What to observe

[roccop]

Hey All,



been outside for the past few nights gazing into the sky.


I seem to be always looking at random spots on space and Jupiter...........its getting boring.


I have a skywatcher sw600 and want to see something else.


Where else can I point my scope.

Dont get me wrong I enjoy using it but there are only so many times you can look at Jupiter before you have had enough of it ( unless there is an alien fleet orbiting it)

Could someone offer some tips for a novice astronomer.


Cheers


Roc

[erick]

Go here:-

http://www.skymaps.com/downloads.html

Download Southern Hemisphere version. Print out. Read and follow instructions. Plenty of targets marked up there.

Enjoy :)

[roccop]

will do ,



thanks


:)

:thumbsup:

[Paddy]

Hi Roc,

You might enjoy finding some smudges and different looking things and then working out what they are from the charts. Especially around Sagittarius which is where Jupiter is right now. The bulge of the Milky way there is where the centre of the galaxy is so there is a lot of stuff there in the way of nebulae and open and globular clusters. You could also have a look around neighbouring Scorpio. You will find some interesting things and it will help you to start learning some constellations so you can then find other things from your maps.

Good luck.

[Liz]

Hi Roc
You also need to get yourself a book on constellations, with good charts and info on what to look for, then you can look through specific constellations for their treasures. A lot of people write out a list of targets to aim for, before heading outside. I think there may be some threads on IIS on favourite astronomy books. Some bookshops will carry them, otherwise you can order from Astronomy outlets. Enjoy.

[mcross]

I agree with what has been written previously...
Get a set of sky charts and start to learn some of the constellations and what you can see in or around them.
You probably won't see that alien space fleet, but there's plenty more out there to see!
Good Luck,
Mark

PS As Patrick said,maybe start with Scorpius (which is very prominent and easy to locate) and Sagittarius

[Geoff45]

Try some double stars--every pair is different. For an intro and some useful links, see here (http://www.asnsw.com/sections/ds.asp) . Also, if you google "double stars" you'll turn up loads of articles and lists.
Geoff

[Starkler]

This little freeware program RTGUI (http://www.rtgui.com/) is great for giving you a list of "whats up" at any given time. It can suggest a list of current "best of the sky" objects, or you can use defined search parameters. Awesome!

[JethroB76]

Agree with this, great program

[fwhong]

Agreed. Excellent tip.

[roccop]

Sincere thanks for the tips and advice,


will check out a book on star charts this week.




Thanks

Roc

:thumbsup:

[TrevorW]

Even check out the page on this forum re monthly observing challenge

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/resources.html

Cheers