RT65CB-SWL

This means I have one to many TeleVue 13mm e/p's ... left: 13mm Plossl - centre: 13mm Nagler / Type 1 - right: 13mm Nagler / Type 6. ...and one to many TeleVue boxes!

And I thought getting up at 1:30am for a 3:30 or 4:00am start was normal... 😜

If it is true that a spacecraft has 'contaminated' the Moon with tardigrades [a.k.a. water bears], as mentioned in the news a few weeks ago following a crash landing or whatever, could they survive the hostile climate of Venus? ...and help to terraform it? They do seem to be tough little critters and one of the many building blocks of life.

I admit I do not do astro-photography [at present] or DSO's; but I think many would say go for the Ritchey-Chretien. Before I purchased my Celestron C6/SCT, I was considering a Ritchey-Chretien purely for visual and advised they are purely or better for imaging.

Hi @FileraBe and welcome to SGL.

I remember seeing one too, (it may have been the same one), from Peppard Common in South Oxfordshire. I pestered/asked my late grandfather if he would take me and my 'trusty' Tasco 4ETE and no solar filter, as I did not have any transport at the time and did not drive. We waited until the Sun got on the horizon before using the 'scope to view it, and then there was a group of about twelve others wishing to view it as well. Extremely dangerous I know, (not having a solar filter), and I do not recommend it, but it was worth it before the Sun finally set for another day. I set up the 'scope for some solar projection beforehand, and that is when the small group from the pub and dog walkers came over and had a look.

Very nice.

Hi @JTEC Tele-Optic Giro Ercole...17.6kgs on each arm. AOKswiss AYOll... weight without / with Counterweight: 8kg / 12kg.

Just downloaded 2x free Android OS apps to my Asus Nexus 7 tablet and a SIM free Samsung S6 'phone, (used as a pocket tablet). Sky Wheel. Basically it shows a view of the planets as viewed from Earth, (inc. Moon and Sun), in the sky without a starry background. Needs a wi-fi connection or smartphone/tablet with SIM/internet access to get an approximate fix to your location for the RA & Dec or longitude & latitude of the solar system bodies. Mars Sky. As above... shows Earth, Moon, Sun, etc., inc. Phobos & Deimos from twelve Martian locations and the option change the calendar to 'Darian' or 'Mars Simplified' in settings. Both apps are small, (<6 MB each), ad-free, simple to use, (therefore a nice small introduction to astronomy apps for beginners), and released by xeronaut.com via Google Play.

Assuming you have the case... 'pick & pluck' foam... preferably ethafoam ---> https://www.easyfoam.co.uk/pick-n-pluck-foam.php

Following on from @John comments; when packing your equipment away for the evening and back indoors; unpack everything again and leave it to dry overnight, (not near a heat source), or for a few hours while you get some rest/sleep. Then when you recover/wake up, your equipment should be dry, both inside and out, ready for repacking. Remember to remove the caps, and leave them out to dry. If you can obtain any used 35mm film canisters; drill a few small holes in the base of them ---> insert a few sachets of Silica Gel/desiccant crystals ---> replace lid ---> place it in focusser. They are the correct size for 1.25" and will help removing any moisture within the OTA. When the crystals have changed colour, then you know they have absorbed the moisture and will need to be replaced or recharged, (i.e. on a baking tray in a conventional oven or non-metallic tray if using a microwave oven)... ...alternatively you can buy this --->https://www.firstlightoptics.com/astronomy-optics-cleaning-protection/flo-125-2-inch-desiccant-cap.html

Apologies for de-railing the OP's topic, but I do think @Rusted comment, as shown above, belongs here... 😜

From my knowledge of the Bulgarian-Cyrillic alphabet, the Russian-Cyrillic letters БПЦ translated to Latin-English are BPC, with the 'C' pronounced as 'TS' as in sits. Fortunately these letters are the same in both languages, although both alphabets are not identical when you compare them to each other, (and the other Slavic/Slavonic languages that use the Cyrillic alphabet). The nearest I can get to it from using the logo is Kazan Optical-Mechanical Factory (KOMZ).

One question which we all seem to be forgetting to ask is... what camera/lens are you using?

More lens flare. Mercury is/was further to the right of the as viewed from Sofia, BG @11:30:00EEST...

I remember Comet Holmes too. I was trying to locate it with my Sony 7x50 binoculars and wondering why I was not seeing anything... objective lens caps off - check eyepiece caps off - check objective lenses clean - check eyepiece lenses clean - check What else could be checked... moved the binoculars slightly off target and then realised I had been looking directly at it all the time... doh!

It is definitely a lens flare. Even if it was Venus, it would not appear as a disc, unless it is at superior conjuction, (i.e. far side of the Sun). Also it would not be that big when viewed with a camera lens. I have seen Venus during the day, oddly enough it was about 11:30am too, years ago when my local astro society had an open day.

Hi @Zaidi and welcome to SGL. Should you go the binocular route, I would personally recommend one of these... <--- to mount them on to a tripod. <--- my 7 x 50's <--- my 20 x 80's

Had a hospital appointment this morning. So spent the early part of the afternoon in the drizzle/rain underneath my car tightening up an exhaust clamp because the main box pipe was becoming separated from the rear box pipe. Not fun when you do not have a dry area to work in/on... (only got a (wet/damp) parking area).

Welcome back @Photosbykev from me too.

Looking at the map; you and your family were not to far from the RAS group.

Today is the 20th anniversary of the last solar eclipse of the 20th century, where was you on Wed. 11th Aug. ‘99 ? Myself and a small group of members from Reading Astromical Society, (a.k.a. the other RAS), decided to view it from Bulgaria. Half of the group stayed in a hotel in Varna, myself included, and the other half stayed in a hotel at Golden Sands. On the day of the eclipse we met up and got together and headed north of Varna/Golden Sands in a minibus to a small seaside town/village along on Black Sea coast called Krapets, (or Крапец in Bulgarian cyrillic), which was as close to the centreline as possible that we could get, without the crowds. I took my TeleVue Ranger, a few Plossl e/p’s, an eyepiece projection unit, full aperture glass solar filter, a Manfrotto tripod & camera head, two Pentax ME Super SLR’s, (plus six rolls of 36exp. slide film), I used about two and half rolls of film on the day and kept only six images.

Tough one as I have a Tele-Optic Giro Mkll and a Vixen GP. Maybe if I get a bigger 'scope... the Giro.

Hi @wildduck and welcome to SGL.

Bigger Maks are going to be heavy and very expensive. The largest one for sale for personal use of I have seen is/was a Questar 7”. I have had my C6 for a few years and it does me alongside my ‘re-modded’ ETX105... ...(pun not intended), and a TeleVue Ranger. I think in £’s per aperture, the SCT is going to be the cheaper option. Both are almost identical in terms of focal length... ETX105 = 1470mm / C6 XLT = 1500mm.