts are a pain and you've found the kneeling position is sometimes a requirement depending where the eyepiece ends up. it's the little hassles that can cause first timers to just put astronomy in the "too hard" basket and give up. But it wont be lng before you go chasing those faint fuzzies and seeing a galaxy through the eyepiece is just amazing I hear (never have yet with my gear and my eyes). And for faint fuzzies the width of your light bucket is important not so much its length (another bumper sticker in there somewhere, a kickstarter opportunity perhaps to buy more gear, um research tools?), but with a reflector and refractor you're set for years to come. At this point I would suggest some good quality eyepieces be on your shopping list as the ones supplied with a scope are poor quality and your view will sharpen up with crispen and more contrasting views with some quality eyepieces, Again I'd keep away from the eyepiece kits as they will be a small improvement but in the long run a wasted money stop gap. I'd suggest a Baader around 8mm and 24mm and maybe a quality barlow (I got the Televue Powermate 2.5x I think to use with Baader Hyperions (now superceded by their Morpheus range)).the will give you a good spread of "zoom", some of the lower end scopes dont like achieve focus with a Zoom eyepiece (I use a baader zoom mostly when visual) but cant say for certain to buy it yourself with your scopes. You'll see yourself a good eyepiece will seem like you bought a new telescope, keep your eye on the sales section as others sell off their good eyepieces, televues tend to vanish fast. But try to calm yourself and stick to two good eyepieces at the start with good eye relief. I'd say one around mid20mm to 30mm as a wide view (for larger regions, moon, star hopping etc) and one around 8mm (maybe 6mm) as your closeup zoom eyepiece for planetary and craters. Problem with sub-10mm eyepieces is the atmospheric seeing conditions quickly blur the image losing you detail becaue the magnification factor is high. I found my 8mm hyperion was reliable for crisp viewing and on good nights with the powermate it becomes a good 3.5ish mm eyepiece. Avoid the cheap barlows off ebay, they use plastic optical elements (like some of the cheap scope supplied eyepieces), aim for a quality one and buy once rather than work through intermediates wasting money on the way. You dont need to make rush purchases, You may be able to get a little time on someone elses telescope one night and try your good eyepieces with a good barlow and see if the difference is worth the cost. Once you hit seeing limits your gear cant improve matters . I'm sure others have differing opinions though, I still consider myself a newbie with many years and dollars under the bridge in this addictive hobby Still learning every day and enjoying it. On the subject of seeing, somebody recently posted a link here to an awesome seeing guide site that I've forgotten. Worth trying to get your head/eyes around judging seeing so you dont go buying gear you cant use when the seeing limit is the problem (unless you can launch your gear into space and away from our dodgy atmosphere.

The sky is a big place and always something to see. You may find yourself being draw for some unknown reason to just certain aspects of it. Maybe a messier spotting list: see how many you can see each year. Comet hunting, binary splitting, a lot of this stuff sound boring on paper but once you hunt down something and get it in your eyepiece its a weird thrill, we all get it so dont feel ashamed. I still need to get uranus and pluto in the eyepiece one day, no hurry though, been a few years since I tracked down neptune with a 100mm tabletop dob. using both a tablet app and star chart book and 45min of slow methodic star hopping, being certain of my view until finally there it was a tiny blue dot lost in all the other dots and the only dot not accounted for in the star chart and just where my tablet said it should be. Jupiter and saturn always still thrill me, i'm yet to see the red dot through eyepiece though. The sky is there for you to explore at your own pace and in your own way.

Dont forget the sun either, sunspots are easy to view and photograph with a home madebaader white light filter. If there's no eclipse coming up pick yourself up a batch of five or ten eclipse glasses off ebay to share with your mates (just for looking up at the sun, NEVER to be used with binoculars/telescopes/monoculars etc). Partial eclipses are more common but still infrequent and still amazng to see with your eyes. Just be aware if there is a total eclipse coming up somwhere on earth, the prices go up and stocks vanishe fast. Worth picking up a few when you can just to have on hand. You can make your own camera/telescope solar filter for shooting sunspots using the baader solar filter sheets I linked above and a few plumbing bits. ONLY use the Baader sheets though, alternatives using equivalent mylar orwelding glass might work but it might also damage your eyes and equipment too, the baader sheets are around $40 for A4 sheet and the right tool for the job.
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Old 01-05-2017, 03:08 PM
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Nebulous (Chris)
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Thank you for a very enjoyable read!
Thanks for the kind comment Philip.

Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkKnight View Post
Chris, I can totally relate to your short, to date, journey.

I've always had an interest in 'things up there' mainly birds, planes and the night sky. About two tears ago I decided to try some astro shots of the Milky Way, Eta Carina etc with rather underwhelming results. Joined this forum and several others and started reading and asking dumb questions, although it was pointed out to me that the dumbest question is the one that you don't ask.

...........

PS: The below pic of my set-up to date was taken in my lounge room that has been ready to paint for ages, but I always seem to find something more interesting to do. If the truth be known, I've probably elevated procrastination to an art form.
Thanks for posting your story Kev. Good to read about some of the highs and lows that many of us share. I have the same difficulty with equipment - nothing local. In fact, even Perth City doesn't seem to have much in the way of dedicated astronomy shops. Your aims with astrophotography sound both interesting and attractive - I can feel some further pressure on the bank balance starting to build up... I like your idea of including some earthbound framing in the shots, so I hope you get better skies soon and that we get to see some of your pictures.

I can relate to your painting project too. I have a shed like that. I got half way round when it started to get too hot, and if I hang on for a little longer it might get too wet... Although I did get one more wall done recently.

Patience? Yes, not my strongest suit either. But I've always been pretty good at staring blankly into space...

Cheers,

Chris
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Old 01-05-2017, 03:41 PM
DarkKnight (Kev)
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Chris, I just noticed in your post part of my quote reads
Quote:
About two tears ago
. Freudian slip perhaps?
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Old 01-05-2017, 04:30 PM
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Chris, I just noticed in your post part of my quote reads . Freudian slip perhaps?
Nice one.!
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Old 01-05-2017, 04:33 PM
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Chris, great read and even better to know you havent been put off by some of this hobbies eccentricities. I don't know if a dob should be on your shopping list just yet now and when you do maybe a 10" minimum would be what to aim for.
Thanks for some more great tips Sil.

Yes, an 8" Dob has been crossed off the shopping list but I did just happen to notice that a guy in Perth had a second hand 10" listed on Gumtree....

But I really do need to calm down for a while and just get to know the skies better first. GAS can be a costly affliction. I ended up with a few too many guitars when I got into music. I now realise that my initial goal of "get to know the night sky" was both ambitious and vague. So it's been narrowed down to getting a general overall feel of where the more obvious stars and constellations are (and when) and then picking a much smaller area to try and get to know in a little more detail. And a modest area near the Southern Cross seems to fit the bill, with a lot of interesting targets that are usually in view.

I'm still exploring the world of eyepieces but the scopes came with a 10mm, a 25mm and a 28mm As you say, the quality isn't top notch but they will do for now. I did add a 6mm which gives a good close up view but also starts to show the limitations of the equipment with regard to crispness, etc. The weakest link in the chain currently is not so much the gear but learning how to keep my head steady in the right spot to get the right view. Improving, but it will take a fair bit more practice. So the current eyepieces are probably enough to be getting on with. But I've snipped out the section on eyepieces from your post and filed them way for later reference, so thanks for that.

Cheers,

Chris
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Old 01-05-2017, 07:21 PM
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A great write up Chris and it's good to see that you're enjoying your newly found hobby. You're progress in the past three weeks is huge and really shows how passionate you are and that's one of the most important things to sticking with any hobby. That's a nice little setup that you have there. When I saw that camper chair it brought a smile to my face. I have the exact same one and completely agree that it's very comfy. Happy hunting.
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Old 01-05-2017, 08:14 PM
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When I saw that camper chair it brought a smile to my face. I have the exact same one and completely agree that it's very comfy. Happy hunting.
Thanks LostinSp_ce. It's almost dark enough now this evening, and the missus has some TV lined up so it's about time to go out and sit in that comfy chair again.

One more story first though..

In the interest of full disclosure, I should probably also admit that in the first week of owning the 150x750 Newtonian telescope I managed to drop it. Fortunately the other scope was not then mounted on the top, so only one of them took a fall.

What happened was that I was carrying it back into the shed in the dark, and put it down for a moment. One leg of the tripod lodged on the ramp into the shed and, as luck would have it, the counterweight was on the opposite side at the time… So as I bent down to pick up the lens cap I’d dropped, the whole lot toppled over with a loud and expensive sounding crash.

Fortunately, the guardian angel that protects idiots must have been doing some overtime that night and the only thing that broke was small plastic adjusting screw on the finder scope. Easily replaced with a metal version from the well stocked tin of miscellaneous old bolts in the shed.

But it did sustain a minor scratch or two and a very modest little dent. Naturally, it was out of alignment after such an indignity too. So that was the perfect excuse to dismantle it all and explore how it was put together , humbly apologising all the way. The panel beating required was nothing more than pushing a small indentation back out with my thumb and then reassembling and realigning everything, which was interesting to do and, mercifully, actually worked.

All that really happended was that it brought forward the inevitable time when I take new toys to pieces to see how they work. But I take a lot more care now. I may not be so lucky next time.

Cheers,

Chris
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Old 01-05-2017, 08:49 PM
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Haha... I dread the day that I drop the scope. I've made very sure to drill both the setup and dismantle procedure into my brain so that there is no improvisation in the case of a fall. If I ever take a tumble or drop the scope it will be the skull that needs repairing and not the equipment. Bones heal but optics don't.
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Old 02-05-2017, 08:24 AM
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The weakest link in the chain currently is not so much the gear but learning how to keep my head steady in the right spot to get the right view.

This is common too on the supplied eyepieces, look at the more expensive ones and take note of eye relief. The good eyepieces are design to eliminate what I think was called the kidneying effect where its a tiny sweet spot where you can actually see anything. Happens on microscopes too. I'd wager a good 10mm will give you far crisper, wider views than your current one and be much easier on the eyes/neck/back to see the view. If you can it'd be worth you getting out with your scope and some other enthusiasts and try some eyepieces for yourself. Its not just a matter of magnification, you'll understand the first chance you get to try a better eyepiece on your scope
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Old 02-05-2017, 09:36 AM
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If you can it'd be worth you getting out with your scope and some other enthusiasts and try some eyepieces for yourself. Its not just a matter of magnification, you'll understand the first chance you get to try a better eyepiece on your scope
There's a stargazing get together later this month, organised by the camera shop where I bought the telescope, so I'm hoping to get a chance to look through some better gear then.

Fortunately, the shop only has a tiny selection of eyepieces in stock and they're similar to the ones I already have. So I should be able to resist the urge to waste money on poor choices until I have a bit more experience.

Cheers,

Chris
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Old 02-05-2017, 10:26 AM
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Three weeks completed

Well, the first three weeks is about up now and I've been incredibly fortunate with the weather. There were only two or three cloudy nights and on two of them the skies cleared later in the evening. I think there was only one complete blanket. And the temperature was pleasant too - no coats, jumper, gloves, etc required. Beginners luck, but it made a big difference.

I've picked up a few (more) odd habits along the way. My wife is now used to the bizarre sight of me nipping back into the house squinting ferociously with one eye open and one closed..... I thought that if I was going to wreck the hard won night vision by going back into the well lit house, then maybe I could at least preserve one eye by keeping it shut. To my amusement, when I did go back outside, opening the eye again actually worked and it was like turning the night-vision back on. " Aaaaargh, Jim lad, me pirate eye patch is just for preserving me stargazing night vision while I pops back to me cabin to feed the parrot...."

I tried something new last night - attaching the camera to the telescope(s) instead of having it on a separate tripod. Not something I'm likely to persist with but it with but it was intriguing to try. The camera ended up with weird orientations, and focusing was as hard as I expected, but I did manage to get a couple of mediocre pictures. Even in daylight I find it very hard to use manual focus using the viewing screen on the back of the camera and at night, with or without glasses on, it's little more than guessing. It might be useful for taking rough pictures to study and compare with charts later, but I can't see myself doing any serious astrophotography.

A couple of nice cheesy moon shots (one with each scope) but nothing I probably couldn't have got with a regular camera and long lens on a tripod. And a colourful but low quality picture of Mimosa (aka Beta Crucis, Becrux, etc) in the Southern Cross, with the Jewel Box nearby.

Thanks again for all the useful tips and encouragement.

Cheers,

Chris
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Old 02-05-2017, 12:22 PM
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astrophotography is possible what you have now, it just takes time, patience and understanding what to do to counter not having other gear. I do mine mostly dslr+lens+tripod, no tracking, no telescope. so from AP pov you already have excess gear You havent been put off yet and willing to play around with doing without more expensive gears, so I could see you delving into AP one day.
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Old 03-05-2017, 08:27 PM
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Simply wonderful thread!
Enjoyed reading it immensely. I totally agree Chris, that the reading that goes with the observing is almost as good....for me reading others accounts of their own adventures is every bit as good.

If I lived in Perth, i suspect you would make a great Astro buddy.

Looking forward to more of your logs....AEJR from the US also posts some great ones.��

Hemi
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Old 12-05-2017, 06:18 PM
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Great read Chris! I have just got my self a Celestron cpc 800 edge hd after many years using binos I can relate very much to your story! The highs and the lows off the hobby but it's been a blast.

Being from Perth too its disappointing there's no Stores dedicated to telescopes so I have been buying from the eastern states and have had no problems so far. My favourite spot is up in Pickering brook at a mate orchard which lets me escape the Perth lights so I can spot those fuzzy hiding out there. Cheers

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Old 12-05-2017, 08:31 PM
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Simply wonderful thread!
Enjoyed reading it immensely. I totally agree Chris, that the reading that goes with the observing is almost as good....for me reading others accounts of their own adventures is every bit as good.

Hemi
Thanks for the kind words Hemi. I've never been to Darwin but my brother was over-nighting there in the 70's when Cyclone Tracey flattened much of it. He was supposed to take a plane out the next day (he was an airline pilot) but ended up being delayed for quite a few days while some of the debris was sorted out. I hope you get good skies there.


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Originally Posted by coltpeacemaker View Post
Great read Chris! I have just got my self a Celestron cpc 800 edge hd after many years using binos I can relate very much to your story! The highs and the lows off the hobby but it's been a blast.

Being from Perth too its disappointing there's no Stores dedicated to telescopes so I have been buying from the eastern states and have had no problems so far. My favourite spot is up in Pickering brook at a mate orchard which lets me escape the Perth lights so I can spot those fuzzy hiding out there. Cheers
The Celestron cpc 800 looks like a very nice score indeed. I might have to do some serious saving before I can snag a prize like that!

Pickering Brook is a lovely spot. Sitting in an orchard setting looking at the stars sounds like a great way to relax and enjoy the skies. We’re near Mundaring but far enough from any townsites to also enjoy some good viewing. Although not tonight. The only light struggling to pierce the cloudy gloom right now is Jupiter. However, it was clear last night and I sat outside for a while happily star hopping with the familiar smell of bush smoke in the air (from local hazard reduction burns) and the noise of bandicoots scuttling around me in the dark for company.

Good to hear that you’ve been happy with the experience of buying from the East. I’ll probably end up doing that too at some stage.

I’ve now been enjoying the hobby for a month, so can’t claim to be completely new any more, but I’ve got through the initially stages of waving the telescope all over the sky attempting to find new and different sights. I ticked off a few well known targets and then settled down to learn a “small” patch well. We have a lot of trees on the block but the area of sky I’ve chosen is easy to see from where I set up. It’s basically the Southern Cross and some other nearby attractions.

Initially I’d find the pointers and the Cross without trouble and then immediately get lost! But now I can locate all the parts of the Cross, the Jewel Box, the Running Chicken Nebula, Eta Carina in the The Carina Nebula, the Southern Pleiades, etc reasonably quickly and reliably. My aim is to explore those features a bit more thoroughly but also to be able to point my telescope randomly up in that vague general direction and get to know the less obvious patches of surrounding sky well enough to be able to pick where I'm looking, even when I haven’t landed on an easily identifiable section. I’m really enjoying the challenge and it should keep me occupied for a very long time yet!

Cheers,

Chris

EDIT: Well, I did say that the only light struggling to break through the cloudy gloom tonight was Jupiter, but a few minutes ago, just before the cloud completely shut everything out, this object appeared from behind a tree. Hand held picture taken in a hurry with a regular camera, an inexpensive 300mm lens and everything set on automatic. So it's a bit fuzzy. I was about to fetch a tripod and try something a bit steadier and more considered when it vanished back behind the cloud.... With colour like that it may have been the glow from the exhaust pipe of an Alien spacecraft - so I was probably lucky not to get snatched up and probed...
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Last edited by Nebulous; 12-05-2017 at 11:10 PM.
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  #19  
Old 12-05-2017, 11:04 PM
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Nebulous (Chris)
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False alarm.

The clouds parted again, the colour all disappeared and it was just the usual suspect...

Tough hobby this sometimes. Maybe there'll be stars tomorrow. Or Aliens.
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Old 13-05-2017, 03:24 PM
cadman342001 (Andy)
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I have thoroughly enjoyed reading of your adventures Chris !

Not surprisingly, there are a shortage of telescope shops here in Cairns too so I had to resort to ordering my new QHYCCD Polemaster from HK.

Of course, the skies were clear as a bell while I waited for that to arrive and then turned to cloudy and rainy, then full moony with the moon rising early and staying up all night so I haven't had much chance to practice my PA.

I did attempt it once in the garden with my laptop on a camp table, cheap $8 folding chair from K-Mart and the D600/tripod/Star Adventurer and Polemaster but had zero chance of finding Sigma Octantis with the fullish moon. Just random screens of stars on the laptop with no particular pattern standing out ! I'll be taking a screen shot and Plate Solving it next time so that I can at least see if Sigma Oct is even on the screen
It was made worse by my youngest son (18) and his girlfriend hanging around and asking questions like "why can't you just point it away from the moon" after I had already explained that I had to do the PA facing due south and on seeing the template for Octans on the laptop screen in the Polemaster software (without any stars being in line with the template naturally) asking "Is that the Big Dipper?"

Andy
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