Barry-W-Fenner

Not much going on observing wise at the moment folks. The rain is still hitting the windows hard here and the wind is still high 😢 I had a very brief look at Venus earlier with the naked eye in a break in the cloud, that was a nice reminder that its up there beind this horrid weather

I. E not my hands 😂🤣

I have tried to understand this thread, but ultimately, it has given me a major brain fart... Baz

I am actually quite shocked as the kids trampoline was on its side when I came down. Last night we put 3 pieces of of a concrete garden ornament pagoda on the tramp to hold it down. 1 piece is in the neighbours garden over by the opposite fence. I can't believe the tramp flung it over a 6ft fence into there garden! 😁 So glad no one was hurt though.. Baz

Did you use any filters to see the half disc? My old brief look at Mercury so far was a bright multicoloured "star" kind of like what Venus looks like but lot more colour. As with Venus I assume it requires a filter to resolve? Thank you Baz

Great read that Littleguy80, you sound like you had a productive time at the eye piece. There's nothing like having the little people around your toes while trying to concentrate on an object, it certainly keeps things interesting with my two year old climbing up me like a koala bear and the older one cartwheeling all over the place. 🤣 Neptune is still on my list of planets to see. Hopefully I will bag it soon. I have been really amazed with Venus, your couldn't have said it better, it's like a mini moon. I would like spend more time viewing it before it leaves us again. Uranus has also been a joy, not a huge amount to see but watching that crisp pale green disc pass through the eye piece is really rewarding. Regards Baz

Thats really handy to know, I will have to check this option out. I always seem to get the object nicely lined up, then subtlety poke the button, check the image and I have got a stunning shot of the focuser as hi zoom 😂 Don't get me started on how long it takes my "super duper"Xperia phone to actually take the shot after I have pressed the button. I am still waiting for my cheap phone phone holder accessorie to arrive, hopefully that will help. I can't blame it all on the phone though, I am a bit of a numpty with tech and have no idea what the best settings are for AP I hope the storm has started to pass over now for you all, it seems to be rieover head here, my 2yr old and 8yr old are currently keeping me safe 😂 Baz 😊

Thats just showing off Stu 😁 great image. How did you take that? I assume with that detail it wasn't the old phone to the eye piece trick 😂

Just had another peek out the window. The sky is crystal clear. Hopefully it stays like that until after the kids are in bed.

I also had a look at Venus while it was still light. I am really impressed with the visual polarising filter on Venus. It Really helps take the glare away and resolve the disc. no joy with Mercury tonight though, it had already been covered by the cloud on the horizon Baz

Thats a great shot. So much detail. You can really see the difference between this shot and mine from my phone. Baz

Yep I think it won't be long before it arrives here to. The clear sky a slowly being swallowed up. I set up the 200p hoping for a look at half time in the rugby. Think I will just pack up again now... Baz

It looks totally stunning. The combination of it being so low and almost full is a treat to see. The cloud is slowly rolling in now though 🙄

Stunning looking moon! I Hope the storm holds off and we all get to observe it later!! It's currently looking straight through my front window. Baz

Thanks Littleguy80 I will have a read of that. For a moment I though I was going mad. Mercury seemed to be filled with red, yellow, blue and green! Almost like a prism effect. I will enjoy reading about this. I honestly though my mirrors were out of line or something and creating some kind of light reflection 😂 Baz

Thanks gents, I can confirm from the above diagram it was E that I could see. I need to work a bit harder to find F now. I didn't know these little fellas were even there until the members on here pointed them out! I think you hit the nail on the head with Sirius, the extreme brightness was most likely playing tricks on me. Trying to find the pup is going to be a real challenge in my little 8" 😊 As mentioned above, as well as shown, the moon was beautiful tonight. The detail is unbelievable. Even with the moon filter it was extremely bright. It looks great this morning aswell. A nice shade of yellow and very low. I still can't the view of Mercury, it was like a raindow. At its current brightness I wonder if the visual polarising filter would benefit this planet. Baz

Thanks Ships and stars. All the advice is appreciated. I will definitely be giving thia target another go when it's a little higher in the sky. Regards Baz

Was that pic taken just from your phone? That's unreal. I can't imagine how much more rewarding viewing that kind of sky must be. baz

I believe I managed to find Mercury earlier this evening. To the naked eye it was a clear red dot. When I lined it up in the scope, which was basically horizontal! It appeared as a very colourful object. It was literally red, yellow and blue?! Is this normal for Mercury?? Regards

OK so I managed to split one of E or F but am unsure which. It was the lower of the two, it was a surprisingly clear spec. Quite amazing once you know what to look for. No joy with the higher one though. I need to check what one I found? To be honest I am still really chuffed to bits splitting rigel B. Again as above it was a perfect round spec of light but clearly seperate from. Rigel. no joy splitting Sirius though, it's so bright. I think I got the snowman shape but can't be certain. I used my moon filter to take out the glare but still no joy. Double cluster looked ace aswell as M45 as always! Hope everyone has enjoyed the sky's tonight Baz

Oh and your report just reminded me. I must try E & F Trapezium! 😊

Nice report John, you sure did get out early! I managed a very brief glimpse of Mercury earlier. I've just split rigel and its companion!! They both looked ace. Moon coming over the house now and is seriously bright. Might try the new visual polarising filter on it next. baz

Thanks for the info Stu, It is greatly appreciated. I will also have a read through the attached thread and hopefully pick up some more pointers! Regards Baz

Looking at the above graphs again I genuinely think I have been on or around the Veil. My lack of experience, Pollution and not using the O-III filter might be the problem. I will be having another go with all the above guidance! Regards Baz