New to the game

ShOrEbReAk (Troy) · #1 27-12-2014, 10:42 PM

Hi

Bought the kids a Newtonian skywatcher for Christmas and let's just say I had 2 hrs sleep last night

Did the usual look at the moon oooooh ahhhhh thing then mucked around for a while. The first planet I found was Jupiter around 2 am and wasn't to impressed so I waited for Saturn to rise and was very surprised at the detail through the scope, as was my daughter. The sun was comming up by this stage so I decided to show her Jupiter and low and behold it was crisp and I could see the banding around the planet and what I think was 2 moons to the left of it. Is this usual viewing for Jupiter early morning with sun rising for a better view?
Now I am hooked and am planning to be up at 430 in the morning to show my son.

Troy

ralph1 · #2 27-12-2014, 11:57 PM

Yes, I have found this effect as well with jupiter in a twilit sky and I suspect it is because the high sky brightness decreases dark adaptation and glare. For your case it could be because it is higher in the sky at dawn or that the telescope was better cooled down. Right now you're observing saturn at the worst possible time so if it's good now it'll only get better! Where I live the seeing generally gets worse throughout the night but I'm down in the bottom of a valley so that could have something to do with it.
How big is the telescope? Whats its F/ratio? What eyepieces did it come with?

Hope your skies stay clearer than mine have been.
Ralph

barx1963 (Malcolm) · #3 28-12-2014, 01:50 AM

The single biggest factor determining how planets look is their elevation. If they are low, they usually look like rubbish because you are looking though more atmosphere.

Malcolm

Allan_L (Allan) · #4 28-12-2014, 05:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShOrEbReAk

Hi

Bought the kids a Newtonian skywatcher for Christmas and let's just say I had 2 hrs sleep last night

Did the usual look at the moon oooooh ahhhhh thing then mucked around for a while. The first planet I found was Jupiter around 2 am and wasn't to impressed so I waited for Saturn to rise and was very surprised at the detail through the scope, as was my daughter. The sun was comming up by this stage so I decided to show her Jupiter and low and behold it was crisp and I could see the banding around the planet and what I think was 2 moons to the left of it. Is this usual viewing for Jupiter early morning with sun rising for a better view?
Now I am hooked and am planning to be up at 430 in the morning to show my son.

Troy

Hi Troy,
Welcome to IceInSpace

Yeah! That's how it starts!
The two big planets are good objects to view with their identifying bands rings and moons.
But wait till you start exploring Deep Space Objects (DSO's).
Orion nebula (middle "star" in the sword of Orion);
Eta Carina, (bright blob to the "right" of the (erect) Southern Cross)
47 Tuc (adjoining the Small Magellanic Cloud)
Tarantula Nebula (adjoining the Large Magellanic Cloud)
Omega Centauri (up and to the left of the Cross)
Centaurus A (galaxy out from Omega Centauri)
just to name a few.

You should download a FREE Planitarium software. Stellarium is great for identifying, planning, and finding observable objects.
http://stellarium.org/

Enjoy your new hobby.
Keep looking Up!
Allan

ShOrEbReAk (Troy) · #5 28-12-2014, 06:15 AM

Hey

Thanks for the replies. Just finished looking again. Saturn is a bugger to keep in the scope, probably cause I'm using a eq2 which I am still learning to use.
Jupiter is a lot higher and stays in focus longer and I was quite surprised how much the moons had moved!

Its a D=130 F=1000 eq2 with a clock drive attachment, I haven't used this yet

I'm using a 2xBarlow with a 10mm eyepiece .

Can't wait to see nebula etc.

Thinking tonight I will drive out a bit to a darker spot to try and see those nebula etc as later on I would like to photograph what I'm seeing.

Anyways having fun so that's the first step

Troy

brian nordstrom (As avatar) · #6 28-12-2014, 11:45 AM

Troy and family .
You have a really good scope there but doing the maths, eg 1000mm focal length of scope divided by 10mm eye piece= 100x then x 2 (for the Barlow)= a whooping 200x magnified view!!! .
That is getting up where if the EQ2 is not perfectly set up the planet will move out of the field of view very fast.
My advice is use the 25 mm eye piece first (40 x) then the barlow for 80x then the 10mm for 100x , only use the 10mm and Barlow for when you have mastered the scope and as said before. , view when the object when it is high in the sky .
Enjoy the scope. , it is a beauty , but keep the magnification down below 100x for now.

Brian.

ralph1 · #7 28-12-2014, 01:00 PM

Is the barlow one of those types with an unscrewable lens cell? If so try unscrewing the lens cell and screwing it into the bottom of the eyepiece. On my barlow this gives roughly 1.5X. That could give more magnification than the 10mm eyepiece on its own but still allow the mount to handle it.

I own a celestron skyprodigy 130mm telescope and I regularly use a 6mm eyepiece+2X barlow for lunar, planetary and double stars. It is F/5 though so it is only at 216X. With the mount well aligned it can keep a planet in the FOV for an hour but it could go longer - I haven't observed one object for that long yet.

ShOrEbReAk (Troy) · #8 28-12-2014, 02:50 PM

Thanks guys

I think my main problem is I haven't set the eq properly. I have filters as well lunar, red, blue and yellow which screw into the eye pieces also. Makes a difference with the moon I haven't tried on Jupiter yet though. So much to try and so little time

I will have a look at the Barlow and try that trick if possible.

Also I noticed I can unscrew the 1.25 and have an option to mount 2" eyepieces will this help?

Anyways going for a drive tonite and with a guide on polar lining I found here I will try that out to see if the stars stay longer than a F1 race car in the lens

Also any clubs here in adelaide looking for new members or any somone can recommend?

Cheers again

Troy

louie_the_fly (Stew) · #9 28-12-2014, 03:31 PM

Hi Troy. Try the Astronomical Society of SA. I'm not a member, but I think some on here are.

ShOrEbReAk (Troy) · #10 28-12-2014, 04:04 PM

Cheers Stewart

Will look them up and go for a look what harm can it do? Other than a maxed Visa card for a bigger scope hahahahaha

Troy

louie_the_fly (Stew) · #11 28-12-2014, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShOrEbReAk

Cheers Stewart

Will look them up and go for a look what harm can it do? Other than a maxed Visa card for a bigger scope hahahahaha

Troy

What harm can it do? Don't laugh, it'll happen. Sounds to me like you're hooked.

There are several methods that we employ to break the news to the other half that we've just shelled out $$$$ on something she has little or no understanding of. I generally get all my astro stuff with the optional bouquet of flowers.

The ASSA have a site at Stockport near Hamley Bridge, north of the big smoke. They also have a website at https://www.assa.org.au/

I thought about going for a squiz, but I'm not much into clubs.

ShOrEbReAk (Troy) · #12 29-12-2014, 01:20 AM

stewart

hahahahahaahah I use the kids as my purchase leeway

I learnt tonight maybe the aren't as interested as I thought and I got a scope for Christmas.

I'm not really into the club scene either but trying to read the stars is like reading Chinese to me at the moment

Plus the mount arghhhh more questions about it every time. need to find someone to help with the stars and mount.

Thank god for Jupiter it is my only friend at the moment!

but I think I may have caught mercury or Venus just as sun went down(according to stellarium)

Long steep learning curve for me

Troy.

ralph1 · #13 29-12-2014, 07:28 AM

It likely would have been venus because it is brighter and higher. Was is dark enough to see any stars at that point? If so it was venus. Mercury is below and to the left of venus in the evening sky and appears about as bright as the average star. Venus is far brighter than anything else apart from the moon.

creeksky (Pete) · #14 29-12-2014, 08:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShOrEbReAk

stewart

hahahahahaahah I use the kids as my purchase leeway

I learnt tonight maybe the aren't as interested as I thought and I got a scope for Christmas.

I'm not really into the club scene either but trying to read the stars is like reading Chinese to me at the moment

Plus the mount arghhhh more questions about it every time. need to find someone to help with the stars and mount.

Thank god for Jupiter it is my only friend at the moment!

but I think I may have caught mercury or Venus just as sun went down(according to stellarium)

Long steep learning curve for me

Troy.

You could always say you are looking for a comet to name after the wife

If you can get hold of a cheap andriod phone or tablet I have found google sky or skyeye great apps for holding up to the sky and showing what you are looking at.
I may soon have to max my visa too, but have only myself to convince-too easy

ralph1 · #15 29-12-2014, 11:26 AM

speaking of comets, C/2014Q2 Lovejoy could be a potential target all night. Ideal would be about midnight but as long as its still dark any time should do.
I get my comet charts from cometchasing.skyhound.com. depending on how dark your skies are you should be able to see it in binoculars or possibly the naked eye.

ShOrEbReAk (Troy) · #16 29-12-2014, 01:13 PM

Ralph

There were stars around just after sundown. Came through as a red star close to horizon to the side of the sun. Wasn't Mars had stellarium on at the time.
It was either one

Pete

I went to a darkish site and got lost looking for the comet love joy. That's what I went out for to show the wife and kids. They got to see Jupiter again. I can tell the saucepan, Sthn cross and the fake cross but can't tell anything else so it gets frustrating tying to make out constellations.

Anyways
Cheers guys
troy

creeksky (Pete) · #17 29-12-2014, 01:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShOrEbReAk

Ralph

There were stars around just after sundown. Came through as a red star close to horizon to the side of the sun. Wasn't Mars had stellarium on at the time.
It was either one

Pete

I went to a darkish site and got lost looking for the comet love joy. That's what I went out for to show the wife and kids. They got to see Jupiter again. I can tell the saucepan, Sthn cross and the fake cross but can't tell anything else so it gets frustrating tying to make out constellations.

Anyways
Cheers guys
troy

Google is your star guide.

Apparently comet lovejoy is near Sirius and Canopus in the east, Sirius was the brightest star poking through the clouds here last night.I was going to move the table and scope to look at it but it started raining, today is shaping up cloud free, so tonight should be good.

ShOrEbReAk (Troy) · #18 29-12-2014, 01:32 PM

pete

sirrius and canopus are they the two near ther dipper, as I tried looking for the constellation lepa above the dipper to find it?

I got Eyskye once I got home last night and reading another post so I will see if that one helps. Google I will also try.

hopefully the clouds don't come in tonight

Troy

creeksky (Pete) · #19 29-12-2014, 02:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShOrEbReAk

pete

sirrius and canopus are they the two near ther dipper, as I tried looking for the constellation lepa above the dipper to find it?

I got Eyskye once I got home last night and reading another post so I will see if that one helps. Google I will also try.

hopefully the clouds don't come in tonight

Troy

Googlesky app will let you "timetravel"to see where the stars will be at a certain time you want to look.so will SkEye, I am hopeless with constelations, they must have been drunk on something to make those dots form complex pictures or bored with no scopes?
Another good android app is called starchart, but you need to pay $3.10aud to get addons to show you where comets are.
Also, those apps have arrows that guide you to move until the star/planet etc is found, one even has alt/azm which I hope I can use to match up with the alt/azm on my little toy Dob to point it right?
Not sure if bigger Dobsonians have that?

Hoges (John) · #20 29-12-2014, 03:20 PM

Troy,

See if you can download 'starmap' for either your phone/ipad/ipod from the itunes site. (maybe available as an android app too...not sure). It will show you what's currently in the sky to view at any specific time. An excellent app. Find Tuc 47 (small blob just below and to the right of the small Magellanic cloud. And M42 in the middle star of the sword of orion. (sword is upside down here and some folks call it the 'saucepan' with the sword as the handle).

Sometimes it pays to go out with a list of things to find (and a map to find them). And info - it adds enormously to the enjoyment if you know what it is you're looking at, how far away it is, how big it is, how many stars it contains etc. Alan's post (#4) contains some great viewing. Even viewing Alpha Centauri (brightest star of the pointers that point toward the southern cross) with moderate magnification will reveal our closest neighbor to be more than one star. And while you're in that neighborhood, the Jewel Box cluster is very pretty too.

ps: the 'dipper' is a northern constellation that we don't get to see down south - you may mean the 'saucepan' which is not a saucepan at all....lol, perhaps it should be!