NGC 1502

As above, for a newbie a Newtonian with an inadequate EQ mount would be a nightmare. Wobbly and the eyepiece can be in an “interesting” position. Best buy- a new 8” Dob. Don’t look back, a scope for life. Upgrade the eyepieces for Starguiders, the new price of £55 each is still a great bargain. A new scope has brand new mirror coatings. The OO Europa is an old scope with crudely mounted secretary, very basic primary cell. Ed.

The choice between a 10mm plus 2x Barlow or a 5mm depends on what other eyepieces you have or intend to get? In the world of eyepieces the Starguiders are relatively cheap. But don’t let that put you off, I’ve personally tried the 5/8/12mm Starguiders and they’re really excellent value for money, super bargain and a significant upgrade from stock eyepieces that come with many new scopes.

Great to hear that your starhopping is successful 👍 Manually finding objects definitely gets easier the more practice you get. After a while finding previously difficult objects becomes routine. Then you’ll find yourself finding more difficult stuff, then that too becomes routine…… For those who use a “bells and whistles” scope- please don’t take the above in the wrong way. The best way to do astronomy is the one that works for you….not what works for me😊

Difficult call…… My main scope is a 10” Dob. I’m a visual observer of solar system and deep sky. With deep sky it seems to me that they are not as seeing dependent (steadiness of atmosphere) as the main planets. For me 150x is often ok with Jupiter and Saturn, that needs an 8mm eyepiece. Globular clusters, smaller planetary nebulae and tight double stars are usually good at 240x, that needs a 5mm eyepiece. For manually finding objects and viewing large ones I use a 27mm eyepiece for 44x and not too large an exit pupil. 44x to 150x is too large a jump, so I fill the gap with a 14mm for 86x. So that’s 44x, 86x, 150x, 240x. That’s what works for me, perhaps not for you!

Yes, Jupiter will look dimmer at higher magnification. Not too high because you will lose definition. 100-150x should be ok.

Firstly I want to sincerely apologise for my very clumsy comment. I should not have said the Deep Sky Observer has drifted. What I was clumsily alluding to was this- I joined the Webb Society because I expected zero imaging in DSO. I’m not against imaging and respect the hard work and dedication involved and the images that appear in DSO. But imaging is not the way I do my astronomy. The DSO remains a good way visual astronomers can share what they do. I realise that the work of an editor is to edit the input Webb members submit. Many visual observers have drifted into imaging over the years, therefore that’s what they submit. My observing includes solar system and I rely solely from online sources for information. Very obviously I would not expect DSO magazine to include that. I’m hoping this explains my ill thought out comment. Ed.

Ok, you’ve said you don’t like a barlow, and I do understand your objections. However, everything is a compromise in one way or another. I do have an original Vixen LV 2.5mm with 45 deg apparent field, the modern replacement SLV has a slightly wider 50 deg field. If it were me I’d accept a compromise, use a barlow or live with a narrow field. Long shot- a used 2.5mm Nagler. But that’s a compromise too with 12mm eye relief, or a used 2-4mm Nagler zoom, or…whatever… Ed.

Thanks, not seen that before……looks good👍

Indeed the Webb Deep-Sky Society has its roots in visual observing, but has drifted somewhat in its main focus. I’m a member of the WDSS and the last issue included an article by myself- How to star hop to G1 (Mayall 2). G1 is the brightest (or least dim!) globular cluster on the outskirts of M31 galaxy. Ed.

Thanks Rob for the mention of the Actual Astronomy Podcast👍 Agreed that a visual only magazine would likely not be financially viable. For me the very best magazine ever was the early copies of Sky & Telescope. I keep some of them from the 60s, 70s and 80s, just so nostalgic to read how it once was! Not saying that S&T is bad now, but it is VERY different. For everyone- please enjoy your magazine(s) of choice😊 Ed.

I’ve just read through the thread that discusses what astronomy magazine is best. As a visual only astronomer I’ve given up on magazines. I get all the information that I need from- in-the-sky.org I fully appreciate that many of you get great enjoyment and value from magazines, if so that’s great👍 Anyone have their thoughts on this? Edit- I’ve looked at in-the-sky.org and was “horrified” to see the “horoscope” 😡😡 info. Apologies just ignore that bit!!

I am totally gutted it’s not. Given time I hope to get over it😁

Could you shorten that bolt by cutting and then filing the inner end? Or is there some purpose in it protruding so much?

Elegant, sophisticated, refined. For a moment I thought you were referring to me😁

Thank you Carole. You may not remember but we have met at Kelling in years past, I bought a dew band from you and it’s still fine👍 I’m sure that the majority of imagers are aware of shielding laptops etc like yourself. But as in all areas of life it’s the minority who break the rules and are a pain in the proverbial. There will be a minority of visual observers who are a pain, lots of ways to be a problem!! With very best regards, Ed.

My sympathies…… Last time I was at the better of my local clubs 2 dark sites, exactly the same thing happened. Well almost the same thing, there was more than one BRIGHTLY lit tractor at times just 50 yards away, sweeping the whole area with FLOODLIGHTS🤬🤬 One consolation- after about an hour they packed up and departed👍👍 Getting away from lights is difficult. Even at Kelling Heath star party there’s been bright laptops unshielded. I’m definitely not against imagers (thanks for those wonderful pics) but PLEASE spare a thought for others who have planned ahead, travelled a long way, then finally a clear night…….. Ed.

Just read the above with interest. For some of us eyepiece choice is a never ending journey, sometimes buying eyepieces we once sold, or deeply regretting selling something we cannot find again. I think it’s a bit like cars. I’m completely happy with my 2008 Fiesta, someone else might not be. I definitely think it’s worth upgrading the stock eyepieces that come with lots of new scopes. Something like the BST Starguiders is a big improvement that could fully meet many folks needs. My all time favourite eyepiece is my Vixen 22mm LVW. Sorry, it’s not for sale, just works so well in all my scopes. Ed.

Indeed, I’ve heard that from reliable sources that the specialist coating process forms the fine figuring of some Vixen mirrors. If that can be confirmed then regular stripping and recoating by the 3 UK companies I know of would destroy the figure. But if the coating looks good, including shining a bright at the mirror surface and viewing from the back, it’s all ok👍 Best guess- Vixen mirror coatings will be top notch, therefore very long lasting. If it ain’t broke….😊 Ed.

Very late indeed to the party………just noticed your Vixen 80/910. Exactly the same as mine, not many of those early models with the larger diameter lens cell that have 3 pairs of collimation screws. Best guess is that Vixen quickly realised that user collimation was not needed once the scope had been properly assembled during production. However it does show that Vixen put lots of thought into the humble 80mm achromat. Same as they always do… Off topic comment- Their current range of excellent eyepieces are missing top end models like LVW and the short lived 83degree SSW. Ed.

Welcome to SGL, as you’ve just found out, lots of folks on here willing to help. Your 8” Dob should very easily show the GRS. Best not to use too high a magnification, smaller and sharper beats bigger and fuzzier. I often use 150x, just a suggestion of course. Great views of Jupiter can be had, even well after opposition, as long its not too low in elevation. Ed.

As Robertl has mentioned, PA (position angle) is one way to confirm seeing the secondary star. Lots of sources to find PA, I most often consult my Cambridge Double Star Atlas, but not until AFTER a visual attempt or “confirmation bias” may creep in……. Zeta Herc- my OOUK 10” Dob will often give a definite visual split, as will my Hinds 6” Dob if the seeing is not too bad. By a definite split I mean two independent dots of light. Doubles will usually take very high power much better than other types of objects. So I’m not afraid to use “silly high power”. Ed.

Yes I was out too, nice and clear at Southend in Essex. At 23.06 BST Io’s shadow was a notch out of Jupiter’s limb, after a few minutes the shadow was an inky black dot fully on Jupiter’s disc. I watched as Io itself crept ever closer to Jupiter. At 23.29 Io appeared as a “pimple” attached to Jupiter’s limb😊. By 23.34 the bright dot of Io was fully on Jupiter’s disc. As the minutes ticked by Io became progressively harder to see as it moved further from the limb darkening. By 23.50 I could no longer discern Io, but the shadow remained easy to see. Instrument- Hinds 6” Dob, 6mm Radian = 150x. A lovely clear night at this sad time. Ed.

Tough call. First consideration is the condition of the mirror coatings. Second question, how far away from you is the scope? If it’s nearby and I could inspect and it’s all good and agree a price then take it home right away I’d pay £350-£450 for the optical tube only. As it’s unlikely to be nearby then I’d proceed with more caution. Do you trust the seller’s description? How much hassle to obtain it? Hard to say, it could be a bargain but take care.

Hi iapa, I’m thinking you must have intended to quote the OP rather than myself? No worries at all😊

The Ultrablock I used to own and the Lumicon I now own both look mirror like. The only way to find out if it’s good is to use it. As already mentioned it will likely take several sessions to find out what you need to know. Every type of similar filter, even the bargain basement ones I’ve owned have been worth having, all showed better views that with no filter at all. It’s a better, a bit better, a lot better story.