ScouseSpaceCadet

Or potentially increase stability as the legs are are not extended so far... Decisions, decisions! However if you do not find the observing position uncomfortable and the whole shebang already feels 'flawless'. Maybe consider saving your dosh? 😀

Just the opposite. We need to be positively evangelical about our 500 quid ED 'scopes. Rejoice! 🙄😁 I look forward to your first light review. 😀 ...and no offence meant, however please turn the dew shield the right way up for pics! 😆

Btw an official welcome to the worst kept open secret Starwave club wibblefish. 😀

Tbh I haven't used them before but the kids asked what I wanted for my birthday. As they're uni and college students I found them something cheap and useful to buy. They're supposed to be good. We will find out in the coming months...

You may have answered your own question Stu, "...the whole thing worked flawlessly." I may be being frugal, but if it ain't broke don't fix it?

Hah... Well I don't believe it... It is a Nadira observing chair and my Christmas present. This is torture I have to wait until then. Christmas is aaaaages away! 😁 Today a couple of small astro related gifts arrived:

The 130PS is a fantastic little starter scope. I had one and regretted selling it. With steady seeing you should get some decent views of Jupiter's clouds and Saturn's Cassini division. Perservere for at least another six months. The winter season has plenty of great sights and a 130mm reflector will serve them up with all the trimmings. If you haven't already, buy the book Turn Left at Orion. Install a planetarium app - Stellarium or Sky Safari are both very useful. Buy a collimation cap or cheshire eyepiece to ensure the secondary mirror is aligned well. It's rare you will have to touch it after the first adjustment. You don't need many eyepieces to get going. A high power, medium and low power will do. A 5mm BST & 15mm BST plus the Skywatcher 25mm you received with the telescope are all you need for now. Those will provide 130x, 43x and 26x. The planets won't be huge but you will see features. There's so much more to see than planets with the 130PS. At 650mm focal length and f5 focal ratio it is an excellent wide field telescope. There are several open clusters that look great through it and if your skies are dark, globulars are worth checking out. Lunar features will stand out at 130x very well. As will many double stars. Learn and make the most if what you have. The 130PS is perfectedly suited to the AZ5 mount. The steel tripod upgrade increases stability but the telescope is so light that isn't a necessity.

Indeed! Fantastic pics. 👍

The aurora app was going nuts last night with three red alerts at 9pm, 10pm and while I was sliding under the sheets at 1am. I did go out in the garden at 10ish but despite the great clear sky, no aurora. City light pollution at work doubtedly.

Despite the usual obstructions surrounding an urban garden, I stay at home usually. To block out local light pollution, an eight foot+ rear fence has been erected, the council has shielded a troublesome LED lamp and I've a made a tarp light shield to sit above a dividing fence. The local parks are probably brighter and it's not beyond reasonable to assume I would be harrassed, robbed or assaulted! A nature reserve approximately thirty minutes drive has granted me permission to observe there after writing to them earlier in the year however I've yet to visit. Otherwise it's camping trips to dark areas with swmbo or astronomy camps.

Thank you. I had to quadruple check hah. It was ghostly fading in and out. I actually ran outside because of an Aurora red alert. lol. Then remembered Ceres. It's turned into nice night out. 👍

That was hard from my back garden with the 10x50s. Bagged Ceres though just now...😁

As above, especially in the urban environment, late is better. A clear autumn/winter/early spring night between midnight and 4am can often become a fantastic night as the muggles turn at least some lights off and head to bed. The thrifty turn off central heating, reducing expelled heat from houses. For several hours there are less vehicles on the road than during the day and far fewer flights. It all adds up. Enjoy those binocular sessions. Keep a recliner, sleeping bag and a cushion handy. Those will keep you out for hours. 😀

Blinkin' atrocious whether you're an astronomer or not. If they angled the light down, or put it at the rear of the garden facing their house, it would probably not bother anyone else. Definitely complaint worthy.

Tripods chucked in the corner, telescope case next to them. Accessory bag on top of telescope case. AVX Mount in a rucksack and various bits and bobs hanging around nearby in various bags and drawers. Basically unsophisticated and slightly untidy but all the gear is in the same room and one door from the garden. Wibblefish your new ota is tiny to carry around. Just don't move in and out of doors with finders attached or the dew shield extended. Don't worry about fungus. I leave my eyepiece box open & ota on the dining room table for maybe an hour or over night if it's really damp then put it all away.

I sincerely believe you will not be disappointed. They even look the 'biz'. I'd be surprised if you look through the 90mm achro again. I've certainly not bothered using my 102 Mak since the 102ED arrived, except for a little solar observing. I'm considering (procrastinating) selling the Mak.

Reading a very experienced astronomer being happy with their Starwave 102ED is a relief after my review earlier in the year. The finder can get in the way a touch. A 9x50 RACI helps although I tend to mount the scope on a Celestron AVX(no meridian flip worries😀), so just a decent rdf is used unless the AZ5 comes out. I look forward to further observing reports Francis. Thanks for your thoughts. Peter.

Vacuum toilets and recycled water bidets. Sign up mate you have it the jackpot.

Mmmm pizza... great report thanks for sharing. 👍

Hah... it's terrible I feel like a kid at Xmas lol.

It's my birthday on Friday... I work from home and just popped downstairs to the kitchen for water. Passing through the lounge there is quite a large box with a Geoptik sticker on it my son has taken in from a delivery driver. I told the missus not to buy me anything, unless she's decided to take up astronomy? Or do Geoptik do a range of perfumes too? 😀

Starting at 39, seven years working evenings. I missed a lot of evening family time with the kids & decent meals. After those seven years I had an interim 8-4 day job for a year and without any real effort happily lost four stone. Followed by three years of rotating eight hour earlies, lates, nights and occasional 14 hour day shifts that turned into a much worse hammering 12 hour day/night rotation for a couple of years until I got out of it into 9-5. When I finished my last shift job this time around that weight had gone back and I have type 2 diabetes. Now the weight is slowly coming off and the diabetes is well controlled. I'll never work nights or shifts again no matter how attractive the pay is.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0861XRZH6?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title works for me. Powered using my Talentcell power bank. There's several brands and sizes available on Amazon.

Some fantastic nights were had last year. It almost makes me yearn for more lock downs. Even the lack of traffic noise was amazingly peaceful. I had several great Mars sessions too. Taking off the rose tinted glasses October was very much like this year though. Wet & windy!

It's long been known that night shift workers are more likely to suffer ill health. Thankfully my shift days are over now. Although much like you James I've always been a creature of the night, it does catch up with you. Luckily these days working 9-5 I really have to force myself to bed but do sleep well.