viewing saturn

[hotspur (Chris)]

i have been observing saturn through my vixen ED 103 refractor

for the last 5 nights,using a 13mm naglar with 2 times barlow which is

122 times mag in this scope.

its been hard to get good seeing,the disc shimered and bobed around

and looked like a fishing float in water!

after long time got a good view,the disc stayed still,saw some detail on

planet,some nice contrast .

when using the above eye piece without barlow saw 4 to 5 moons

also used a vixen LV 6mm eye piece,132 times mag

got some good views with this eyepiece,but when barlow used with it

bit blurry

any other refractor users out there?

regards Hotspur

[rider]

I observed Saturn last night with a 12.5 RCOS on a Paramount and Panoptics. (none of it mine unfortunately)
It stayed stable at +200X and Titan left a lovely clear shadow below the rings. 4 moons visible. crystal edges and great contrast.

oh well, its back to the city and affordable scopes for me.

sweet night.

Rider

[goober (Doug)]

Originally Posted by hotspur

i have been observing saturn through my vixen ED 103 refractor

for the last 5 nights,using a 13mm naglar with 2 times barlow which is

122 times mag in this scope.

its been hard to get good seeing,the disc shimered and bobed around

and looked like a fishing float in water!

after long time got a good view,the disc stayed still,saw some detail on

planet,some nice contrast .

when using the above eye piece without barlow saw 4 to 5 moons

also used a vixen LV 6mm eye piece,132 times mag

got some good views with this eyepiece,but when barlow used with it

bit blurry

any other refractor users out there?

regards Hotspur

Yes, I often observe saturn with my 101mm refractor. My typical power is 108x with my 5mm Nagler, and the views are usually terrific. Several moons, 2 bands on the planet, and the Cassini division (although not at the moment). Best view ever was at 277x with great seeing, and a 3.5mm Nagler in a 1.8x barlow - just stunning.

I once had a chance to view Saturn through my scope, set up next to a 16" dob... wasn't a lot of difference in detail, just brightness.

[pgc hunter]

Good report.

Crap seeing is the usual story here aswell, and I stay in the 140-180x range most nights. I managed 353x on a single night last year with my 12" dob.

[Davekyn (David)]

Thanks Chris,
Good to see other users with small refractors. What FL is your scope? I have a go often with my little ED 80. Best results for me is using an ED2 12mm EP with 2X Barlow. The moons are tiny specs and I'm lucky if I see more than two...if any at all...(sometimes) I also like to use filters. My mount is just alt/azi, so I'll often just let Saturn cruise on by slowly.

Hope to hear more from your scope
Dave