Quote:
Originally Posted by Wavytone
The laws of optics haven't changed, Bob. There's nothing special about modern scopes compared to ye-olde refractors at f/15.
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Oh, I don't know about that...
I m probably skating on thin ice here (I'm still a relative newbie) but here goes anyway:
22 years ago I had the privilege of looking through Percival Lowell's 24" F/16 refractor. The guides had it pointed at Jupiter that night for us tourists. It was awesome, but the views I get through my 14" F/4.6 dob are amazing.
Ok, yes it was 22 years ago but I'm blown away by just how much detail I can see in my humble dob. For example, I can always easily see the GRS when it's facing us, I know that's obvious, but it's all the little details like the white band around it separating it from the main belt and also the vortices in the main southern belt trailing the GRS.
I can't deny that at the high ( probably too high) magnifications I like to look at the planets I will only get 5-10 seconds of clear seeing for every 30 seconds before the "syncan" nudges the dob again. But those 5 seconds are so worth it!
For what it's worth I reckon the combination of fast dobs and the super glass like Televue and ES has really changed visual observing for the better.
Cheers all