AstroMuni

Thats looking great! A bit too much contrast for me personally, but lots of detail and nebulosity is in there.

On 04/01/2023 at 18:00, Ratlet said:

If you're attached using the m48 on the baader then you'll need closer to 58mm back focus

Thank you. I added a few spacers and the image has improved. Yet to find the perfect spacing but getting there....

16 hours ago, bomberbaz said:

Sounds exactly the same as my wife, actually as you alluded to, the complete lack of interest is something of a blessing in disguise.

You guys are lucky. My wife is not interested in astronomy but she does keep tabs on the credit card statement 😞

19 hours ago, PeterStudz said:

Then I have a friend whose teenage daughter has zero interest.

I have 2 daughters and each one has a different level of interest in astronomy. One is appreciative of what I am doing but takes no part and the other is both appreciative and does take part sometimes

1 minute ago, alacant said:

Don't know where you are, but there must be an astronomy club/gathering/meeting somewhere close.

When getting low end gear up to ap standard, they're a god send!

I have been taking help from my local astro club to get this in a better shape. Let me check if anyone has a secondary to spare 🙂

4 minutes ago, alacant said:

Assuming the secondary checks out OK (substitute one of known performance)

Its a brand new 130pds from FLO. I dont have other similar secondary mirrors that I could substitute 😞

14 hours ago, alecras2345 said:

Are online telescopes used just to capture images as appose to viewing things live? 

You are correct. As you are remotely viewing, in effect there is a camera taking images and sending to you. So its not the same as viewing through an eyepiece in that sense.

EDIT: the only time its 'live' is when you are watching events like eclipse etc., as that would be streamed.

As to planning, you could use software like Stellarium to help you plan on what to see on a certain day & time and get the appropriate time slot on slooh

Now to wait for next clear sky opportunity 😞

6 hours ago, Ratlet said:

Is it the MPCC Mk3 coma corrector and how are you attaching as there is 2 ways, one of which needs 55mm and the other needs 57.5mm of back focus.

Its attached to the left of this train. This gives a total of 55mm (48.5mm of spacers + 6.5mm distance to sensor)

I have recently acquired a Baader CC and have attached it at the prescribed distance of 55mm for my ASI533. I am still getting coma and was wondering if there is a simple way to figure out if I need to add or remove spacers to fix the issue. The scope is the 130PDS. (650mm FL)

I am attaching a defocused image to show the extent of coma. Collimation is not perfect too but thats a separate issue 😞 

I recently purchased an Astro essentials Cheshire from FLO https://www.firstlightoptics.com/other-collimation-tools/astro-essentials-cheshire-collimating-eyepiece.html

and I notice that the aluminium 45 degree reflector piece within this rotates freely. So everytime I have to do a collimation, I need to check and see if the reflecting face is indeed facing the hole in the tube!

Is this normal or have I got a defective piece?

If the HEQ5 has both RA & DEC motors, it should technically be possible to control with PC. In the Go-to version there is a single input to control both these motors, but if these motors have been added as separate units you would need specialised software to manage them.

Whats your budget?

One tool that would greatly help a beginner is helping choose a telescope. If you see the forum, its filled with queries on what sort of scope should I buy. The basic questions asked by experienced folk are the same everytime - eg. visual or AP, interested in planets or DSO etc. While a tool may not be able to give an exact scope, it could be used to narrow the choices into broad set of scopes like Dobs, Mak, Frac giving a range of apertures. If a budget can be built into the tool then brilliant.

4 minutes ago, MichaelBibby said:

I'm pretty sure that the reason my diffraction spikes are splitting on the vertical axis (but not on the horizontal one) is because of a slight tilt in my optics train.

I dont believe tilt will cause this effect. It could certainly cause some stars to be slightly out of focus in corners where the tilt is highest. But I am no expert here, and I came to know cause of my flare just yesterday. See my post on diffraction spikes in this channel.

22 hours ago, MichaelBibby said:

I should also mention that my focus tube is completely extended for critical focus so that there really isn't any part of it protruding into the light path, which would be another possible source of reflection.

The back and sides of the secondary mirror are naked (besides the side of the secondary facing the focuser which I blackened with a sharpie), as is the side of the primary (I have completely blacked out the back end of the OTA to prevent any stray light getting in from outside).

Any possibility that its reflection from the spider itself? One of your spider vanes is not exactly perpendicular to the light path causing the flare at the end of the spike pointing downwards. I have same problem with my spider but havent seen a reflection like yours (yet).

I have checked with help from a friend and one of the vanes is not perpendicular(?) at the end where its screwed into the secondary support. Another vane is slightly bent. 😞 I could try and straighten the bent vane but not too sure about the other one as that would mean trying to remove the tiny screws that hold the vane. @FLO can you advice on what can be done about this? The scope was purchased on 12th Nov and has been used only a couple of times since then.

On 26/12/2022 at 16:06, Simon Stewart said:

It would be great if an owner of the scope was able to confirm. LIke so many before, I'm trying to decide between this and the Skywatched Explorer 130p. I'm thinking about paying the extra just to be assured of the parabolic mirror.

I have the Astromaster 130 in question and a SW 130PDS. Its not easy to check if the mirror is parabolic or spherical. The Astromaster is a great scope for the price (see my signature link for images taken with it). It does have its drawbacks - poor focuser & wobbly mount. So not really suited for AP, but works well for viewing.

On 25/01/2012 at 19:08, zainraza said:

Do parabolic mirrors help better with viewing?

Only when you are using high magnifications will the differences be more apparent.

5 hours ago, spacedobsonian said:

(P.P.S I haven't included the Skywatcher 130mm folding dob because it has some issues)

I am assuming that you are planning on using this setup for observing only.

Do you mean the https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-heritage-130p-flextube.html ? I dont recall hearing bad things about this scope.

Get a good eyepiece like the BST 25mm ED and the Astro essentials 2x barlow. Get the Turn left at Orion if you have funds left.

I would drop the Planisphere and use your phone with free software like Skeye or Sky Safari to fulfill that function. If you have a laptop consider using Stellarium.

Enjoy the journey!

Thanks all. I will check out the spider for both possibilities. I have used this scope only a couple of times since I got it from FLO last month (blame the clouds) and I was surprised to see these strange spikes.

Its a brand new OTA so should hope its not deformed 😞

I noticed that the diffraction spikes from my 130pds seem to flare outwards rather than the classic tapering as they move away from the centre. Attaching a zoomed in view. Image taken with ASI533mc pro having an UV/IR cut filter + Baader CC. EDIT: I focus manually so could it be focus issue?
What could be the cause?

On 25/12/2022 at 13:23, muletopia said:

Final image is attached

That looks good. What scope do you have that produces the 6 spikes?

On 23/12/2022 at 13:44, Mognet said:

I've been doing a little astrophotography with my old Nikon D3100, but I'm now planning  getting a proper camera. Initially it will be used with my Mak127, and I'll get something with a wider field early next year.

As you are considering widefield, also look at the Samyang lens option instead of a frac. Thats a lot less expensive and at F/2ish a great investment.

16 hours ago, Zilvay said:

I recently bought a 130mm Skywatcher scope, and with it came a motor drive.

I have so far attached the motor drive to the telescope, but i am not sure if i can get long exposures with it.

The motor drive works fine, but i am questioning its ability to track deep space objects, or if the motor drive is even moving.

I am guessing its an RA drive on a telescope like the SW 130M. I had a similar one on my Celestron 130 and this drive can track for a couple of minutes quite well (for visual use), assuming your polar alignment is good.

But as you are talking about exposures, the mount on such telescopes is not great and is prone to shakes which affect images. Do let us know the exact spec of your scope so we can help better.