Startinez

First image with the 130PDS (and first planetary imaging result), and quite happy with the final result. Untracked from a 37 second video, aligned and stacked etc. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Hi Vince, Welcome to the site. A beginner myself and I'm moving to north Derbyshire (Ripley) this month so I'll be looking for a new astronomy club. Get in touch if you're local and want to check them out as newbies together!

Welcome to the forums!

Welcome to the site. That is quite a first telescope! You should get some incredible views with it. What company do you work for, if you don't mind me asking? I work for Laerdal who are based in Stavanger but also international - I've not visited yet as I've only been with the company just over a year but it's only a matter of time.

Welcome to SGL! Enjoy your stay.

Great, thanks for the explanation. I guess it's narrowed down to 1 then! ?

Crikey, I think I've got my next scope sorted... I currently have a 90mm f/10 refractor so I think the two would make a good pairing. Out of curiosity, if I can afford the 200PDS should I go for that over the 130 or are there other things to consider than how much light will be collected? Same focal ratio. I guess one thing to consider is that when adding a coma corrector into the mix you're throwing another £100 on top of the scope price.

Have you thought about a career as an electrician? ?

Happy to help out with electrical calculations and advice should you desire. As for the astronomical outlook, I'm not so experienced!

I think that what this thread has taught me is that there is no one choice! It should have been obvious to me before, but there are so many considerations and people have different priorities which lead to very different end results. Interesting to see people's choices, mind.

This certainly does help, and I guess that going forward it will mean less compatibility issues should I wish to upgrade my scope. Thank you.

I'm trying to get my head around what mount I should get for my beginner setup. I have an Orion 90mm refractor (Astroview 9024), and a budget of £750 for a dedicated astro camera & tracking mount. I've had my eye on a HEQ5 Pro but the issue is, it would have to be second hand to be in my budget and I don't know enough to properly scrutinise any purchase I'm making. I've seen an EQM35 mentioned and whilst one would assume due to the price difference this will be not as good as the HEQ5, it would allow me to purchase from new and still have £200+ for an astrocamera. Would the EQM35 be stable enough for my telescope? My main goals by this time next year are to have properly imaged M31 and M42 so accurate tracking on DSOs is a must.