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stolenfeather

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Everything posted by stolenfeather

  1. It's all going very well Pat and I'm looking forward to sharing some pictures. I leave once more for a camping trip tomorrow morning. I hope there will be many clear skies for both of us! Isabelle
  2. That's quite a start! You can be proud of those. Clear skies! Isabelle
  3. Being on vacation makes it hard for me to come online. This entry is a feeble attempt to reconnect with those that thirst for the stars. I hope everyone is doing well! July 12th, 2011 I couldn't wait to try my summer telescope ever since I had purchased it many weeks ago, My new acquisition was nothing compared to my ocular masterpiece (Sky-Watcher seen below) back in the north. Let's just say that there is quite a difference between an aperture of 10" and one of 4.5". However, this being said,... my little Orion Starblast held its own! Granted, its light capturing abilities came short but it still had much to deliver! At first I had to become reacquainted with the stars since not only was I using a new telescope but the surroundings were very different as well. I decided to set up in front of my mother's house since there were less trees. However, being close to the road meant that I was periodically blinded by passing cars. This little telescope had traveled 14 hours on our backseat from the north. We then surrounded it with camping gear and drove an extra 4 hours to our first park. It was carried across heavily wooded areas and it even toppled (albeit gently) from the car seat to camping bags beneath. Could you believe that after all this abuse, the little telescope needed no collimation? How could the mirrors have remained perfectly aligned? It granted me a very detailed view of the moon and gave me no issues in spotting the rings of Saturn (however, I definitely saw it with lesser detail then my Sky-Watcher). I am therefore very pleased with what my new telescope has to offer. The biggest test, however, will be seeing my first Messier Object. Since it has much less light gathering power, I know this is where it's small size will show. Instead of being disappointed in this little telescope, I will see this as a new challenge. Finding galaxies and clusters might be harder but well worth the effort! Isabelle
  4. I grew up with Star Trek myself and look to today's technology in the same perspective. Ummmm,.. just let me know when the Klingons come around! Isabelle
  5. There is much less darkness and when it does appear, coffee becomes our best friend! We never stargaze alone,. there are always mosquitoes to keep us company. Stargazing means grabbing a t-shirt and shorts. Heavy coats and mitts can be left aside. This is a huge plus for me since it means no FROSTBITE! and,.. and,.. and,.. Wait for it,... Wait for it,... School's out! Sigh! :rolleyes: Yes, I am a high school teacher and I can now taste the sweet nectar of freedom! I will be leaving my isolated teaching community (8 hours from the nearest city or town) for a much warmer place (about 45 minutes from Montreal). Here I will stargaze to my heart's content and spend time camping in various provincial parks. Unfortunately, since I will be "roughing it" I will not be online much. Pssssst! There's no electricity out there! Just bears, stars, waterfowl, deer and,. well mosquitoes right? :headbang: As you can see, we are well equipped. :headbang: I will try and make my way to this forum once in awhile but for now, I wish you all a wonderful summer! Isabelle
  6. I'm happy for you! You seem to have seen more detail than I have so I'll be looking for another glimose real soon! Isabelle
  7. I think it will be raining here for awhile. Although my stargazing is shot, I am quite relieve that the soil is wet. We've had problems with forest fires in the past and I need to do some major traveling soon! I for one love seeing Venus with my telescope since it it the first planet I saw. Isabelle
  8. Great video and I loved the music. I hope you can catch a glimpse of the moon tonight. As for me, we're in for steady rain all weekend! Isabelle
  9. Theo, I've seen pictures of solar flares before but a video surely puts the power of the sun into perspective! Thank you for sharing this! Isabelle
  10. The weather will change soon Jim,.. After all that you invested, it will! Isabelle
  11. All I know Paul is that the fireball was truly something amazing! It's beauty in its rawest and one experiences it only in glimpses! As for M51,.. I barely saw it (if indeed that what it was) I have tried what you have described Jim and believe that this is called averted vision. I did try this,.. yet,.. it still came out only as a blur. I blame the presence of too much light! Isabelle
  12. From the clouds to the moon,.. you had it all didn't you? I admire your determination and hope your next one is more fruitful! Isabelle
  13. I don't know if I really did see it or it was just my eyes playing tricks on me. Like I said above, it was just a smudge. I will definitely have to look again but man,.. It's hard!!!!! Isabelle
  14. Hats off to you Dave! I hope it works out! Isabelle
  15. Saturn was quite low in the sky last night when I came out. I had to wait till after 11: 30pm to see anything because of my latitude. At this point there was much turbulence from the atmosphere since it was near the horizon. I hope you have better luck! Isabelle
  16. June 18, 2011 Since nights are incredibly short, this stargazing evening went far into the early morning of the 19th. I am more of an early riser than a night owl which makes viewing the night sky quite difficult at this time of year. Stargaze in the morning? This would mean setting my telescope up at 3:00 am. I do love astronomy but I've been told that sleeping was a good thing,... I set up my telescope around 11:30. It was at this time that the ISS was streaking across the sky. I followed with my binoculars and gave it a salute when it dipped below the horizon approximately where the moon would be rising (maybe it was already there but stood behind my neighbours house where I couldn't see it). I stopped by a fuzzy Saturn which seemed nestled next to Porrima in the constellation Virgo. I immediately thought that it's lack of detail was caused by it being so close to the horizon but it wasn't. I felt like I was watching the sky through water! The waning gibbous moon, when it finally made it's appearance, seemed to be dripping with sweat! I should have packed up my telescope right away but something told me to stay put. I decided to do something that could only end up in frustration and set out to look for M51 (a whirlpool galaxy). To tell you the truth I had never been able to see it and have given up many times. Why I would choose this night to look for it,.. I don't know. All I can say in my defense is that there are many things about me that simply can't be explained. When I noticed a smudge, I told myself that I had finally found it. However, no details could be seen. I patted myself on the book for finally spotting it but,.. now what? I had found it on a night where little could be appreciated! That's okay. If I found it once, I'll find it again! As I turned to pack my equipment away a light caught my eye. It looked like a lone firework which sputtered flames behind it for a couple of seconds (maybe even three) and then was gone. I stared at the darkness, holding my breath, half expecting it to come back to life but no,... I had seen a HUGE FIREBALL! Maybe it was a remnant of the Lyrid meteor shower since it's peak ended days ago. Tonight, in a small northern community in James Bay the atmosphere had shown it's power. It had orchestrated a weather pattern that had me reach for a hat and gloves in the middle of June, turned the moon a very distinct orange colour (this is created by atmospheric disturbances), had rendered every celestial object in sight into a perspiring mess, and had shown its protective characteristics by turning a rock fragment into fire. Burn Baby Burn! Isabelle
  17. Here are other links I have found. Happy reading! Since it comes frmo a reliable source then you;re sure to be receiving the right information. NASA - Search Results Isabelle
  18. Although the 2012 Nibiru scare is a farce,.. it seems that the comet Elenin, discovered by a Russian of this name is very much true. It's trajectory will be close according to Nasa but nothing like the "rage" imagines. I am under the impression that since it is a new discovery that there is little knowledge about it as of yet. I have, however found this information that you might be interested in which was written by David Morrison Astrobiology Senior Scientist of NASA, I have been receiving many questions about Comet Elenin. Many of them refer to the outrageous lies on some conspiracy theory websites, which are amplified by people who seem to think this comet is highly unusual. It is not unusual, and it is not a threat to Earth. See the Wikipedia article on this comet [C/2010 X1 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia] for more information. C2010 X1 Elenin (to give its full name) is a long-period comet, which takes about 10,000 years to complete one orbit around the Sun. It was discovered with a robotic telescope in New Mexico on 10 December 2010 by Russian amateur astronomer Leonid Elenin. When comets or asteroids are first discovered, their orbits are quite uncertain; usually it takes several months of observations to firmly establish the orbit. Elenin's perihelion (closest to the Sun) is in early September 2011 at a distance from the Sun of 40-45 million miles. It will be closest to Earth on about 16 October, at a distance of about 21 million miles, which is nearly a hundred times farther than the Moon. The comet never comes close to the Earth, but it is expected to be visible in binoculars during August and October. Part of the Internet chatter concerns its size. Comets are exceedingly small and enveloped in a tenuous cloud of gas and dust, so the only way to be sure of their actual dimensions is to visit with a spacecraft. Half a dozen comets have been the target of spacecraft missions, and all of them (even Comet Halley) are less than 10 km in diameter. There is no reason to think Elenin is any different. This means its mass is less than one billionth the mass of the Earth. Needless to say, we will not be aware of the tiny gravitational pull from Elenin. In spite of these simple facts, some websites (such as godlikeproductions) are making wild claims that Elenin will hit the Earth, or disturb our orbit, or cause tides, or interact with our magnetic field. Such claims are pure fiction. One of the worst examples is a video that someone posted on the NASAbuzzroom website that claims that the magnetic field of the comet will cause a large shift in the rotation axis of the Earth and produce mega-earthquakes on March 15, 2011. It is hard to imagine anyone would take this seriously. Comets don't have magnetic fields, and magnetic fields can't change the rotation axis or cause earthquakes no matter how large they are. Adding to the craziness is a claim that this same comet caused the Earth's axis to shift by 3 degrees in February 2010 and caused the Chile Earthquake. These are simply lies; the comet was far away a year ago, and there was no change whatever in Earth's rotation axis. The Chile earthquake was a normal slippage in an active fault that has produced many previous earthquakes, including the one witnessed by Charles Darwin in 1835. Please remember that just because someone says he or she is from NASA doesn't make it true. Many people who post YouTube videos lie about their affiliation. Incidentally, only NASA is allowed to use the NASA logo, the blue circle with the word NASA and a satellite orbiting around it. David Morrison Astrobiology Senior Scientist March 1, 2011 Site: Answered Question Ask an Astrobiologist NASA Astrobiology Isabelle
  19. That would be Porrima in Virgo. It won't remain "attached" very long to it. Soon Saturn will not be seen anymore as it sets till it's return. I remember when it used to be close to Regulus a couple of months back. Isabelle
  20. Like I said, there's not that much to do these days since the sun sets so late! I waited till midnight last night and at my latitude there were still some stars not out! There's no school tomorrow so I'll stay up till 1:00 am. You know you're passionate about something when,.. Isabelle
  21. Thank you Ray! I'm sure you will find it a tad easier with the eq mount since you might be able to be more precise when it comes to intercepting its trajectory. I had to do it using my viewfinder and help from Telrad since I have a Dobsonian. I'm looking forward to reading about your experience! Isabelle
  22. Thank for the update Theo! Isabelle
  23. It's fast isn't it? I put a part of it in slow motion when editing the video file but the find the real time version quite revealing! Isabelle
  24. It is connected with the prophecy of Nibiru which I do not believe. In the end, one has to look at the source. For all questions pertaining to this subject, I direct people to the following site: NASA - 2012: Beginning of the End or Why the World Won't End? I hope you find it helpful. Isabelle
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