Kon

It is mesmerising. I love the processing. The details are really coming out!

Very nice report and quite a few targets to get through. I have managed the Eskimo nebula with my 8" Dob and the moon out, so your 10" should be more capable than mine. You got me all excited with the weather comment and then I realised you are in Australia!😂

Amazing colour and details! I clicked on the full size image and i was blown away! Fantastic job!

Wow! That's impressive amount of detail!

Yet another gorgeous drawing from you! Your drawings have an almost 3D finish, amazing!

That's impressive! Gorgeous amount of details!

Pretty impressive for first attempt!

"Looks lovely"!!! 🤣 I am sure it is behind the cloud somewhere!

I carry mine from the handles fully assembled. So the advise from the supplier seems to be to carry it either as a full assembly or base and OTA? Am I right? Following with great interest.

That's impressive! Great amount of details and nice colours!

Excellent amount of details! The shadows are really coming through!

The auroras in Lapland is still one of my memories when I was a 10 year old (42 now). Magnificent display of colours. It is a shame back then digital cameras were not so accessible. Last time I saw impressive auroras was on a flight back from iceland as the plane was taking off in the night skies. I also miss Scotland for that exact reason seeing the glow of auroras as far south as St Andrews. Thanks @Nigella Bryant for bringing back memories!

It sounds like a very nice session and a great first light!

Very nice!

Any opportunity getting out is great.

Depends what telescope you plan to get and if you need to drive on a dark sky. Is it visual or AP? I got my 8" Dob in December 2020 and I think i have managed 6 viewing sessions or so. I am already in dark skies so it only takes 5min to setup and then the 30min-1hr cooling period (saying that i have viewed the moon with ok results after 10min cooling, but not optimal). I am new to the hobby and I see it as exciting when it is clear outside. I have managed some nebulas and clusters with the moon out, not the best but it get me going and got me excited. Moon looks great as well. The rest of the cloudy nights you can spend in this forum reading what you could have viewed if the skies were clear 🤣 Joking aside, how long is a piece of string? This year has been particularly awful but next few months could be amazing.

Very nice processing and amount of details! Well done.

Well done on getting out and managing a session in this freezing weather 🥶 The moon will have an impact but it also depends on your location; are you in dark skies or inner city? You managed to see some nebulosity which is great but it will also depend on the upper atmosphere and seeing conditions. It sounds like seeing was not great if the stars were not very sharp; did you also cool down the telescope? Dew might be an issue on the mirrors or EP that could give blurry views; I had similar issue earlier this year and i thought it was the collimation (I am a beginner as well).You might want to invest on a cheesier for your collimation if you have concerns. Worth investing on a tetrad or rigel. Mars is quite far so viewing is not that great; in my 8" Dob from dark sky it looks like an orange pea, again seeing conditions will be detrimental in viewing. Worth reading the ‘What to expect’ thread since it will give you a true feeling of what you will see. I have seen several of the nebulas and they are closer to the description in the 'Turn left at the Orion' than the astrophotography pics you see. Maybe the weather and the moon light were not your friend this time.

Very nice report and it seems you had a very successful night. Indeed!

Nice one! I like the detail (in my 8" Dob, visual only, i show a fuzzy disk next to the sharp star).

The moon will have some impact but the Orion nebula is bright enough t see. I was out in Saturday from a bortle 4 sky with an 8" Dob and i could see it. It had less features than without the moon. Light pollution will of course impact. Did you mange to see it at all?

Amazing photos! The amount of fine detail is awesome!

Spectacular amount of details! Great colours!

Excellent report and a very successful session you had! I found that using my 9x50 RACI it is easier to star hope. i tend to zoom in quite a bit in Stellarium and i sort of make my own hoping path using the nearby stars in the app and i try to match them on my finder. Once i get in the area i switch to my 15 or 25mm EP. As a beginner myself, i found that with the moon out it is harder to see some of the fainter stars that makes hoping a bit trickier but you start building some member for next time.

Excellent observing list! I seems like a successful night. I will have to 'steal' some of your targets for my next viewing when the moon is up!