Quote:
Originally Posted by Camelopardalis
I'm not averse to spend, so I'll look into the options some more. Space in the city will be limited but the aim is to move out to the suburbs in time for our stuff to arrive from the far north.
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First of all, I get the impression that northerners under-estimate just how bright the Sagittarius half of the Milky Way is at a really dark site. I've experienced a few nights over the past couple of years where an overhead Milky Way casts a notable shadow behind objects on the ground (much more noticeable than the Orion half) - it's really quite an experience!
There's a *lot* to see just with the naked eye - the "emu in the sky", the run of nebulae down the central dust lane of the Milky Way, the LMC / SMC, globular clusters (Omega Cen especially), constellations, and so forth. Add a pair of binos (highly recommended - even just for browsing) and you'll be entertained for months.
On the other hand, if you're *moving* to Aus - rather than just visiting on a short trip - my two cents would be to go all-out and make the best of the opportunity. Something like a 16" GSO truss dob
goes for $1999 here. If you aim conservatively and budget a second half sale price of say 50-70%, you can just treat it as a rental for your 1-2 years
Even better - you can place a few wanted ads and try to have one lined up in time for your arrival.
Good luck for your trip!