bingevader

Pff, she doesn't know what she is missing!

Jaffa cakes at the ready!

Sir John has a nice ring to it.

As you've probably gathered yourself and from reading around on here, the planets aren't well placed for viewing in the UK at the mo and it will be a year or so before things improve much.

There's a difference between detail and contrast.

For high contrast, generally you want as little glass as possible.

So an orthoscopic or plossl eyepiece will help there.

For detail, then it's a good idea to read the reviews of the eyepiece focal length you want, that have been used in the same or a comparable 'scope.

If you want the best that money can buy, then obviously that is going to cost.

However, there are some very fine eyepieces around at the moment that won't break the bank and come pretty close to the big boys

12mm and 2x barlow would be good for craters.

The 8mm and a 2x barolw is also good on the moon, but requiring a calmer and clearer night.

The 12mm and 2x barlow would also be good on the planets when they're better position on a good night, so not a must have at the mo I'm afraid!

A Carbon Brush has said, you must consider the bigness of it!

It's not small or light.

On 06/06/2019 at 16:34, Demonperformer said:

There are on Komodo.

Sadly, completely lacking in the fire-breathing and flight departments.

But if you don't see the beauty in science, it could be seen as just exposing the dull realities.

There be dragons? - no there aren't.

Mermaids? - nope, sea lions, walruses and narwhals.

Magical Rainbows? - Nah, just the diffraction of light through a raindrop.

1 hour ago, Demonperformer said:

Quite agree - You can't push a rope!

Maybe a very small piece?

I've always thought that the science added to the wonder rather than detracting from it.

But, you don't need an understanding of science to enjoy the night's sky.

Poetry would seem to differ in that respect.

You at least need a grasp of the language it is written in.

Some poetry is beautiful.

But then sometimes it becomes a code to be cracked with hidden meaning, that only those who fathom the code can understand.

Astronomy (or at least amateur astronomy, or even stargazing!) isn't like that. 

You can just enjoy it for what it is. 

Hello!

Where are you and how is your light pollution?

If you can focus on the moon then there shouldn't be a problem.

You should be able to focus on the stars then, they should resolve to nice pinpoints of light.

If it is a problem with locating objects, then what is it you have been trying to find?

I'm sure we can help you with that.

If you are finding and focussing on the moon, then we can also assume that your finder scope is well aligned too, but the more accurate it is the better.

What are you using to locate objects?

Have you downloaded Stellarium?

The globular cluster M13 in Hercules would be a good one to start with.

Can you focus on and split Albireo in Cygnus?

Another good place to start is the book Turn Left at Orion.

7 hours ago, Littleguy80 said:

I use these ones. I did try another type before these that I didn’t like as much. They do need replacing every few months but they’re not expensive. 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001V9CFNO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_Pa58Cb40H7NTC

Fab! half price at the minute too!

I've dithered about getting one for years now!

I don't seem to manage with both eyes open and I get a tire eye if I try to keep one closed for any length of time.

I'll let you know how I get on.

I'll be looking at one of the cheaper zoom EPs for the school observing sessions in the autumn.

It'll cut down on the time taken to switch EPs.

I have the 4mm Nirvana too.

It's great in my (slightly slower) 8" dob.

On 20/05/2019 at 10:02, JamesF said:

Some people are looking at keeping bees in a more "natural" way, using different styles of hive and different methods of collecting honey, but I don't know if there's much interest in the UK yet.  It's certainly something I'd like to look into more.  I think it will work out considerably more expensive in terms of the unit cost of the honey produced because (as I understand it) there's no way to return the comb to the hives to save the bees building more for the next year.

We keep bees at school. We're also an Ecoschool so have always tried to disturb the bees as little as possible, whilst still encouraging the children to take part as much as possible. We still treat for varroa and manage for swarms. We only take the "surplus" honey and feed as little as possible. Last year was a good year, we hadn't taken any honey the previous two years. We've National hives, a WBC and a Kenyan Top Bar Hive. We have Warre hives at home. Last year we cut comb and pressed the honey out. I hadn't considered that it makes the honey more expensive, but yes, the bees would need to draw out new frames. I'm hoping to make frame cages this year to preserve the comb. The other hives still function in the same way though. The frames are removed and spun in a centrifuge. There's no loss of comb then, even when using foundationless frames.

On topic! For the last two years, we've had wasp nests in the school grounds. One near the apiary and the other in a compost heap. They we're no trouble to children or bees! The one was fascinating, the wasps cut a tunnel down through a bramble patch to what we assumed must have been an old mouse hole.

Let us know how you get on with it when the clouds clear.

As Ricochet has said, what's up with the X-Cel LX?

My 7mm X-Cel LX is smashing in the 8" dob and the etx90.

The only reason I'm considering changing it some time in the future is for an 82° EP.

Having tried the 4mm Nirvana I'm tempted by the 7mm as a future swap, but not because I'd expect there to be much difference in clarity.

On 02/05/2019 at 11:33, mikeDnight said:

They are potentially life threatening, so to encourage them to remain is mindless stupidity. 

That holds true for us as a species too then?!

Well done Skipper Billy, that sounds like a result.

See if you can make the obsy wasp proof for next year.

2 hours ago, Gina said:

I like spiders - they catch flies - I hate flies!!

Aw, now come on Gina, flies (or at least their maggots) are really really good at cleaning up dead and decaying matter. They're actually also very meticulous about keeping clean. It's just what they've eaten and trod in last and that some vomit on their food that might cause a problem. What's not to like!

9 hours ago, JamesF said:

Moving the bees is an interesting one.  I've moved hives exactly the same way as you explain when I wanted to keep them here but didn't want the hive exactly where it was.  The bees can find their home again as long as it's sufficiently close to where it was when they left, but it does need to be quite close.  I do know of people who have moved hives several miles away for a month and then brought them back, just to be able to move them by a few metres overall though.

I'm a great fan of the magic twigs!

We've moved hives short distances with great success by getting the bees to reorientate.

Move at night and then place twigs or grass across the entrance to hinder their exit in the morning.

The vast majority will reorientate with only a handful heading back to the  original site. I've wondered if these were bees that had stayed out late the night before anyway!

Back to the wasps. As others have said, if the queen has only just started then it's easy to remove the nest whilst she's out, as long as you make sure there's no way for her to get back in.

As others have also said, wasps are good pollinators and great predators and only turn to the sweet stuff when they mature.

Most wasp traps are inefficient and so only tend to encourage more wasps rather than catch them all, so I wouldn't put them anywhere you want to sit or eat!

I've never really understood why they're seen as the scourge that they are (and yes, I've been stung plenty of times, but more by honey bees these days).

Just to really thwack the wasp nest with a big stick, I find other people's dogs more of a nuisance than wasps!

The 4mm is fab Helen.

I've had several really good nights with Luna, where the sky was clear and steady and I'd pushed and pushed the magnification.

It seemed like a sensible investment and is paying off, so far!

Thanks John.

If the old shape 4mm was good in your 300mm, then that's good news.

It is a good shape and feel.

It is a shame there aren't more, they're an excellent price.

Having had another birthday and tremendous success with luna obsevations using my 2x barlow and the various high-power eyepieces I possess, I thought it might be a good time to invest in a 4mm eyepiece.
I couldn't find another review with regards to this EP although it does seem identical to the Skywatcher Nirvana and similar in spec to the Williams Optics Uwans.

I’ll add a bit of perspective for anyone else considering the EP. I’ve been (very) slowly moving over to 82° EPs and thought the extra drift time that this would give to the 8” dob would be a real bonus. I thought it was worth it because, although the clear nights do seem few and far between these days, when they do come around, I consider my back garden in a small village in rural south east Wales to be pretty dark. Clear Out Side has me down as Bortle 4 skies, but I’ve always thought I can see more of the Milky Way and more stars in Orion than this would suggest. This was very much the first light and I used it in combination with my 8”, f5.9 dob giving a magnification of 300x.

Unpacking.

As you can see, it came (from FLO) in a box designated as a Helios Nirvana ES 4mm 82° Eyepiece.

It’s a solid EP with the central rubber grip and a (marmite) bevel in the barrel.

The invertible rubber eye cup gives a comfortable viewing experience.

It’s a similar size to my other high magnification EPs, but slightly lighter at 163.5g.

I can’t see me using this EP on any other target than the moon with the 8” dob, so as it’s designated purpose, that was all I observed for this review.

The transparency was near perfect, but seeing wasn’t as good with the stillness coming between the ripples that past over the surface of the moon.

The moon was a waxing crescent of 5 days old and the detail from the shadows was splendid.

At f5.9, the EP is crisp and sharp across the field of view with no discernible distortion, astigmatism or curvature. I repeatedly allowed the various craters to drift from one side to the other without having to touch the focuser. With the EP being 82°, you do have to peer around the “edges” or tilt your head slightly to follow the object across the whole field of view. However, this does give you the immersive feeling that I like so much with the 82° EPs. There’s definitely no peering down a straw. I did notice a ring of fuzz, not fire, around the very edge of the field of view. It isn’t a gradual deterioration, that you might associate with some aberration or curvature, but just a point at the very edge that is no longer clear but fuzzy. Similar I would assume to the ring of fire, but a sudden lack of clarity instead.

As a new moonraker at the higher magnification end of my EP collection, I am delighted with this EP. I had thought that this would probably be the end of my upgrades to 82° EPs, but as there’s also a 7mm in the series, and they are so reasonably priced, I’d be tempted to replace my X-Cel LX to get the wider field of view. I’ve no problem in recommending this EP to anyone with a f5.9 or higher ‘scope as long as you have, or are prepared to wait for the clear, steady skies. I’d be interested to find out how it behaved as a lower magnification EP in a faster ‘scope.

Best wishes.

Ta.

I find using binoculars easier than a telescope, I get eye ache trying to keep one eye closed all the time.

But, I'll invest in a good eye patch instead I think.

Interesting thread!

It seems like quite a lot of glass.

With binoculars, you have a separate light path, but with binoviewers, you are splitting the single light path.

Out of curiosity, is there a noticeable reduction in brightness?

My goodness, that was a bit of voodoo to raise this zombie from the dead!