RobertI

Superb Alan. You've both been through alot, hopefully it's brought you closer together.

So he says there were 21 exposure of 15 seconds which is 315 seconds. But he says they were taken over 9 minutes (540 seconds). This implies there was around 11 seconds between each exposure. So from his timelapse, the objects were moving a considerable distance in the 11 seconds between exposures but were not moving at all (implied by the fact they were pinpoints, no trailing) during the 15 seconds of the exposure. This seems a bit odd. One possible explanation is that that it could be a single object that ‘flashes’ at a regular interval which results in two flashes during the 15 second exposure, making it look like two objects. If it was a single 9 minute exposure perhaps we would get one long dotted line rather than one long trail? That might explain the effects, but what could produce it? Doesn’t seem to be a tumbling satellite type of effect. Can geostationary satellites flash? The alternative is that it is something else in the imaging train - reflection, etc.

Brilliant news Alan! I think you should call the scope “Lazarus”!

Very interested to see how you get on Stu.

Very jealous of your lovely little Vixen scope, I think that combination must be getting on for 8 degrees FOV? 😲 Edit: Just worked out it's closer to 10 degrees!

There’s a thread about pretty telescopes - I think this definitely qualifies!

Thanks for the link Don. A nice idea by WO but poorly executed in some places by the look of it. It’s interesting that the binoviewer can be used without the GPC in this setup. The Bizarro referenced by Louis includes an inbuilt correcting lens that Televue claim is essential to prevent aberrations from the prisms, or something like that. Neither product seemed to last, perhaps the price, getting into bino-telescope territory?

Not sure if I got the discount (it said I did), but I bought it anyway, some really nice improvements and additional features to play with. Such a great tool, whether you’re planning, researching or just browsing, it just gets better and better. 🙂

Not come across that one before, seems like a great concept to me. Not sure about the name though!

Interesting. Was that a commercial scope or a DIY project Don?

What a lovely instrument. Tall, slender and elegant, the perfect observing partner. 🙂

Great report @Moon-Monkey , fascinating read. Impressive to see what you can see with a 40mm F10 scope for starters. You did well to spot Deimos with your 8”, and i’ll follow your progress with interest. I’d be interested to know how you made your occulting eyepiece, perhaps something I should try as I would like to have a stab at the at least one of the moons with my 8” SCT. I’ve also never seen Sirius B and I think an occulting eyepiece might with that one too. 👍

Thanks Mark - a 100 degree eyepiece with a 60mm scope - that must be a nice wide field!

Super sketch, lovely details and colours. 👍

Thanks Louis, this “extreme” setup is not without its problems it would seem. The balance point in mine is actually further away from the focus knob, at the end of the silver dovetail - I think the added weight of the rings and the finder help to move the balance point forward. I’ve never been a fan of the focuser on this scope, but I adjusted it recently and it seems to be holding the load ok - the test will be in the field of course.

Thanks Michael, just read your comparison post - made interesting reading. I am not expecting the edge of field aberrations to be that good with the Panaview but daytime testing looks promising. I forgot that I have a 2” UHC so that could be fun on some larger emission nebulae - perhaps I’ll have a stab at Barnard’s Loop?

That’s good to know Stu, I’m looking forward to using it. Yes, the finder is there because I was using this for EAA and needed a quick way of aligning. It actually makes a very useful handle! The Panaview and diagonal are very heavy but the focuser seems to be able to handle it ok and I always have the focus lock.

My 66mm Zenithstar comes with a 1.25” visual back but can take SCT accessories. So I wondered, if I fit my SCT 2” diagonal, could I also use my Panaview 38mm 2” eyepiece without vignetting? So I set it all up and was delighted to see it reaches focus and there doesn’t seem to be any vignetting. This gives 10x magnification and an expansive 7 degrees. The downside is an exit pupil of 6.5mm which might be a bit on the large side. But it will be an interesting experiment to compare this setup with my 10x50 binoculars and see how the views compare. My guess is I will prefer the binoculars, but we’ll see! I have to say the combination of tiny scope and huge diagonal and eyepiece is slightly comical. And it’s pretty damn heavy now too.

Went out for a look just now, clear but very misty. Put the binoculars up to my eyes, which seemed to induce a violent coughing fit, my eyes ended up watering so much that I couldn’t see and I was making so much noise, that I had to retreat indoors for the sake of the neighbours. Not the most successful session!

Ah very interesting, I have seen these many times with my C8, never realised what they were. Thanks!

Yes I can see a faint red disc in the middle if I zoom right in. Poissons spot? Sounds interesting.

Re-reading the post I realise that the OP has both a Vixen dovetail for attaching the scope to the mount, and an ADM rail (which is a completely different fitting and much narrower as it’s designed for mini-ADM accessory clamps) - in fact exactly the same setup as me. My clamp on the mount is also ADM and won’t close far enough to hold the ADM dovetail, so I’ve never had the problem, but I guess with the ‘bolt’ style clamps it may be possible to do it by accident?

Impressive result for short total exposure time.

Crikey that’s a piece of luck!

Welcome to you and your scope. I like your avatar, a Genesis album cover if I am not mistaken - if you want the perfect combination of astronomy and prog rock in a 4”telescope, you need to get a Televue Genesis! 😆😆