wesdon1

Goodness me that really did need a good clean sir! It was covered in dust and cob webs! haha I'm 110% CERTAIN you will notice the difference in views when you next take her sky hopping! My Primary Mirror on my 5.1 inch Newtonian is a little dusty so i'm going to do same as you did and use detergent. There's some ace vids on YouTube about how to safely clean optics. I believe it's imperative that one doesn't rub the coatings off Mirror/Optics so one should use soft cotton extremely gently and only briefly. I'll post some pics of before, during and after. Open Skies to all... ( Wes, Liverpool, UK )

Hi, i notice your locations includes SW Ireland? I just wanted to say my Father owns the family home in Brosna, Co.Kerry, SouthWest Ireland, and at night the light pollution is so low the sky is awash with stars etc. I dream to one day move out there and have the best veiws ever through m,y Telescopes. I currently live in Wavertree, Liverpool, which is awfully light polluted! I've genuinely considered breaking the law and cutting the power to the street lamps are are ruining my views! haha

Hi Michael. What a fascinating insight into my experience! It could well have been my brain creating sound to make sense of what i was seeing/had just seen. It was beyond strange what i saw in terms of it's shape, constitution and trajectory. It's just so incredibly frustrating when something like that happens so fast, without warning, and you basically re-live it dozens of times in your minds eye trying to "See" what happened and what it was etc! Your Maths are fascinating btw! I will add though, it looked quite close to me as i looked up and saw it shooting above my head, but again it could have been 30'000 feet high and i still could have perceived it to be close due to speed and shock of the experience? If i was any good with animations i'd make a video showing what i saw/experienced! lol Thank you for your amazing comments/insight! Wes.

Hi David. You have suggested some very plausible explanations there. I've just looked up the iridium flares, and it definately didn't look like those. It was perfectly round, and very yellow in colour. I'm thinking maybe a fuel burning/dump directly in front of my line of sight, which would account for the round shape maybe? I wish back then i had a camera phone! lol. As for the space junk object, i can say hand on heart it couldn't have been an aircraft cos that too just disappeared, though not like an on/off light switch, but rather it reduced in size/brightness very quickly until not visible. Maybe it was some sort of top secret military aircraft as yet unknown to public? That would account for the sound it made i would guess? my goodness what a riddle! lol. Thank you for all the help and advice David! Open Skies to you Sir... Wes.

Hi David. You seem very knowledgable about Science in general. The sound came about 5-8 seconds after the "Space Junk" shot over my head. My timings are very rough because in a moment of shock, time perception can vary massively. It might have been 1 or 2 seconds after object shot over me? As stated, it all happened so quickly, and it's driven me crazy re-living the experience and trying to "See" in my minds eye what exactly it was and what exactly happened etc. The best way i can describe the sound is this...You know when a very large haulage truck stops at traffic lights and you hear the release of pressurised air from the braking system? Well it was exactly like that but stretched out to a few seconds. It was/is actually my second unexplained experience! a few years back, while standing near Liverpool FC's ground in Anfield, i noticed what can best be described as a star made of yellow flames, in a ball and little flares coming out from it's edges all around the disk? It was there for about 1 minute, then it simply disappeared? I asked a man stood next to me to look at it and confirm i wasn't hallucinating, and he said my goodness yes! How strange!?? It was about 3 times the size of our brightest star Sirius, and looked to be either in low earth orbit or extremely high altitude? but then it could have been light years away from me for all i knew? but then the very obvious flares spurting out the disk all the way around would not have been so obvious at such huge distances, surely? so my best guestimate was/is high altitude or low earth orbit? it is so difficult to judge distance when you don't have any idea of the size of the object you're looking at, unless it is very close to you? Anyway i didn't tell anyone about the flaming "Star" in the sky because i didn't think people would believe me. I even considered contacting a local University for help in making sense of what i had seen. Sorry for long message, i just thought best try explain everything. Thanks David, I look forward to your thoughts on my reply. Wes, Liverpool, UK.

I'd suggest to try heal the shoulder. You will be going down in aperture, which, depending where you live, will have a noticeable effect on the views. If it's really bothering you though, better to reduce size/ap than give up a hobby i assume you really enjoy.

I live on a busy main road, and although the road wasn't particularly busy at the time, as far as i can recall, it's still a noisy urban city residential area. So for me to hear a whooshing must mean it was quite loud? It was very large by "Shooting Star" standards, and as described previousely was a bizarre shape? I so wish i had footage of it, as it's really got my brain hurtin g trying to fathom what it was? lol. My best guess is space debri.

Last night, around 9:30pm BST Liverpool, UK, i saw what looked like a shooting star, so to speak, but was moving much slower than i'm used to seeing, and had two white bright balls at front, somehow connected with a rectangular shaped white bright section between them? It was a bizarre shape, and travelled very fast, but by shooting star standards was quite slow? It came from behind me, over my head, and disappeared about 30 degrees above the southern horizon, which at the time i was viewing, looking at Jupiter with telescope. I had looked away from eye piece to give my eye a break and change eyepiece when the object shot over my head towards the south. it was awesome. But i also heard a whooshing sound about 10 seconds after seeing it? The sky wasn't even properly dark at the time, but still it shone brighter than a full moon! it was amazing, but strange in it's behaviour and appearance, not to mention the whooshing sound that followed short time later! lol I'm convinced it must have been space debri due to the lower velocity and unusual shape? Whatever it was it was awesome to see and hear! If anyone else saw it, or has any knowledge of these things, i'd really appreciate your comments! Thanks! Open Skies to all...

oh cool! Glad i was correct in my interpretation of image! Gorgeous image! I'm a newbie ( 8-9 months ) but i am quite fixated on Jupiter and Saturn for the time being because they're so perfectly placed for me as i have a south facing garden etc and they're silly easy to find and veiw. Once the winter sets in with darker nights i'll do more DSO veiwing. I also can't wait to start doing astrophotography myself. I follow a guy in Canada called Trevor, his channel is called "AstroBackyard". I've learned a lot from his vids.

haha very good point mate! I saved a bundle of cash, and was as fresh as a daisy the following day! Thanks for the link too, i'll take a look!

Thats a gorgeous pic ! Is that the moon or an over-exposed Jupiter in the lower right of sky in pic!? lol amazing pic. oh I've just noticed, it must be Jupiter because Saturn is following behind on other side of Milky Way!?? I regularly view these two planets so i know there movements almost off by heart! lol. The Milky Way is always in between them at the moment. Am i correct or have i just showed how much of a newbie i really am! haha

Hi, i'm a newbie, 8 months in, but in my limited experience, i'd suggest buying a 12-15mm decent eye piece, and use a 2x barlow when the Seeing is good. I regularly view Jupiter and Saturn with my SkyWatcher 130 newtonian, and i can tease out decent views with a 10mm + 2x barlow ( 5mm ) but only when seeing is good. generally i don't go higher than 10mm on its own, but still get lovely views. The higher mag you go, the more blurry the view, generally speaking. The exception to this rule is when the atmospheric conditions are stable enough to increase mag a lot higher, but these nights, i'm fast learning, are arare! ( Atleast where i live anyhow! lol ) As a side note, a few months back, while viewing the Moon, i managed to get amazingly stable veiws ( no bad seeing at high mag ) with a 3.6mm eye piece combined with a 2x barlow, giving me 500x mag with a 'scope that has a theoretical max mag of 260x ! at the time i wasn't even gonna tell anyone cos i was sure they'd think i was lying or had got my calculations wrong, but i kid you not it's true. here's the formulae-900mm focal length, 3.6mm eye piece, 2x barlow, = 900mm divided by 1.8mm ( 3.6mm halved by 2x barlow ) equals 500x mag ! now i must stress this was one night, in the most perfect of minutes, on a very good seeing night, but it shows there's lots of potential, it's just a matter of all the stars lining up together. ( pun very much intended! haha ) Best of luck ! Wes, Liverpool. Clear Skies...

wow so you got images that good with 150mm aperture! Obviousely you have the really good ZWO camera/accessories etc but thats still amazing visuals! BTW i've been away on hols so sorry for such a silly late reply sir! I'm completely obsessed with this hobby, been into astronomy since childhood but for different reasons i never actually bought a "Proper" telescope until december 31st last year! ( Yes, the guy delivered it to me at 9pm new years eve! what a guy! lol ) so i didn't go out celebrating, i spent the whole night alone with my new toy! haha Clear Skies to you sir!

Thank You to everyone who took the time to give me advice on my question/predicament. I'm really grateful, and i'm glad i asked and didn't just go spend my limited funds on mounting rings for a mount that i know understand is no-where near sufficient for my large OTA. I've decided to build a Dob mount for it. I'm confident i can accomplish this due to my experience in making RC Model Planes, Helicopters, cars etc etc. They look pretty simple to construct. As i told Steve, i'm very sorry for late reply. I've been very busy with family and other events recently. Thank you all so much for the help n advice. I will post some pictures of my building of Dob mount and see what you guys think. Have a lovely weekend, Wes.

Hi and thank you so much for such a kind and generous offer Steve! Unfortunately i don't drive due to health problems ( Epilepsy ) so i couldn't travel down to pick it up. Your offer is amazing though so thank you so much for your generosity, i'm incredibly grateful and moved by your offer! I'm going to build a Dobsonian mount at home as I've seen it done online and it's very basic woodwork/construction if one has the correct tools for the job. Luckily i'm really good at making things due to my 25+ years owning, building and flying Radio Controlled Helicopters, Planes. and building many many other RC Cars, trucks etc. The building of wooden framed Planes teaches you a lot about working from plans and with wood etc so i'm confident i will create a decent Dob Mount for my OTA. Thanks again Steve, God Bless You Sir. PS-So sorry for such late reply, I've been very busy with family and other events.

Hi, may i ask what magnification you were using when recording that video of Jupiter at top of your post ? Also, what 'scope were you using ? Thanks, Wes. ( Newbie based in Liverpool, UK )

I'm a newbie too sir. I have wanted to know the answer to your question myself for a few months now, so thank you for asking it n thank you to all the very helpful advice from other more experienced members. Newbies like us need all the help n info we can get so places like SGL are invaluable to us. I'm on my 3rd Telescope. It's a SkyWatcher 200p Skyliner. It's 200mm aperture, 1200mm Focal Length. I also have a SW 130/900, and a SW 114/500, all Newtonian Reflectors. I'm 8 months in to my new hobby and it's amazing! Clear Skies to you all!

I'm in the same position. I've just bopught a Skywatcher Skyliner 200p OTA off ebay, it was/is brand new in packaging. I got a bargain. I'm now looking for a cheap used Dobsonian base or if my cash will stretch, an equatorial mount. They're super expensive though, because they need to be able to handle huge OTA, so i'm not sure. Maybe i'll get lucky twice and get another bargain on ebay ? lol. As a side note, there's lots of excellent YouTube vids showing you how to build your own Dobsonian Mount. It's really simple stuff, just cutting pieces of wood into squares, a couple circular, and some drilling of holes etc. I reckonon a teenager would be able to do it. I might do it myself, if i can't find a mount/base cheap online.

Hi everyone. I'm considering saving myself money by attempting to mount a skywatcher 200P OTA ( 200mm Aperture/1200mm Focal Length ) onto my skywatcher EQ2 Mount that currently houses my Newtonian Reflector BK1309 ( 130mm aperture/900mm focal length ). I'm a newbie ( 7 months ) so i'm still learning. Could anyone tell me if my mount will handle size/weight of said OTA ? If not, would the Skywatcher EQ3-2 mount suffice? or will i have to go all out and get the Skywatcher EQ5 mount or equivalent? i'm about to order the Tube Rings for said OTA to mount to my EQ" but thought i'm best asking on here if it wioll even work ? Thanks in advance for any help guys.

Congratulations on your new absolutely beautiful new set up!. Is it just me or are some of these Refactors n Mounts works of Art !? lol

You just answered the exact question that's been bugging me for months lol. You have made perfect sense of it for me, even though i didn't actually ask you! Biondi did! So thanks to you too Biondi for asking the question we both wanted to know! lol I'm only 7 months into hobby so any and all knowledge gained is always greatly appreciated. Thanks guys.

Hi John. Major Apologies for such a late reply Sir! I've been too busy to come onto the site with work and health problems. Yes it's the SkyWatcher Skyliner 200P ( 200/1200 ) I made a mistake with my numbers lol. It's actually 200mm Aperture, not 203mm, as stated in post! Please don't ask me how i managed to get it wrong! lol. I'm super excited, as can be seen in my original post! lol. It's the size of the OTA that's so impressive! The possibilities of seeing faint fuzzies, much better resolution with Planets, etc etc are so exciting! I'm still a newcomer to the hobby, 7 months in. 3rd 'scope owned now. gone from 114mm Aperture, to 130mm, to now 200mm, which is a substantial increase in my humble opinion. My 114/500 SW Newtonian reflector, my very first 'scope, gave great views of the planets, and even M42 aswell! So it's all been a progressive upward trajectory of excitement and wonder! I'm obsessed with my new hobby, and just wish i would have bought a telescope years ago because I've always been fascinated with Astronomy, physics, sciences etc. Just one thing after another kept me distracted. Better late than never! I assume you're a pro and have much much better equipment than i do!? lol. That white Newtonian Reflector in your picture looks Huge! Is that a 10 inch or more Aperture ? it looks amazing Sir!

Just received my brand new SkyWatcher 200P OTA ( 200mm/1200mm ) I'm so excited at the prospect of an extra 70mm of Aperture and 300mm of Focal length over my other Newtonian, the SkyWatcher BK1309 EQ2 ( 130mm/900mm ) Newtonian Reflector. The extra focal length instantly increases the power of all my eye pieces, and the increased Aperture gives me much more resolving power and obviously much more light gathering potential. The size of the thing is also so impressive!! I started out with a small Newtonian Reflector 114/500 and compared to that it's GINORMOUS!! It even dwarfs my current ( well, now ex-current ) largest Newtonian Reflector, the 130/900 !! I'll try take some images with my phone until i can afford an imaging camera.

What an amazing image of Moon and landing site! Beautiful image sir! The C14 'scope looks like it has awesome resolving power! Well Done Sir!

Gorgous image mate! And you're just starting out??? Imagine how good they'll be when you've got a few years experience!?? Amazing work, well done!