The Nightwatch

[glend (Glen)]

Tonight I have been watching my favorite planet, Saturn do a ring dance. As the hours have ticked by the aspect of rings (viewed from Earth) has changed.it was actually like watching a child's spinning top toy spin wobble. Check it out in Sky Safari if you want a fast animation over the last four hours. Nice line up of moons with the planet equator. Wish I had though to set up for EAA so I could have recorded a sequence.

Equipment used was my homebuilt iStar 127 R30 Anastigmatic , f12, carbon strut refractor on the CGX with a few of my favorite EPs and 2x Barlow; and my one good eye. Good seeing here, as the wind has died off completely.:eyepop

[glend (Glen)]

My weather app tells that rain is about to start, and I will lose a whole day to it. With the further bad news that the high temperature today is only going to reach 13C. The good news is that my little car resto project is going to get some accelerated curing of the Sikaflex sealant layer down yesterday (it is air moisture cured).
So nothing astro to report tonight, the sky has already clouded over. Apparently wind will appear again. A good day to stay indoors and not risk getting sick again.

[xelasnave]

It was clear here but I used the Moonlight to give astro a rest and chase much needed sleep...pretty warm in the van at 9c.
alex

[alan meehan (Alan)]

I cannot imagine some of the temp you guys are talking about -20 ,it got down to -5 at duckadang once i neally died from shivering i even lit my portable stove in my tent ,it great to have had (past tense) some clear skies for a change the 10inch in the observatory need the cobweds blown off .i too suffer with poor sleep now use a cpap machine and can only sleep in a recliner chair nowdays lucky if i get 5 to 6 hrs sometimes less but i do nap in day as well ,but i do enjoy late observing runs ,hey Glen i spent the day yesterday doing a oil change on the KJ what a mission oil filter in the middle of the motor ,now ive just brought a zwo camera and guide scope to mount on my GTI mount and ed80 looking forward too some sleepless nights once more

[raymo]

I was Second Engineer on a bulk carrier back in the mid sixties, and we tied up in Seven Islands in Canada. I went up to the bridge for a chat with the deck officer of the watch. We went out onto the wing of the bridge for a smoke.
I leant against the wheelhouse while I lit up. I had my first puff and it burnt all the way down. I tried to lean forward to cough, and my uniform jacket split down the seam; it was stuck to the metal. Went into the bridge and checked the temperature -42c.
As each iron ore truck advances one truck length along the wharf it is
inverted and steam hoses play over it until the whole 100 tons falls out in one huge lump into a pit where it shatters when it hits the bottom.
Every piece of rotating machinery on the ship that is likely to be used before the ship reaches warmer climes is kept running,[including the main engine at dead slow ahead, 15rpm] except the windlass and the capstan which obviously can't be rotating all the time. A steam hose was played on them for an hour before they were needed.
raymo

[glend (Glen)]

I know they are out there, some of you have told me. Under beds, in the shed. Stacked in a corner of the observatory. Still in their original boxes, some have never been out of the box. Come on confession time. How many, why did you buy them?

[GTB_an_Owl (Geoff)]

i'm sure h0ughy has a book with every possible excuse one could use

geoff

[xelasnave]

I gave my eight inch and my old EQ6 to my Son in Law because I know if they sat there any longer I would put in another pier and get another set up operational... I regret it now...but four is still three too many...

Alex

[alan meehan (Alan)]

Is eight too many.sorry nine

[xelasnave]

Is 3 am OK for guitar practice?
I watched one of Astro Biscuits videos where he seemed to suggest that a GSO eight inch was about the best darn telescope out there and now I think I should have put in another pier.
Alex

[glend (Glen)]

Originally Posted by xelasnave

Is 3 am OK for guitar practice?
I watched one of Astro Biscuits videos where he seemed to suggest that a GSO eight inch was about the best darn telescope out there and now I think I should have put in another pier.
Alex

Alex, you can play the guitar any time, just as I do. Although I do have one of Donner's silent guitars, which has a headset and an internal amp. I have neighbours so cranking up my house amp is not an option at night, but you can play for the stars.

I agree that the GSO 8 inch f5 newt is a great scope, and I had one for years. Very good mirrors. F5 is a sweet spot for newts in my experience. I sold mine to Chris from Sydney I think.
Do you have room for another pier? Or just rotate with an existing pier

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by glend

Do you have room for another pier? Or just rotate with an existing pier

Glen there is room for one more in the big observatory and I found myself flip flopping between putting one more in or not...the thing was really the 8 inch needed the tube being fixed cause the seam was just terrible, also a better focuser in my view and I would have had to buy it it's own camera and filter wheel, guide scope or OAG but I did have a zwo mini toward its build ...unfortunately my health issues really make more projects more difficult than in the past and so I felt it prudent to give the eight inch and mount away so I was not tempted .... anyways I would not mind another zwo harmonic mount with a 9.25 inch... AND really just keeping what I have running, adjusted, cleaned etc is certainly for me a lot of work...plus looking after the van, the block etc..its a lot for anyone...

It will be interesting to see if my Son in Law can manage to get the gear up and running and gets into the hobby..the mount needs a pull down and of course the scope needs collmination...normal stuff we take for granted but coming in to the hobby it could be just too much for him. If he can manage he could see a lot of gear in the future.

Anyways I have so much to still do..Ethernet cable from the van to the observatory and I am going over to Pixinsite as I am convinced it will solve my colour issues.

4 degrees C in the van earlier and the car outside in covered in ice...happily I feel warm.

Alex

[OzEclipse (Joe Cali)]

Originally Posted by xelasnave

See the doughnut not the hole.

Already so many people do not think.

But for people who do think AI holds the promise of highly increased productivity...I have sometimes thought of writting a book but my time is far too precious to waste merely to pass on my ideas as unique as they may be, someone else will do it ...but looking at AI..that chat thing..it seems I can throw out a few ideas and an outline of direction and AI can do the hard yards...

Heck say for a Lawyer...so many things can benifit from AI..a brief for a Barrister ( done properly) takes just so much effort but with AI throw out the facts and references and let it put it into the desired form.

It seems that many folk just are along for the ride rarely thinking and accepting the repeated myths designed to control them and I doubt if they ever have an original idea given that you only find them slaves to fashions and customs of the day with their understanding of the world delivered by Hollywood. All our research still sees nut jobs selling cancer cure for $29-95 on the net and countless dumb dumbs buying their crap...Just look around and ask if you could make that non thinking element of the population dumber even with eternal Government funding...

Fortunately the non thinkers won't think less and the thinkers will use AI to create a better world...for them

Alex

Alex,

A judge in the US recently fined a lawyer who filed a case prepared by AI that contained fictional citations.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-...sult/102490068

I guess he would fall into the non-thinkers category.

Joe

[xelasnave]

Originally Posted by OzEclipse

Alex,

A judge in the US recently fined a lawyer who filed a case prepared by AI that contained fictional citations.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-...sult/102490068

I guess he would fall into the non-thinkers category.

Joe

Anyone who wanders from the truth I submit really does not think things thru... and anyone who presents material as their own are not thinking if they merely submit same without personal review...non thinkers are typically lazy...many a boss has been embarrassed by signing letters prepared by his secretary and failing to read what he is signing...non thinkers are much more common then most people would think in my personal and professional experience...

In my example of a Lawyer using AI to do the hard yards in preparing a brief for a Barrister would be truely a non thinker if he did not read the final product before he sent it off to the barrister...AND whether that brief is printed up by a secretary or AI you are a non thinker and lazy if you sign it without checking it...

Thanks for the link.

Alex

[glend (Glen)]

As fellow insomniacs will know, the quest for remedy is endless. Tonight I ran across a product on Amazon that might help. It's a fabric headband like low profile headset which can be used by sleepers, called the Musicozi.


https://www.amazon.com.au/MUSICOZY-H...38564706&psc=1

So i ordered one to test it out as a sleep aid. It's cheap as well.


I was actually looking for something else, a 3.5mm plug wireless system (not Bluetooth frequency) that could be used to transmit a travel guitar headset 3.5mm output signal to a portable amp input (this could not be Bluetooth because I am using my phone Bluetooth to pull backing tracks off of Utube and into my left ear, and Bluetooth cannot multitask in that way, as two separate signal paths).

It could possibly be the 5.8ghz signal path off a 3.5mm male plug on either end, and there are plenty of guitar 6.5mm jack wireless systems that work off that frequency. However I need it to be small and not have to use a 3.5mm to 6.5mm converter.

The search continues.

[xelasnave]

I have a couple of recordings on my phone of rain on an iron roof and one of a blizzard which are great ...switch on one and I now fall asleep almost immediately but I still wake up every two or three hours...

Alex

[glend (Glen)]

Originally Posted by xelasnave

I have a couple of recordings on my phone of rain on an iron roof and one of a blizzard which are great ...switch on one and I now fall asleep almost immediately but I still wake up every two or three hours...

Alex

Thanks Alex, I have tried a bunch of those sleep sound tracks, most are just annoying. But I hope with the sleep headphones I can find success. I refuse to resort to taking drugs or supposed sleep enhancement supplements. If anyone can vouche for the over the counter remedies then let me know. Thanks.

[glend (Glen)]

Yes, I was reminded tonight of all the crap that passes for wisdom on the internet, and how easy it has become to build up a passionate advocacy for stupidity.
Can you give us an example of "internet wisdom" that has caught you out, had you reaching for the Visa card, or writing a response?

[xelasnave]

Yesterday I nearly bought a drone worth over $1000 for only $140 but I thought maybe that it was too good to be true.
Alex

[toc (Tim)]

Originally Posted by glend

Yes, I was reminded tonight of all the crap that passes for wisdom on the internet, and how easy it has become to build up a passionate advocacy for stupidity.
Can you give us an example of "internet wisdom" that has caught you out, had you reaching for the Visa card, or writing a response?

I think I helped innoculate myself to a lot of that stuff in my early 20's when I went down the wannabe audiophile rabbithole. Not that I had money back then, but I do remember treating my CDs with green pens and amourall spray.

Really thought I could tell a difference until my friend had the same untreated copy of Dark Side of the Moon and we did blind tests

Learned to have a healthy skepticism in life, including myself