domstar

I just thought it was funny, especially not being able to find the Andromeda Galaxy. It felt like 'Mum, look at me ride my bike'-crash. It's really true that I had about 10 seconds. I wanted to blow minds but actually, what we do is very subtle apart from the moon Jupiter and Saturn.

Ten seconds to impart the wonders of the universe. No moon, no planets, no eyepiece changes. What would you do? I slipped out for an hour ready to be back at 8.30 for an evening with the wife. I drove about 10 minutes to a darkish place and the sky was beautiful although there was a lot of moisture in the air. Not much of a plan except for a nostalgic look at M102 the Spindle Galaxy. After a look at that, Bodes and the Cigar, I was unsuccessfully tracking down the Dumbbell when two men with head torches wandered past. With no time for deliberation, I showed them the Andromeda Galaxy. My eyepiece showed 45x magnification and it's so much better at 30x. The first man couldn't see it (he'd knocked it out of view) and the second gave a bit of a shrug. I resisted the temptation to blow their minds by telling them that it was really far away. What's the Czech for averted vision anyway? Not long after, a middle-aged man and his wife parked up on this deserted farm track. Usually this is a decent place for lovers' privacy but these two seemed to have come to look at the stars. As I offered to show them something as the woman got back in the car. The man told me I was observing in the wrong place due to the light from the town I'd driven from. I showed him the Double Cluster to a shrug and then I tried to show him the Andromeda Galaxy. Pressured by listening to him tell me where it was, I couldn't find it. In my haste, I'd been hopping from Almach as if it was Mirach. After hearing that I was observing at 45x his parting words were that his colleague had a telescope that could plug into a laptop and could magnify digitally to 135x (3 times better than mine) and it looked excellent on the moon. I packed up feeling like a shamed schoolboy but pleased to have spread the stargazing gospel. Thanks for reading Dominic

Inspirational. I have spent some time staring at Sirius without much expectation. It's a great tip to do it in the morning. What mag were you using?

Great report. I don't have a 40mm but my 30mm Aero gets the most use of all my eyepieces. It always makes me want to try the Bubble Nebula with it but I don't think I have the aperture to see it.

I'm guessing they are mainly useful for Newts, especially the second one. I use a refractor and a normal chair does me and I use a cushion if I'm observing lower objects. It's a different story if the eyepiece is at the front of the scope as the difference in height is much bigger.

I started with a 70mm scope from Lidl. It really gave me the astro bug. If I were you I'd point it at the moon, then the Pleiades, the Orion Nebula, the Double Cluster, the Great Globular cluster in Hercules, then some double stars and the planets when they are around. The mount might annoy you but I envy what lies ahead of you. You will definitely want to upgrade wherever you start (if stargazing is for you) so start with the scope you already have. Just crack it open and don't worry about setting up the EQ mount perfectly. I expect you can get advice on how to use it as an AZ mount. Good luck and enjoy it. You already know you won't see Hubble like views just let your mind be blown by the faint stuff that you can see.

Excellent report. I enjoyed reading it despite the pangs of jealousy.

What a picture. Something to be proud of and an excellent memory. Congratulations.

While you're here, Doug, what about the exit pupil airy disc thing? You have an impressive range of scopes, is the 1mm or less exit pupil something you consider when observing double stars?

Thanks. Those exit pupils sure are big on fast scopes. I wonder what difference that makes.

A beautiful night on the balcony. No chills, stellarium on hand, and the ability to have a break and some night-time cereal. My double star atlas has been mostly a beautiful decoration since Orion disappeared before spring but I did the necessary squinting to research some delightful doubles in Hercules. A short time ago when the moon was nearly full, I'd done the same and surprisingly (at least to me) I'd failed on every single one. This time it was easier and more successful. I was surprised to learn Rasalgethi was in Hercules- and alpha no less. I'd always thought it was part of Ophiuchus. I enjoyed that and also about 5 more doubles which were starred in the Cambridge atlas but I can only read in bright sunshine. I gave Zeta a try but I knew I didn't stand a chance. The rest of the evening I looked at the always disappointing Summer Beehive and a few interesting open clusters in Aquila- the Flying Unicorn, Graff's Cluster and the Tweedledum Cluster. Then the little glob in Delphinus- Caldwell 47. However, probably the most enjoyable time was spent staring into space around the area where Barnard's Galaxy should be. I've been on the case 4 or 5 times this year and I have the exact spot but no cigar. The Little Gem is there but not Barnard's. I know I should wait for better transparency but I'd like to ask what eyepiece I should be using. The biggest exit pupil (32mm eyepiece about 3.5mm exit pupil) or a darker background 25mm eyepiece? Neither have worked for me yet. My other question is about double star exit pupils. Do I understand it correctly that at 1mm and below I get to see the airy disc and above that I don't? Does that mean that for my f9 scope my 9mm has a significant advantage over my 10mm eyepiece despite probably not quite being of such good optical quality? So all in all I had a lovely time. It's great to get somewhere dark with an all-round view but staying at home with the proverbial pipe and slippers has its place too. Thanks for reading, Dominic

I think sharing has become a huge part of life now. People want to take pictures and show other people.Especially for my wife and daughter, photographic evidence shared online is a part of any activity. Another thing is the technology and accessibility. The other thing about the forum is that it has a wealth of information to help imagers improve. I'm a visual observer and always lurking here but after getting great advice to help me buy gear, the help I need to observe is fairly minimal (I really do appreciate the support, though). I write the odd report and enjoy reading the reports of others but my content has dried up as I know how to use my gear, I'm not currently looking to upgrade (ha ha) and others usually have more to offer than me by way of advice. I definitely wouldn't have enjoyed stargazing so fully if it wasn't for SGL, but just imagine being an imager without this forum. In the end, just like John in Derby above, I have actually snapped the moon. Maybe it's only time, money and computer skills that's holding me back (not really).

I'll second Stu. Great report and especially informative. I like multiples because you can be sure you've found the right star before you look for the other more challenging components.

I have a small well of tenacity. When I set up it's usually not quite dark but the well is already emptying. I try a few easy targets and then it's time for a challenge. I'm on the ball for less than an hour when I can be quite determined. When the well is dry I tend to just pack up. The end of my session is usually a half-hearted attempt at something only slightly researched and maybe a look at the Double Cluster. It's a necessary step to more concentrated research for another better unsuccessful attempt next time. Then hopefully it's third time lucky. So, for me, hunting down faint objects (not a lot of detail in a 4inch) means three times research and then almost willing it into existence. When it reveals itself its like it's just a bit less than not being there. When I'm happy there's a bit more than nothing I usually point away and find it again. With M51 and M82 it's like I can almost see detail at times. I can't but there must be something there to persuade me that I almost can. That's one of the calming joys of dso observation.

Nearly a year ago I realised that 30 quid a month would get me a 12 inch Explore Scientific Ultra Light truss dob on my 50th birthday and also give me time to change my mind. Closing in on the half way point and have half talked myself out of it. We'll see how it goes.

Hmm. That got me thinking. I've just had a look around. It's a 20mm UWA-58 degree from skysthelimit on ebay. Skysthelimit were always the place for BST stuff before Flo started selling them. My purchase history has it advertised as BST but it's not written on the box or eyepiece and the screw up eye guard is different to my 25mm Starguider. Looks like I've been had. Whatever it is, it's sharp as a tack and I'm not a massive fan of my 25mm because of its ring of fire (and it's a bit close to my 30mm 2 inch aero). Anyway, thanks for the correction. I'm genuinely gobsmacked. Sorry all for giving duff advice.

Hi, I have 6mm 10mm and 18mm BCOs and I agree with @jetstream that I love the 18mm and 10mm but not the 6mm. If I look at the moon, I can see more detail at 6mm (150x on my scope) but I don't enjoy the view as much as with the 10mm (90x). My telescope should manage 150x magnification but the views don't satisfy. On the other hand, it gives good views of Saturn. I have a 9mm Revelation plossl, a 10mm Vixen plossl and 20mm BST Starguider (all from ebay) and I like them all. The views are great at f9 with a small FOV (starguiders have bigger) and I don't wear glasses. I'm afraid I disagree with the wisdom of buying the best at the beginning. The hifi analogy above is a good one. Buy the best when your eyes can appreciate it. Shopping and upgrading are part of the fun. Show me a regular observer who hasn't upgraded no matter how high their entry costs were. Good luck and have fun. I only think about upgrading my kit when it's cloudy.

Do what you enjoy, but just for the Virgo galaxies, please hop from galaxy to galaxy (no goto). It's the biggest joy of stargazing for me. It took a bit of research, bortle 4 skies and a 4 inch frac. It's the main reason I look forward to spring. They are pretty much just smudges in my eyepiece but moving from one to another is magic. Now, the Blue Snowball. A goto would suit me down to the ground.

Thanks guys. It was confusing me. Every time I get back I look up and think 'Why did I pack up?' I think when I get out of the car I have to look up high because of all the houses and trees, which makes the difference seem even worse. It's good to know it's normal.

I've been observing at a new darkish site ( sqm 21.26 Bortle 4) . The milky way is clear and the Double Cluster is evident. It's away from lights although I do see the village below and the glare from a town 9km away. However, the sky is greyish. When I drive back to base 500m away and park, there is an awful LED streetlight. With my back to the streetlight the sky is inky black and perhaps there are more visible stars. The view is obstructed by houses and trees. My question is- is this normal or should I look for blacker skies? Does the light horizon turn the sky grey? Does my dark adaptation turn the sky grey? What is going on?

Just lie back and enjoy. Naked eye rocks.

So with seeing and transparency do we want a high number or a low number?

Hi and welcome, I started with a 70mm f10 scope. I think you'll find most (apart from the full extent of the Andromeda Galaxy in the dark ) Messier objects will fit nicely. The shorter the focal length, the easier it is have a low magnification, the more space you'll see with a low power eyepiece and the easier it will be to star hop. I didn't mind the chromatic aberration on my scope but I did want more aperture. I found that terrestrial observation became boring after about 5 minutes (unless you have a specific reason to use the telescope during the day). Good luck with the stargazing but be prepared- even a skinflint like me wanted to upgrade after a year.

Cheers. Hope my UHC holds up. Up at 1.40am to fly home from hols this morning. It's a gorgeous night but I've decided to chill with the wife. Part of me thinks I'm not hardcore enough 🙂.

Great report. Very enjoyable and helpful. Never tried the NAN. Can't wait to give it a go. It might be a toughy for my gear. That Sumerian looks beautiful but that folding chair would kill my back pretty quickly.