paulastro

Lucky to have seen some of the event. Out from before the eclipse started until 8.30 with a few breaks. In my location, I picked up the Moon when it first cleared some haze at 5.10 and watched it in reasonable, but not great, conditions until 6.04 continuously, with a little hazy cloud at times. After this it remained mostly cloudy, though I had a view for five minutes or so through cloud at 7.40. After that I only saw the glow it was making through the cloud occasionally. Still, delighted to have seen anything at all. As well as taking pics though the SW 80ED on an AZ5 and with the Olympus E-M5 Mk11 I observed with my Nikon 10x50 binoculars. At times I thought I could see the extent of the shadow, though it really just looked duller in the eclipsed portion than it would on a usual full Moon. In the picture below (a colour and mono version of the same frame) according to Sly Safari 6 Pro the portion in eclipse was below a little to the north of Aristarchus that went diagonally just about through the centre of the Moon to the opposite side, bottom right. Of course the line is slightly curved and isn't straight. I only did minimum processing to reproduced what it actually looked like in my binoculars, and the coloured version is pretty much what it looked like to my eyes. The eclipsed portion certainly didn't look at all obvious as it does in some pictures others have taken. The whole Moon in fact looked more subdued than the full Moon usually looks. Delighted also just to get my 14th day in a row managing to obtain a pic of the Moon, going back to Dec 28th. The picture is a single frame taken at 5.57 pm, 1/640 at 400 asa.

Thanks Pete, you are very kind.

I rather like penumbral eclipses, though some people are a bit sniffy about them. They are a good visual reminder of the dynamic nature of the solar system to me. I find the penumbral phase, quite easy to see, especially as it progresses. Binocs certainly show the changing light on the full Moon as the shadow crosses the various features, especially if you're used to looking at un-eclipsed Moon at full. It's easy to pick up using a DSLR or similar. In the digital age it's easy to just adjust the exposure until it becomes visible. Here in West Yorkshire it had just recently clouded over mostly, but I'm still fiarly optimistic about catching a view or two in the fours hours it's in eclipse. After all, a bright Moon will often show through on occasion, even on the cloudiest of nights. It's just a matter of being committed to keep a look out - if you don't, you may miss it when it does pop out. After all, if you don't buy a ticket, you're not going to win the raffle 😃 Good luck everyone.

I like to seek out the more elusive features of the Moon near the terminator, a few hours before full Moon. The image was taken at 01.45 am this morning. I've cropped parts of the limb from the same single frame. SW80ED, Ercole Mount and Olympus E-M5 Mk11, 1/1000 sec at 400 asa. Keeping my fingers crossed I see something of the partial eclipse in a couple of hours or so.

That looks like two pelicans standing bill to bill 😃.

I certainly won't be entering it in any of the SGL photo competitions Luke, unless there's a booby prize of course 🌝

Over the years I've heard rumours, or read, of quite a few telescopes not to be working at their full aperture. I'm not sure if any of the rumours were ever substantiated. My two refractors often don't work to their full apertures - due to poor seeing and cloud getting in the way unfortunately ☹️.

Lee, many thanks for your comments. I sort of continued the run tonight to make it twelve in a row. In fact I wasn't going to post todays effort (it really is that bad!) but just for you I'll post it below - in the hope that many lunar imagers may miss it as it's in the wrong place 🤣. It was taken at 5.02 pm this afternoon - with the usual equipment including the AZ5. The problem wasn't wind, but the fact the Moon was always through a cloud layer when it peeped out, prior to the rain moving in which it now has. In fact it's so bad I'm not sure I should really count it as continuing my run - but I'm going to anyway! If you look closely around the top left you can actually see one or two craters honest!!

Thanks for the reply John, some good points made - I'd forgotten the blue ones came out first, it must have been an age thing 😃. I agree with you that many (not all!) people are rather obsessed with specs, do listen to rumours and may be wary of what they may see as a 'suspicious' lack of detail in specifications. I would still say though that for me it's the view that does more talking than any spec (or reputation) does. A better specification doesn't necessarily mean a better performance. Over the years I have done quite a few side by side comparisons with telescopes (not necessarily my own) when the lesser specified and/or much cheaper scope has out performed what on paper would appear should have been much better performing scope. I can easily think of a couple of cases I have witnessed when an owner of a highly specified (and expensive) scope has been somewhat aghast and amazed when their wonderfully expensive pride and joy has been easily defeated by a much humbler specified and much cheaper scope. The person has then gone on the sell their scope to replace it with the cheaper alternative. For me a side by side comparison in a real-life observing situation speaks volumes more than any spec sheets ever can do. Specs can be an indication of potential performance of course, but they aren't the whole story.

Many thanks Chris., It would have been really good to have been at Knowles Mill with you and sharing the fine views your scope produces.

John said: It is interesting that Skywatcher heavily promoted that they used an FPL-53 element in the Evostar ED doublets from when they were first released over a decade ago. Not so shy about that back then ? I may be mistaken, but at the time the original 'champagne' coloured EDs came out, I don't recall there being many other FPL-53 lensed refractors available if any,? If this is the case then it was probably a good marketing ploy. Having said that, the performance at their price point back then was so revolutionary that they didn't need hyping.

I was out from 5.15 pm to 7.15 pm to observe the Moon with Aristarchus well placed near the terminator, and also to grab a picture of the Moon to keep my run going if possible - 11 days from December 28th to today. I sort of managed it, after a fashion. It was so windy I put my SW 80ED on the Ercole mount in the observatory, it was far to rough to observe using the AZ5 in the open. The seeing was truly awful, I can well believe that the Gulf Stream was overhead, going by at 200 mph according to a weather forecast I heard yesterday. So bad I usually wouldn't have bothered continuing, but I wanted to continue my sequence of pics another night if I could. The cloud was rushing by at an astonishing rate and most of the time it was like this: It was like trying to observe under water, and muddy water at that. I must admit though I do like a challenge, and the best frame I managed was taken at 6.29 pm with the Olympus E-M5 Mk11, 1/500 sec at 400 asa. If you think it's bad - you should have seen the nearly 300 other frames I took and discarded - yes, seriously! The crop is only to show how well Aristarchus was placed, I strongly suggest you don't try to make it any bigger lol. I spent about 40 minutes at the end on visual observing with my binoviewer and Orthos. The Aristarchus complex was superbly placed and I enjoyed the session very much despite the conditions. If the seeing had cooperated of course the views could have been so much better, still - much better than anything else I could have been doing 🌔.

If I look through a refractor and it gives me a view I'm happy with, I don't give a fig what glass it's made of ☺

Out from around 4.30 to 5.00 pm. SW80ED, AZ5 and Olympus E-M5 Mk11. Took the single frame below at 4.52 pm, 1/400 sec at 400 asa.

Went out at 8.15 pm when I saw indications there may be a thinning of the cloud, and stayed out until 8.50 and managed some glimpses of the Moon when the cloud broke near the Moon briefly. I was pleased I bothered as the 'Cup Handle Effect' was visible. This is when the Jura Mountain tops are catching the morning sunlight, but the sunlight has not advanced across Sinus Iridium far enough to reach the base of the mountains. This has the effect of making the Jura Mtns look rather like a cup handle clinging to the edge of the terminator. Took a single frame at 8.45 pm, SW 80ED, AZ5, Olympus E-M5 Mk11, 1/25 sec at 400 asa.

Against the odds, some clear patches developed between 4 and 4.30 pm and I managed a few pics before the cloud closed over completely. A nice lunation with the terminator running right through Copernicus and along the W edges of Clavius. Single frame taken at 4.66 pm, SW80ED, AZ5, Olympus E-M5 Mk11, 1/125 sec at 400 asa. Moon 64.0%, 9.46 days.

By the sound of it FLO may have to start a waiting list for a couple of refractors that nothing what so ever is known about - even if they really exist at all! Put me down for one of each Steve! 🤣

That's a great start to the new decade you had 👍.

Single frame taken at 7.52 pm, SW 80ED, AZ5, Olympus E-M5 Mk11, 1/500 sec, 400 asa. Deslandres/S Highlands and Imbrium/Apennines well placed.

Centaur, I've just put a post in Lunar Imaging with a pic of this phenomena with a quote of your own post. It was nice to have your information re the phenomena which I sort of recalled reading in the last day or so when I was observing it. Many thanks.

Out from 8.30 pm to 9.10 pm in mostly 100% cloud cover to try and continue my sequence of getting a pic of the Moon started on Dec 28th, todays being the sixth in a row if I succeeded. The Moon did start to show a little at times when the cloud thinned, but it was always through varying amounts of cloud making the focus point and exposure vary fairly wildly. Luckily I managed to get one frame which is sort of acceptable after processing. The single frame was taken with my SW 80ED, AZ5 and Olympus E-M5 Mk11 at 8.52 pm (21.52 UT), 1/30 sec at 250 asa. On the magnified focus screen it was clear the Lunar X was present. I then thought I remembered reading something about it in the last day or so and then found the post by CentaurZ I had seen giving details of the event. Pics below are a colour, mono and cropped version of the same single frame mentioned above. With thanks to CentaurX for the post.

Like many people, if it wasn't for the used market I'd have hardly any kit at all. My two telescopes were bought used and most of everything else too! I have sold more equipment than I can remember over many years, so feel confident I know enough to know the value of equipment and what is a fair price. I have never made a bad purchase that I can recall, and never dealt with anyone in anything but an honest way. If you buy good used kit at a good price then it's quite possible to get all your money back after many years enjoying using it, so effectively you've had years of use of it for nothing! The exception to this is probably electrical high-tech items which can be outdated within a comparatively short time and then you can't sell them at any price. The reasons people sell equipment are many and varied. I usually sell stuff if I need different equipment for a particular purpose or because I just need the money for non-astronomical purposes - alas this has happened over the years a few times. If I had limitless money I would probably have never sold anything and would now be the owner of around a hundred or more different telescopes! Regarding items 'hanging around for ages' (not being sold quickly) I think people can read too much into this. Anyone reading this is probably an astronomer of some sort, but the market is much smaller than we might think, particularly for higher price items. Whilst many people may like to own a Takahashi six inch refractor, not many people will be able to afford 2/3 the price of a new one however much they might want it. Hence such a telescope could actually 'hang around a bit' if there doesn't happen to be someone in the position to buy it when it is first offered for sale. On the other hand it's great news if you are after a SW eight inch dob as so many of them are purchased they frequently appear at bargain used prices. However good the item for sale is, if no one currently wants one then it won't sell for a while. I personally reckon that about 2/3rd of the new price is usually a fair price, and am guided by this myself when I advertise. However this can vary for a number of reasons: 1 If something needs to be sold quickly then I may ask a lower price. 2 If I bought something well myself (that is at a relatively bargain price) I sell it for around what I paid for it. 3 I there any 'issues' with the item, I will state clearly what they are and adjust the price downwards. 4 If the item has been enhanced in any way the price may be adjusted upwards. 5 If the item is a rare or particularly desirable item its' second hand value may be more than 66% - top notch gear tends to keep it's value better. 6 If I am willing to consider an offer, I will state this in my ad. 7 I always offer used equipment at a price I would consider a good buy, and is a price that I would pay if I was looking for the item myself. 8 If anyone offers me a ridiculously low amount, I will tell them (usually politely!) that I think they are taking the mick and refuse to sell it to them for any price! 9 If people ever try and argue for a reduction I politely point out that they are free not to buy the item from me, and to try and get one cheaper elsewhere. At the end of the day, people can ask what they want, it's up to the individual to decide if it's a price they are willing to pay.

I was delighted when there was a brief clear patch on the first day of the new decade to enable me to start off the year on a high. Single frame at 5.41 pm with SW 80ED, Olympus E-M5 Mk11, 1/40 sec at 250 asa. Moon 36.5%, 6.52 days. A nice view with the binoviewer too, Theophilus Trio very nice and plenty of other nice terminator detail.

Top notch, that's a beautiful photo, great sharpness, brightness and contrast spot on. Thanks for posting it Gordon.

Out to catch the Moon again late afternoon. There was a strikingly red and hazy sky after sunset,. It made the sky look rather strange, almost like a painting. Took some pics with the SW80ED and Olympus camera. All pics taken between 4.16 and 4.25 pm. Moon 3.47 days old and 12.1% Illuminated.