Quote:
Originally Posted by inline_online
Wow  
That was absolutely incredible. Probably one of the highlights of my 19 years so far in astronomy.
My plan worked 100% and I spotted it as a mag 11.5 slow moving asteroid at about 0020hrs in the 5" Tak. I tracked it for a couple of hours and lost it when I had to flip the OT to the other side of the mount. Luckily it was going to pass close to a fairly bright star about 15min later so I was able to pick it up again. My cries of happiness when I found it again could probably be heard all over the street. I tracked it until about 0400 when it pased behind some trees.
My oldest son Zayne (8yr) came out at about 0130hrs and stayed for the duration. He was really happy to see it and can't wait to tell his teacher on Monday. I also had the 12" dob set up so I showed Zayne a selection of really cool stuff inbetween asteroid watching. He loved Omega Cent, Saturn, and a few open clusters. Tried to show him NGC 5102 but he couldn't spot it (although I was able to). We do live in surburban Perth though!!
It was great to be able to share such an awesome experience with my oldest boy. I hope he remembers it because i'll never forget it.
What a great night  |
At the risk of being shot for cross-posting, I'm a changed man!:
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...d.php?t=103409