Quote:
Originally Posted by tonybarry
Hi Renato,
No I dod not ask Meade about the grommets. As it was I had to spin about 1 mm off the lower flange on the base to prevent it dragging on the upper flange, and that means it was either a one-off bad job or the whole thing was a crock. I suspect that it was a one-off, and the fix allowed the true nature of the mount to come through (which is exceptionally good at tracking).
Penrith is good. Panthers is now the size of a small suburb, and the carpark around it probably needs a shuttle bus to get people in from the periphery to the centre. I have been there a few times but not often.
The best thing about Penrith is the Penrith Observatory at the University of Western Sydney in Werrington. They are a good bunch of people and they are keen on spreading the news about astronomy to the locals. They also have a 24" RC in a Big Dome, the mirror of which is presently being recoated.
THe Western Sydney Amateur Astronomy Group (WSAAG) meets there every third Wednesday of each month.
My take on Goto hasn't changed. If you have the time and the grits, starhopping is hard to beat. If not, Goto is a big help. I do asteroid occultations, and my target fields are generally unremarkable. Starhopping is really difficult for these, and would add hours to the setup time. I have done it a couple of times on the Linden 30 before it got Goto'ed, and the pain was "astronomical". Fortunately we had Rob Horvat (WSAAG president, and strictly visual / starhopper person) to keep us on the track. But even so it was not easy.
I think for newcomers to the sport / hobby, Goto is a mixed bag. It adds to the cost, but it also adds to the success rate of finding stuff. The new Orion and Skywatcher Goto Dobs are driving the price down very well. My take is that it is worth it. Your mileage of course may vary, and it's entirely your call as to what you choose to work with.
Regards,
Tony Barry
|
Hi Tony,
Yes, I tend to forget the learning curve with starhopping, mainly because I used binoculars for about 10 year. Though I still suspect many interesting sights would be missed with GOTOs.
A friend did drive me by an observatory in that area years ago, but I don't recollect which it was.
Panthers always used to amaze me with each visit over the years. How much more can it grow?
I wonder how many other had the problem you had with your Meade, and still haven't solved it?
Cheers,
Renato