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Zermelo

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Everything posted by Zermelo

  1. I've always used my right eye, but it has more astigmatism than my left, which becomes a problem with larger exit pupils. It has deteriorated another 0.25 cyls at my last checkup, so I've been experimenting with the left eye for observing with longer FL eyepieces. It still feels a bit uncomfortable, but the stars are rounder. Like you, I see floaters with the moon at higher mags, but they're as bad with either eye.
  2. on the plus side, leaving the cover on means that you don't need to bother with a shroud.
  3. I'll be watching this closely, when I'm not watching that feed of the pitch dropping.
  4. Just to check - you're saying there's now a way of setting a top speed in SkySafari that won't be exceeded during goto operations? I've been waiting a long time for that. Which version are you running? I have 7.1.10.8, which is the latest in Play Store, but I can't see any setting in my version for that feature.
  5. This is how I use it. I sometimes think it's fixed, but I've gotten used to it.
  6. If it's connecting initially and then disconnecting, have you told your device not to go looking for a WiFi with Internet access? I've had that before, and I needed to tell my phone that it was OK to stay connected to my mount WiFi even though it had no Internet connection.
  7. I just came across the following account of the history behind the helicopter proposal, the strong opposition that it faced throughout, and the efforts made by a few key individuals to safeguard it: https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/02/before-ingenuity-ever-landed-on-mars-scientists-almost-managed-to-kill-it/
  8. Yes, connect with SynScan first. SkySafari needs configuring with a connection on 192.168.4.2, port 11882.
  9. We have had the 10" Dob out again. Conditions were good for a couple of hours; seeing was better than of late, around II, and quite transparent. The Dob was well cooled this time, and I could really see the effect of the extra aperture. The fourth component in Sigma Ori was obvious, and nearby Alnitak (2.1") was comfortably split, so I went up to 32 Ori. That was a harder at 1.4", but eventually yielded to the Svbony 3-8mm zoom at x254. Encouraged, I went for 52 Ori (1.0"), which I seldom split with smaller scopes. It was actually easier than 32 tonight, perhaps down to the closer mags. Down to the Trap, backed off the Svbony to x212 and the E and F stars were both obvious. I'm fairly sure I've only seen the six once before. M42 itself showed some astonishing subtleties to the nebulosity in the Morpheus 14mm (x91). M45 was not quite contained in the 30mm UFF (1.6°, x42), but with surprisingly good contrast. M37 was impressive in the 17.5mm Morph, but by then some high cloud was forming. So M33 was barely seen, and Jupiter not as good as I've seen it. But overall a very decent session, and I'm happy with the mirror now that I've tweaked it a bit. Collimation was probably not spot on, but close enough.
  10. Perhaps you are looking for a single formula that takes all the parameters into account? I've not seen one. The capabilities of the instrument and of your eyesight both impose limits on the resolving power, and either may be the limitation in practice. Usually, it's the instrument (aperture) that is relevant, and the usual formulae assume perfect instrument optics, normal visual acuity, and the absence of other limiting factors. If you're splitting doubles, then it would be more usual to be employing higher magnifications.
  11. The aperture is relevant to the initial answers you received. It sets a lower limit on the tightness of doubles that can be split, irrespective of eyesight. Then you need to take account of the limits of your eyes, and if the instrument is operating at a low magnification, the retinal cells may not be close enough to take advantage of the resolving power of the instrument. An eagle might be able to see finer splits with your binoculars than you can.
  12. The presence of another WiFi network shouldn't stop you connecting, though with some phones you have to tell them not to switch from the mount to another network in order to get an Internet connection (which the mount network does not provide, of course). Also, make sure to switch off the phone's mobile network connection.
  13. I dip in occasionally, but I don't find it as easy to use.
  14. I have a saved search on eBay for second hand Morpheuses. It finds one about once a month, but they're often priced more than the new price.
  15. All the forecasts were for cloud this evening, but I popped my head out of the window at 7pm and saw stars. So, just time for "first light, part three" - not a Rambo sequel, nor a season finale for Star Trek:TNG, but another attempt to get a decent star test on my new Dob. Earlier today I had taken the primary cell off again, and slackened off the mirror clips a second time. In fact, I undid each one until I could rattle the mirror under it, then tightened it just until it couldn't move. The 10" Bresser has a nine-point mirror support, so I also checked the screws there. Then re-collimation, of course, which I'm not 100% sure about, but looked OK. I found Jupiter first, and it looked good. Then the cloud appeared. I just managed to switch to a brightish star and defocus. This time, the pattern was symmetrical and round, with no hint of the triangular aberration I saw on the previous two occasions. It was still mushy and boiling a lot, but probably still cooling down, and I couldn't really assess the seeing either. So, I'm happy not to tinker again until I've had a decent session with it.
  16. I don't know if you count this as serious, but I did read somewhere that this series contains a plastic element: https://www.svbony.com/optional-lens-4mm-10mm-23mm-eyepiece/#F9301AA I have a pair of the 23mm.
  17. Welcome, Luke. That photo would win some plaudits in this thread
  18. You've switched off mobile reception? (WiFi on, mobile off)
  19. Although, mine says 2022, and hitting the update button doesn't seem to have changed that?
  20. Help says "the comet catalog requires regular updates from the Internet. Date of the comet data can be found in the comet catalog menu"
  21. There's a lot of misty high cloud here, but it was the first chance I've had to try out the Bresser Dob since I had the mirror off - first light was abandoned because the images were badly distorted into triangular patterns, so afterwards I slackened off the mirror clips. The good news is that it's improved, but defocusing still shows an irregular pattern, with a hint of a triangular nature, so it's possibly still pinched. I'll have another stab when I get chance. Interestingly, I could still see more detail in Jupiter's bands tonight than I've ever seen in my other scopes, even with the impairment.
  22. I think either of these scopes would give you a lot of enjoyment and a wide variety of possible targets. I have the Skymax 127 and a (slightly larger than the 130PS) SW 150mm reflector, both of which I use on a goto mount. The reflector is a bit better for the largest DSOs, the Mak is better on solar system targets. But it's not clear-cut: the Skymax has a shorter focal length than some other Maks, so it has a slightly wider field of view than they do; while the reflector, although not a natural for the highest magnifications, can still give decent views of planets with shorter focal length eyepieces. I find a mount with Goto and tracking to be very convenient. Apart from the obvious advantages, it's very handy if you share observing sessions and, if you use it correctly, you can find most targets quite easily on a Mak equipped with a decent optical finder.
  23. Congratulations on M79, it's one of a handful of Messiers that have eluded me so far. You really need a decent southern horizon at these latitudes.
  24. I think it's also true that there are some very decent zooms out there. I don't have the one you mention, but I do have four others, and they can all give my fixed EPs a run for their money.
  25. It was the same for Gustav Holst. Removing Pluto from the list has had the accidental benefit of re-aligning with his suite. Was it this one?
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