Littleguy80

My Astronomik OIII, UHC and, like John, I’d forgo the polariser but I’d have the Baader Neodymium instead. I’m yet to enter the world of solar observing

Amazing what can be seen. Forgive my ignorance, will the magnitude remain at that level or is there potential for it to get brighter?

This seems to be a hobby that sticks with you. I’ve read numerous reports of people taking breaks for various reasons and then coming back to astronomy and loving it every bit as much. I do love the event astronomy. Things like a comet, close asteroid pass or a Nova. I’ve seen all 3 this year. Not managed a supernova yet. I think helps to keep it fresh. There’s an amazing thread running at the moment where some people are even seeing a Quasar! Incredible!

Couldn’t agree more. The success of my journey into the world of astronomy has a great deal to do with everyone on here

Wow is the right word. Fabulous report. You’re making great use of the aperture. I think your unfiltered view of the Veil is significantly better than my filtered view

Haha at least you got there in the end. Of course, I’ve spent countless hours since researching eyepieces, filters and just about anything else you could possibly buy for a scope

Thanks Doug. My first scope was picked based on about 20 mins research last December. My wife was asking what I wanted for Christmas and I didn’t have a lot of time to think about it. I have 4 kids o Christmas is a hectic time. The scope was described as being at the upper end of the beginner range and capable of showing Jupiter and it’s moons and, most importantly, Saturn and it’s rings. I had no idea the astrobug would grab me as much as it has. It’s been a great 2017 so far as a result

I was all lined and excited for my first trip to a dark site tonight. The forecast had been looking good for most of the week. However, the forecast this morning told a different story and the satellite images by late afternoon confirmed it. My trip had to be postponed Looking out this evening, I could see Saturn low in the sky from my garden so decided to have a look. My Dad popped over and he got his first look at Saturn. He was really excited and full of enthusiasm. It was a lovely moment and helped lift my mood. I was also able to point out Titan which added to the excitement. After he left, I spent awhile going up and down the magnifications on Saturn. It was interesting to see the image sharpen up as the magnification dropped and then become hazy as I increased it again under the poor seeing. Went on to split Izar. Just about split at 180x through the haze. Went up to 300x, well beyond the practical upper limit of my scope but was just playing really. The tiny blue secondary was more apparent in a very wobbly view. Views of M13 and Epsilon Lyrae were grabbed between the clouds. It wasn’t the night I’d hoped for but it’s hard not to enjoy looking at the ringed planet. It was, after all, the main reason I wanted a telescope in the first place!

Great report, Andrew! Do you find targets like M33 any easier to see through binoculars compared to a lower power view through a scope?

Congratulations, Doug. It’s a great feeling when you finally see a target that’s been “hiding” from you. I totally sympathise with the challenges of the neighbour’s lights. It drove me to observing with a towel over my head for awhile. I now have an observing hood which has solved that issue for me.

Great set of images! I had a go at this visually earlier this week but no luck. Transparency wasn’t good and I was relying on SkySafari for position. SkySafari was quoting around mag 12.5 but i’m not sure how often they update the mags. Looking forward to seeing how much this brightens over the next month or so

Sounds great, Gerry. Really ignites the imagination thinking about what the views must be like under those conditions. If all goes to plan I should be able to observe at a dark site tomorrow night. The website says SQM of 21 or better! M33 will be definitely be on my observing list for that. Fingers crossed I get to admire those spirals too

Awesome report, Gerry. Did you take a look at NGC 604 in M33?

I love your reports, Nick. Entertaining reads and always something to add to my observing list

Fab report. Great read and I learned a few things along the way