Demonperformer

When my council installed them, I did SQM readings before and after. Allowing for variation within each set of readings, the figures seem to suggest a "darker" sky from my garden. But I think, because the new lights are more "directional", it can be a lottery as to whether you are a winner or loser.

Hi and welcome to SGL. Just to clarify, you are talking about eyepieces for the telescope? 50mm seems an awfully long focal length to have ... the usual "standard" is 25mm.

Hi, Nick, and welcome to SGL.

That is an impressive result with the libration working against you.

Quality rather than quantity ... always satisfying.

My 'buying' rule of thumb ... I ask myself why I want to buy it; what do I hope to achieve with it that I cannot achieve without it. If I cannot provide a satisfactory response to that question, then it is probably a purchase I can do without. In case that comes off sounding too Utopian, I should maybe state that I do not always follow that rule, but, as I say, those are usually the purchases I end up wishing I hadn't made.

Like it. Particularly the variation of colour and intensity within the lagoon.

I would be well-pleased with any of those. Excellent as a first attempt.

Glad your trip was not a total waste, despite Mars refusing to play ball during most of it. There are some nice objects in Scorpio that are "just out of reach" from our latitudes.

Early Perseids?

Yes, the OTA (with its attached dovetail bar) can be attached to an EQ mount simply enough for long-exposure imaging. Congrats on the new scope, you have a lot of fun in store ...

Hi, and welcome to SGL. Maybe I'm missing something, but if this is the scope you have then a 25mm ep will be giving a 50.8x magnification and with an 18.3" disc, Saturn should be appearing about half the size of the full moon with the naked eye (~15'). That should be more than enough to see a disc! If this is the case, the only solution would be that you are not actually looking at Saturn, and sorting out your finder-alignment (as above) is the way forward.

Hi, Matt, and welcome to SGL. Just to correct (if I may) one comment you made in your original post ... there are no "stupid" questions on this forum. We all started with ZERO knowledge and experience (a level that you have clearly already passed) and you will find the membership willing to share the knowledge they have gained over many millenia of combined accumulated experience. Enjoy the journey.

Hi, Jon, and welcome to SGL. Nothing wrong with starting out with binos ... for my first 30 years sging I used nothing bigger ... great way to "learn the sky". Enjoy the journey.

Sounds like you have been having some great times with your scope. The only thing that puzzles me is the "4 comets hitting earth" ... perhaps you might elaborate a little ... ?