Noobie Diary part 5 - while the wife's away!

[davidpretorius]

Thursday 28th July
My darling wife and sister in law have gone to Hobart to see delta goodrum. The children much to my wife's amazement will still be alive when she comes back!.

Have been posting images in the photography section, but for the beginners section, I have included two shots from my Toucam webcam. The scope arrives tomorrow, so i am simply sitting outside with my toucam and my laptop. One is done via taking many shots (400) and then stacking them on top of one another (see registrax under resources). The other is from using the modifcation done to my toucam which allows long exposure times. Using the image software Desire (http://www.precons.com/iis/downloads/toucam/) I was able to take 10 x 10 sec exposure shots. Again stacking these using registrax, I created the second image.

Now, for the highlight of the evening whilst the wife is away! I had already looked at this link (http://www.skyviewcafe.com/skyview.php) a few weeks ago when it was posted and thought it was cool, but as the scope gets nearer, i really need to be able to navigate the heavans. Tonight it really sunk in. I looked up the coordinates for launceston, ticked the track current time and started with small section of the sky ie here the southern cross is etc. Ticked on the planets and i felt i was getting somewhere.

I have been turning my laptop screen brightness right down whilst i am out there with my toucam and my eyes have been adjusting very quickly after looking at the screen. As I have wireless adsl, I can actually be out in my driveway with my scope have the websites iceinspace & skyview cafe open & outlook for instant notification of new posts to subscribed threads and I can honestly say that I feel very confident that I have all tools at my disposal.

The broadband access whilst actually observing means i can use the photographic sky survey on the skyview to actually get an image of what i am looking for.

Telstra also have given me a mobile wireless broadband connection that drops back to cdma when not in a broadband area, keen to check out!

All that info at my finger tips!!!

Now, where is that bl**dy scope

[iceman (Mike)]

Excellent work Dave.

photographic sky survey on the skyview to actually get an image of what i am looking for.

Don't forget that very rarely does an eyepiece view match a photographic image of the object.. most of the galaxy images you see, look like a fuzzy grey blob in the eyepiece.

I likat that you like to document, and as such i'm hoping you'll write a full and comprehensive review of your dob when it arrives, for others wanting to purchase the GSO dobs. As Ian says, we always recommend them, about time we have a review of them to show people why we recommend them.

[davidpretorius]

will do Mike. Understand that the eyepiece view will be different, it will be great to aim for these bench marks with proper mounts (sshhh don't tell asimov) and more $ invested but don't worry, I am wrapped in what I am looking at the moment without the scope. Just to use skycafe to orientate myself and say, "so that is where m31 may be or there's the southern cross, but the actual stars have a name" is such a buzz.