wesdon1

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!

wow i used to drool over these things as a child in the 80's n early 90's. I never did get one though! Mum n Dad said it would be too complicated to use for a child ( Like, come on mum n dad, YOU COULD HAVE SHOWED ME HOW! haha ) and too expensive for a "Toy" ???haha. Anyways i ended up discovering radio controlled cars and then helicopters n Planes and only recently re-discovered my interest in all things Space n Astronomy. I can now own as many Telescopes as i like! ( Withing budget, of-course! haha ) Thanks for the post, took me right back to seeing those exact Telescopes n my childhood!

Oh wow 60 degrees! That will be awesome! I'm still no expert but i assume the viewing at that height ( with decent seeing ) will be brilliant!? Goodness me i'll most likely own about as expensive equipment as i'm ever going to own by 2024 so that combined with the height above horizon will be something else!

Thank you to all who contributed to my question. I've read all contributions and will learn from all the great advice and comments. Now all we need is for these damn low pressure weather systems to sod off! lol

Hi Ricochet. Thank you for your very good advice. I wasn't aware that Jupiter will climb higher above horizon in future years? I was of the assumption that it would always be at the same declination, and so i would only ever get my best views around 3-4am when it's about as high as it will get, like I've been doing since i started out in December last year. So at least i have a lot to look forward to, as i will also by then own much better equipment. Saturn has been such a let-down for me, i would like to add, for very similar reasons. It's just so small with my equipment! I can't even split it's rings! lol So with the knowledge you have so kindly shared with me, i can now plan for the future and i'm very excited at the prospect of getting Saturn and Jupiter higher up in sky, with much better equipment! I can't wait for winter to come around again as well cos i really miss M42 Orion Neb. which was my first Neb i found/saw and i found it such a buzz, even though it was little more than a little grey fuzzy patch! lol So much to look forward to! That's why i'm now obsessed with this hobby because there's always more to see and better seeing to be had with the things already seen! Amazing!

Oh yes, forgive me, i forgot about Solar Projection method! lol. I feel silly also because I've never even heard of a Herchel wedge? lol ( Google time i think! lol ) Thanks Alan, i'm always super grateful for the excellent advice more experienced members like yourself take the time to give to still learning newbies like myself. Wes.

Hi all! Just a question from a newbie. Do expensive eyepieces tease out more contrast/detail on planets when using my 130/900 Newtonian reflector? I've seen some gorgeous views of my ( so far ) favourite planet Jupiter ( because it's the easiest to find and veiw lol ). But it's never quite crisp and contrasted enough? I'm very aware of bad seeing, but i recall a brilliant seeing night a while back, and still Jupiter was not very large and the cloud bands not very well defined? I've collimated my mirrors, but i'm assuming all other things being ok, it could be my cheap SkyWatcher 10, 25mm eyepieces and my cheap 3.6mm Plossl eyepiece ( the plossl cost me £17 ) that are to blame? I just can't stop thinking i would likely see Jupiter as a much larger and clearer image if i bought some super expensive eyepieces? Or should i just invest that money on a larger aperture reflector telescope instead? Considering for same money i spend on said EP's ( £400-500 ) i could buy a huge light bucket on a Dob mount ? Thank you in advance for any advice you can give me.

Hi Alan, thanks for your comments. I must say ( as a very inexperienced newbie, i hasten to add! ) your idea sounds a little scary ? What if one didn't do the job properly and some dangerous Sun light leaked through to ones retina and caused awful permanent damage ? The thought terrifies me mate! Al;though i can see the ingenuity of the idea! If done properly, by a competent experienced amateur astronomer, it sounds like a brilliant way to Solar gaze! Thanks, Wes.

A massive Thank You to all members who took the trouble to give me brilliant advice on Solar Observing safely. I'm new to Astronomy and i'm so happy and learning all the time. I can't over-state how helpful it is when more experienced members/astronomers help people like myself who are new to the Hobby and trying to make sense of the vast amounts of information that one needs to observe the night sky and daylight solar observing etc. So Thank You to all you good people, i'm very grateful for all the help.

Hi and so sorry for such late reply, i've been away on holiday and couldn't access internet on phone without huge roaming charges. My goodness thanks so much for going to all that trouble writing all that procedure/information for me regarding my fears over Solar Observing. I'm very very grateful. I will follow your brilliant advice and i'm excited now as you have given me the confidence that i can Solar Observe safely if i do it properly and never cut corners, so to speak. Thanks again Mark.

Hi, thank you so much for your advice. I will actually try out the solar proj. method initially, just to get used to pointing my equipment at the sun. Good job you told me to cover up Telrads, finders etc as i hadn't even considered that! See, that's why it's imperative that novices like myself ask the more experienced/expert Astronomers for advice! I will definitely buy Baader product(s) as they seem like they're of the highest quality? ( Please Correct me if i'm mistaken? ) Thank you for saving me a nasty burn/accident with finder scope/telrad! Many Thanks, Wes. SkyWatcher BK 1309 EQ2. 25mm/20mm super plossl/10mm/3.6mm/2 x Barlow/Laser Collimater/Tons of enthusiasm! lol

I'm still learning, and there's a question that's been in my mind from day1. How safe are foil like solar filters for solar observing? reason i ask is i'm scared the foil may have microscopic holes or cracks because it crumples/bends etc and some massively magnified light/heat radiation will seep through and fry my retina instantly! I'm not joking, it really frightens me! Would the experienced members recommend a solid state/glass/ceramic type filter instead of film, and can even these develop unforeseen faults and cause instant blindness!?? I really want to see the sun and it's amazing spots and other phenomena but this fear of harm is holding me back. Thanks in advance for any advice, and please forgive me if i sound dramatic or stupid.

I'm only 5 months in to this amazing hobby, and already i'm telling people where Jupiter is, how to spot it, that Saturn will be following close behind it, that those little "Stars" travelling ever so quickly across the night sky are most likely satellites, and so it goes on haha. I've had very positive responses from people, and they seem genuinely interested and fascinated with what i'm telling them. I just can't wait to get some decent images of planets and DSOs so i can share them with family and friends, and anyone else who wants to see them. It makes my brain freeze with confusion when i try to fathom the sheer infinitesimal enormity of the Galaxies and Universe and beyond. It's beyond human comprehension thus far, imo...

Gorgous image btw!

oooohhhh haha see! Told you i'm a newbie without a clue! haha Thank you for letting me know. It never crossed my mind that there's likely dozens of globular clusters, and here's me assuming there's only one, and it's name is M13! Doh! haha

forgot to mention, isn't the "M3" globular cluster actually M13 Globular Cluster? Forgivbe me if i'm wrong, i'm a newbie learning the ropes lol

Well done all. Beautiful images. I especially liked the time lapse! Those aircraft were like rockets/streamers shooting through a gorgous night sky! Amazing!

I'm like Johnny 5 from that 80's film with the lovable Robot! INPUT! INPUT!!! ahahahaha

Thank you so much for your kind comments. Very much appreciated! I'm learning at frantic pace, and enjoying every minute and moment of it!

Thanks Kirkster501, i've learned a lot from all the very helpful/educational comments to my Topic/Question! The late SPM was fascinating to listen to on TV, so anything he says, i consider it incontrovertible fact! lol I'm thinking, after reading the many comments, that i should get a 70-90mm Refracter, and a 200mm Newt on a dob mount. (much more for your money, i'm learning! lol) Then i will drastically improve my EP collection, to get maximum benefit from said instruments.