What Can I See ?

Rastis · #1 21-09-2005, 08:28 PM

Hi Champs,
I am considering buying a 10" dob (seems very popular around here!) and Iam wondering what I should be able to see.
Will I be able to see the shapes off the various galaxies (Spiral etc)?
I have seen the photos in this forum of Jupiter taken through various sized telescopes, but I am wondering what the actual size of Jupiter will appear to be, showing this level of detail. I hope I have made some sense,
Rastis.

ballaratdragons (Ken) · #2 21-09-2005, 09:02 PM

Hi Rastis,

What you will be able to see as far as galaxy spirals etc will depend on the amount of light pollution you have and which eyepieces you use. Never expect to find anything like the glossy photos in advertisements or on telescope boxes. The views of Planets are very exciting but they are not what many people expect. Globular Clusters are easy to see and are spectacular.

Also, it is very very rare to see any colour in nebulas without using photography but many of us can see slight colour in the Orion Nebula.

Glossy Advertising is really misleading in this hobby, but you will love what you actually do see through a 10" dob.

Jupiter and Saturn are clearly seen. Detail again depends on Light pollution, weather etc but they never fail to amaze people.

atalas · #3 21-09-2005, 09:14 PM

Hi Rastis 10" is a good choice , you will be able to see spiral structure in some of the bigger and brighter spiral Galaxies . Jupiter is a great sight and a 10" will show you a wealth of deatail some nights will be better than others depending on seeing conditions.
Saturn is also a splended sight in a scope of this aperture and lets not forget the Mars opposition coming up next month. Now at this aperture Globular clusters also are a splendid sight. Rastis with a 10" dob you could spend the rest of your life exploring the Universe ! that is until aperture fever set in .

Good luck with your purchase !

Louie

seeker372011 (Narayan) · #4 21-09-2005, 09:33 PM

try before you buy..do you have a local astronomy club? Otherwise I am fairly sure there is a Bundaberg astronomy club and if you find out when they have observing nights you should be able to get up there and look through some 10 inch Newts or Dobs that will give you a good idea what to expect

if you can't wait, I'm with Louie, get the 10 inch it will keep you going a long time

I dont know how many supernovas Bob Evans found with his 10 inch dob before he upgraded to 16 inches but I'm sure it was a heck of a lot..and you dont find supernovas without being able to see galaxies.

astroron (Ron) · #5 21-09-2005, 10:54 PM

Hi Rastis and welcome, there are two astro clubs in Bundaberg, the Bundi Sky Watchers and the Bundaberg Astronomical Society get in touch with them and get a look at some scopes and some information before outlaying your hard earned dollars. Enjoy the hobby. astroron

RapidEye · #6 21-09-2005, 11:02 PM

Its hard to say, considering we don't know your comparison point: looked through lots of small refractors, binoculars, 6" scope, etc...

The 10" is a great choice in that its right where you start to get enough aperture to get after the tough stuff. It also is enough aperture to start to resolve globular clusters.

A comparitor: M11 and M22 are the two finest globs visible from North America. I can see both as faint blotches with my naked eye and averted vision. With my 10x50 binoculars, the are large grey patches. With my 4.5" telescope, they are large, bright, grey patches, with single points of stars visible around the edges. With my 10" telescope, both just EXPLODE into a see if individual stars.

You want a one word reason to buy a 10" over anything smaller??? Globulars!!!

Bright things like planets show more detail in the bigger scope, but I've found that more often than not, the qualities of my views are usually limited by the atmospheric conditions at the time and not the size of my scope.

cometcatcher (Kevin) · #7 22-09-2005, 03:47 AM

Yep, get thee to an astronomy club and take a look through the real thing. Photos look NOTHING like the view through the eyepiece.

ving (David) · #8 22-09-2005, 09:19 AM

Aarr!
get thee to yee astronomy club!
Aarr!

Striker (Tony) · #9 22-09-2005, 01:11 PM

I'm with rapideye.....what some feal to be visual detail may not be your cup of tea.

I for 1 dont like looking through my scope in Brisbane visualy at all.

Through a big dob on a dark site is great but give me astrophotography any day.

Have a look through a scope first before you buy as you may be dissapointed visualy.

Rastis · #10 22-09-2005, 08:39 PM

Hi Chaps,
I'm impressed with what I can see with my "Dodgy Brother" 60mm refractor, so things can only get better. I have also been looking at the Bintel Dobs because I like the idea of having the scope checked out before I get it. The catch is I can only afford the 8" dob. For a extra $75 they will throw in a Crawford Focuser which seems to be popular around here.

janoskiss (Steve H) · #11 22-09-2005, 09:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rastis

The catch is I can only afford the 8" dob. For a extra $75 they will throw in a Crawford Focuser which seems to be popular around here.

Well, that makes the decision much easier!

And only $75 extra for a Crayford sounds like a good deal. My refractor has a Crayford, and it oh so much nicer than the standard rack-and-pinion on my Dob. But the R&P does the job pretty well too (stiffer, so scope moves while focusing; annoying at high magnification).

To answer your original questions:

On a dark site, you will be able to see some detail in a few of the brighter galaxies, like the core and maybe a dust lane, but not really the shape as you might imagine it. E.g. no spiral arms.

Size of Jupiter: about twice the size of the full Moon, I'd say. Four full moons when conditions are good. Now, that may sound huge but consider how much surface detail you can see on the Moon with the naked eye.

rmcpb (Rob) · #12 23-09-2005, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rastis

Hi Chaps,
I'm impressed with what I can see with my "Dodgy Brother" 60mm refractor, so things can only get better. I have also been looking at the Bintel Dobs because I like the idea of having the scope checked out before I get it. The catch is I can only afford the 8" dob. For a extra $75 they will throw in a Crawford Focuser which seems to be popular around here.

Well, I have been using an 8" for quite a while now and have not even dented the list of objects visible in this size scope - its great. As for the Crayford, save the extra $75, I upgraded to a Crayford but had to pay $149 for the focuser then install it myself - worth every cent

The 8" would keep you going for years, then when you really know the sky an upgrade to 12" would let you revisit all the objects again with more detail - an extra magnitude of view in this size jump. There is a lot to be said for growing in your hobby instead of just going for the biggest, besides the best scope is one you can afford and the one you use most despite its size

Rastis · #13 23-09-2005, 08:11 PM

Hi Chaps,
I'm going down to Brisbane in a couple of weeks so I will check out Sirius Optics as they sell the Orion and Southern Cross Dobs. The Southern Cross Dobs don't look to bad. If I end up at the Gold Coast I'll drop into Star Optics as well.

josh (Luke) · #14 25-09-2005, 12:06 AM

Hey Rastis
I bought a 10 " dob as my first scope. The views are fantastic through them. Ive sold mine now and got a smaller scope lx90.. Of course i have noticed the drop in aparture, galaxies are quite a bit fainter. But i dont mind as photography is much easier.
The reason i sold the dob was its size. I often go to friends places to observe and also head up the hill for day-time viewing. The dob was just to big,hard to fit in the car and no fun to carry up and down hills.Just think about where you will be observing and future portability. If the dob fits, go for it
Good luck

ving (David) · #15 26-09-2005, 11:58 AM

hey rastis, an 8"er hey!
I have one of those and I am always finding new stuff

planets look good thru it too. in bad conditions jupiter will show some form of banding and you can easily see 4 moons (unless one is hiding), then in good conditions well.... more detail!

on saturn the cassini division stands out pretty easy in all but the worst conditions and in good seeing you will see the subtle banding on the disc and maybe more colour in the rings.
havent really viewed mars yet.
m42 is a brilliant green in a wide angle EP....
your gunna love it

mickoking · #16 28-09-2005, 10:59 PM

G'day Rastis

A 250mm Dob is a fantastic choice. In moderate light pollution with some averted vision you will see details in galaxies like M83, M103, Centaurus A, NGC237 and NGC55 among others. Globulars are fantastic and many nebulae are mind blowing particually with a wide angle eyepiece. Also the Quasar 3C273 is an easy target. It looks like a faint star but at 2 Billion light years away (15% the age of the universe) it makes you feel very small.

Enjoy

asimov (John) · #17 28-09-2005, 11:10 PM

Don't get bitten by the 'aperture-fever-bug' like I did! In hind-sight, I should have made my 1st scope a 12.5" & saved myself a heap of dough!

You will still get outstanding views with an 8" though, just wait & see!

CONGRATS on your new scope!!

Harley (Gilbert) · #18 22-01-2012, 09:21 PM

I don't own a scope as yet went to bintel spoke about there 8 & 10 inc Dobs
Evey body says they are excellent scopes specialy if you only want to sit in the
Back yard could anyone tell if a Skywatcher 90EQ1 Maksutov Cassegrain are any good or should I just go for a Dob ?

janoskiss (Steve H) · #19 24-01-2012, 06:36 PM

Go for the Dob!!

If you reckon the 8 or 10-inch Dobs are too big, get one of these ultra-portable 5-inch Dobs: http://www.ozscopes.com.au/skywatche...telescope.html

Be sure to hook up with people who can help you collimate it so you get the most out of it. (If you buy from a non-online competent telescope vendor like Bintel, they'll do that for you.)

But I bet soon you'll be hankering for more! Still, the 5-ich SW dob could be a nice one to have to take with you wherever whenever even if you decide to get a bigger scope later.

I had a 102mm Skywatcher Mak. Good scopes. But on the night sky they run out of steam very quickly. Good for birdwatching (with an erecting prism). The 90mm will be even more lacklustre.

Vasya Pupkin (Pupkin) · #20 27-02-2012, 04:23 AM

I have such a question. I am from Russia and I saw southern constellations only on the photos. But when I tried to recognize constellations (using star chart) I found it rather difficult. I heard such statement that there weren't many bright stars in Southern Hemisphere). Is it true or it is a behavior of the astrophotography?
Excuse me if my English is not so good, please.