Gonariu

Welcome to SGL from Sardinia. You have chosen a nice little instrument to start with, I also have an achromatic 80/400 bought used a year ago which I really like. Usually the eyepieces they give as accessories for a telescope are not exceptional, for now use the ones you have then you can see what to buy better, a good eyepiece always lasts! I heard that London is a beautiful city that offers you everything, then in this period you are cool (we in southern Europe dream of the coolness you have in the summer, when it is 35º - 40º here we gasp).

On 12/7/2021 at 23:54, Captain Magenta said:

Va bene stasera un po' meglio...

 

Beautiful photograph with a beautiful clear sky at dusk, the crescent moon is poetic. Once in a while that it is not raining here, it should be exploited!

I am very happy with my refractor 80/400 (Konus Vista-80) bought used a year ago on Astrosell that I mount on a decent photographic tripod paid for about 100 euros a decade ago, I take it safely where I want.

20 hours ago, ScouseSpaceCadet said:

Lo stesso qui, mi sono fermato ad ascoltare più di una volta nel mio giardino urbano e non è quasi buio. Fuori in campagna con le pecore sei relativamente al sicuro.

Sono anche molto sorpreso di apprendere che le bretelle non sono obbligatorie in Sardegna?! 🤪

Well, as an improper weapon you can use either the suspenders or the trouser belt, the important thing is to defend yourself from the attacker on duty!

On 11/7/2021 at 16:28, Astro Noodles said:

Che tipo di persone farebbero uno scherzo a un innocuo astronomo dilettante e ne riderebbero per secoli? I giovani di oggi  🙄 Dovrebbero riportare la betulla, o il servizio nazionale.😄

Penso che una cosa che condividiamo tutti sia la paura che qualche pazzo possa farci del male, ovunque viviamo. Personalmente, mi sento più al sicuro da solo in campagna che nel mio cortile di periferia.

Sardinia, from the time of Roman domination, is practically divided into two: the Barbagie (ie the inland and mountain area), which the Romans never occupied and the rest of the island. Since then the internal part has closed in on itself, there have been some openings and changes since the last century, but that's not enough. The environment is difficult, I talked too much and in 2012, when I was in Cagliari by the sea in July, they entered my house and stole my CPC 8 and Orotelli's Sardinian costume. I bought myself the Nexstar 8 SE used in April of this year but I'll be quiet as hell! I understand your skepticism, I lived in Cagliari until the age of 36, I used to come there in August when my father took vacation all month but it was not enough for me to understand the environment. The rest of Sardinia, thanks to the opening to the outside for several centuries, is practically like the environments that you all know.

20 hours ago, Astro Noodles said:

Ho dato un'occhiata su internet per vedere se la Sardegna ha avuto problemi di criminalità notevoli. Non sono riuscito a trovare nulla tranne che l'isola è stata storicamente afflitta da banditi, anche fino a tempi recenti! 

The big problem in Sardinia was for years the scourge of kidnappings, every year at least a couple there were. These kidnappings were carried out by gangs of people from the interior of the island, often from Nuoro, with a commandos-style operation. The kidnapped was released after a certain number of months, sometimes even many, after the payment of a substantial ransom through someone who acted as an intermediary between the kidnapped family, but sometimes he never returned, as it was for Vanna Licheri , a woman from Ghilarza (40 km south-west of Orotelli, where I live). The Italian state has managed, after many years, to crush this scourge by blocking the assets of the kidnapped and thus preventing the ransom from being paid. The last kidnapping was in 2006-2007, the kidnapped was Titti Pinna, an entrepreneur from Bonorva in Logudoro who, after several months of harsh imprisonment, managed to free himself and escape without paying any ransom. The impious thing is that the Italian state made the kidnapped pay taxes on the ransom, so it was for an entrepreneur from Macomer who had to pay a ransom of 4 billion old lire in the 1990s! The underworld of the interior then turned to the assault of the security vans, not always succeeding, or to steal the ATMs by going against them with a bulldozer; but at this point we reenter in the cases of ordinary crime even if they have their gravity. Years ago there was a bank robbery in Cagliari, which went badly. In any case, if you happen to come to Sardinia, do not worry; in autumn I tour the towns of Nuoro for a very beautiful event called “Cortes apertas” * (open courtyards) which takes place in many towns of Barbagia and no one has ever disturbed me; if you manage to put an end to this unfortunate epidemic, I certainly go there (it seems that they must organize them, let's see).

* In the "Cortes Apertas" event there is a series of villages, starting from early September until a few weeks before Christmas, where antiquities are highlighted in old houses, you can eat typical products and see the monuments that are there in the country in question (Sardinia has a high density of Romanesque churches as there are practically no earthquakes, being a very ancient land), but for those who want to make a cultural tourism there is not only this.

I have read this topic with interest because I too have the same problem. As I said when I introduced myself, I live in a small town in central Sardinia (Orotelli) on the outskirts. The light pollution is not excessive, you can see the Milky Way, but for some years I have been thinking about taking a night excursion to a completely dark place outside the country, about 5 - 10 km away, taking one of my short refractors with me. , or 70/400 or 80/400. In Sardinia we have the advantage of not having wolves, bears, coyotes and even poisonous snakes. I do not worry about the rest of the nocturnal fauna, they would certainly stay away from me, it is true that in the dark and alone one goes to notice so many noises that could make him worry and make him go wrong with observations. What worries me are any malicious or bored people in my country who might play a bad joke on me to have fun and laugh at me for centuries. Even the Italian law is quite strict and too much guarantee towards those who make some, defending oneself is a right of the person! However as a weapon I recommend the belt of the trousers and to hit on the side of the buckle, no legislation obliges me to wear suspenders! However, I find the suggestion to go in a group and not alone, a problem could also be putting your foot in the dark in a ditch and getting a twist, there are not only two or four-legged coyotes!

If you want to laugh (and I laughed at the time when I read it in the newspaper years ago): years ago, when I was a university student (I am almost 54 years old) in the countryside of the interior of Sardinia near a town (I can't tell you which one) some people made a "trekking" in the Gennargentu mountains and were attacked by local morons receiving a severe lesson; the tapini did not know that the hikers were British soldiers in plain clothes who were practicing in the mountains of Sardinia (Gennargentu is a mountain massif with the highest peaks on the island).

22 hours ago, F15Rules said:

I Vixen sono ancora sottovalutati, mi sembra..non si aiutano con una mancanza quasi totale di marketing adeguato, eppure in Giappone credo che detengano ancora circa il 60% del mercato degli oscilloscopi amatoriali. me, una montatura iconica e ben progettata, molto meglio dei cloni cinesi che oggi fanno la parte del leone nel mercato britannico.

Penso che un nuovo arrivato nell'hobby farebbe meglio a cercare un acromatico Vixen da 80 mm o 102 mm e una montatura SP/GP/DX in buone condizioni, piuttosto che un equivalente cinese nuovo di zecca 👍😊.. forniscono davvero delle belle immagini .

Surely those who buy Vixen know what they are buying, the "price" is having to spend more! Chinese production has significantly lowered prices, a 12 cm long-focus achromatic once cost a fortune, now a 120/1000 one pays much less. What is the downside? Companies that have a name check all their products before putting them on sale (Astrophysics does this, it seems strange to me that Vixen or Takahashi do not), products "made in China" (or "chinoiserie" what to say if you want) no, so one can find the successful model or the one that seems bought from the flea market ... .... I also thought that the Vixen was too expensive but thinking about it ... ....

@John. Thank you. On the Konusuper 120 I must say that on the one hand in 2003 I made some beautiful observations of the great opposition of Mars, on the other hand it had a slight lateral smear when looking at the planets, especially with Venus of which it gave an unacceptable image. Last year I had it checked by an experienced and well-known firm among amateur astronomers who, in addition to telling me that it gave me a sufficient image, also told me that the achromatic doublet had a lateral chipping that I had never noticed. . Since the smear on Mars in the past autumn was too much and even by coloring the chip black I did not get anything, I diaphragmed it to 90 mm, minifying this defect. In this way, in the past opposition of October Mars was very beautiful, the instrument also held 333X and also on the Moon at 250X - 333X it gives a fairytale vision. I thought about changing the achromatic doublet but I don't know where to get it from.

I also saw for sale on an online flea market the legendary Vixen 102M achromatic refractor on which I too drooled a lot in the 80s (only the optics without finder) for 350 euros (301 pounds) and I'm thinking seriously to buy it. A long focus achromatic refractor is fine for me as well, I don't feel the need for an apochromat. Since the optic is sold without a finder, is it okay if I put the 6X30 one of the Konusuper 120 I have in it or is the attack different?

Hi Pthreat, you have to observe these points:
1) an object must be at least 30 ° high above the horizon, this is not always possible and then it becomes a virtue of necessity by possibly observing the meridian. For example, where I live (Orotelli in Sardinia) I am at a latitude of about 40 ° N, so the Sun is at local noon at about 26 ° above the horizon. In the morning I am at school and come home at 14 - 14.30, so when I observe it in the early afternoon it is even lower: it adapts to it;
2) if there is too much wind or the stars sparkle too much it is not a night for high resolution observations so either you use lower magnifications or forget it, I personally forget it;
3) in summer the air is calmer, in winter it is more agitated, it is not a question of temperature (at least I think);
4) small diameters are less subject to air turbulence, a system would also diaphragm the instrument as Lowell did by observing Mars with his 60 cm refractor which was often diaphragm at 38 cm; for a Maksutov I would not know how to do as it would increase the obstruction with a central diaphragm, here I leave the word to someone else in the forum.
Take care, good observations and clear skies!

Hi Pthreat, welcome to the forum and congratulations on the nice telescope, a 6 ”Maksutov is phenomenal for Moon, Sun, planets and double stars! For Venus, keep in mind that, in addition to being low (and therefore I agree with the observations already made for the turbulence of the air), having recently emerged from the upper conjunction, its phase is certainly almost that of the full Moon and in addition you have a disk very small about 10 "; in what you said about how you saw Venus I find myself there!

Thanks Franklin, finding the one well kept is always a bargain. Of course, in the UK used you pay much less (I have seen the exchange rate between euro and pound), I think that, finding it on this forum and having it sent to me from the UK, it always suits me even if I will have to pay the shipping costs. I saw on the internet the Vixen A 105 M II, too much for a 105/1000 achromatic refractor even if it is certainly higher than the Chinese achromatic 100/1000 and much cheaper, the ED apochromats made in China have slightly higher prices and at that point one definitely chooses the latter.

I have seen that the old Vixen 102M achromatic refractor (102/1000 refractor) is sold used at a good price (350 euros, only the optics and not even the finder); if any of you have had it, what do you think, considering what is being produced today? I was reading that the optics are corrected to 1/8 lambda, which is not always found in commercial instruments.

Welcome to SGL! I envy the cool of Yorkshire, here in Sardinia we are starting to boil ... ...

I started taking some shots with the smartphone placed near the telescope eyepiece (an 80/400 refractor) to photograph the Moon in the first quarter, the eyepiece I used was a 10 mm Plossl. Last year at the end of July I got a photograph that I don't mind. A few months ago I bought a used Celestron Nexstar SE 8 that I am learning to use, I saw that I should collimate it. I would like to learn to photograph the Moon and planets with a webcam or something similar to propose it to my students next school year (I presented an astronomy project at school). Slowly …....

Welcome to SGL Jin. Nice purchase your Skywatcher 200/1000 !!!

Welcome Marta on SGL from Sardinia. It is true that the oceanic climate of Holland does not suit those who are passionate about astronomy, at least you do not have the problem of prolonged droughts during which at least the taps are turned off at night; the Mediterranean climate is beautiful for the sun and the beautiful days, but ... .... I can tell you that last month and these days of June it is raining here too, a strange end of spring (already in May it rains little and practically nothing in summer); I usually look at the Sun after lunch but for some days it has been having the usual afternoon thunderstorm, so telescope inside and solar filter in the box!

I realized only today that I accidentally replied in Italian in the previous message, for reasons of lack of time as the school year is ending and I find myself very busy, I write the message first with Word and then I have it translated into English with Google Translate I must have surely forgotten to do the latter. I apologize to everyone for my involuntary misconduct and put this message back in English.

Thanks again to those who welcomed me to this forum !!!

@ Chandra: where I live, on the outskirts of Orotelli (a small town in central Sardinia of 2000 inhabitants) there is a bit of light pollution but you can survive (behind my house it's all countryside). A few years ago I went to dinner in a country house near Dorgali and I can tell you that there was a sky so magnificent that I was lost, I could not recognize the constellations so many were the stars I saw! At one point I recognized the Pleiades that I aimed with my Celestron 10X50 binoculars (an Upclose): I have never seen so many stars in the Pleiades with binoculars! If you happen to come to Sardinia for the holidays (many come for the sea) bring a travel telescope (a small 80 mm apochromat or an 80/400 achromat that can be mounted on a good photographic tripod) and alternate diving sea to the observation of deep - sky objects (thank God the unfortunate epidemic is in a phase of regression here too and we all hope to have a normal summer and more !!!!).

I rewrite my speech in English, placed by mistake in Italian in this section of the forum both for correctness and because I participate in all discussions of the forum, including this one, with great pleasure and interest.

I also use an achromatic 80/400 which I bought used a year ago and which I paid 90 euros (Konus Vista - 80). I keep it mounted at home on a photographic tripod and mainly observe the Sun and the views, but also the Moon. Observing it at least at 100X (with a 4mm Vixen lanthanum eyepiece) or even at 200X (4mm Vixen with a Barlow 2X) or at 160X (5mm orthoscopic with the Barlow 2X) and adding filters to reduce chromatism (or the semi-opaque Baader or the W8 or the W21a) doesn't matter. Obviously at 200X the photographic tripod is uncomfortable but I adapt. For doubles I tried to double ε Lyrae, at 100X the closest pair was doubled with some difficulty, at 200X all four were clearly visible. In the deep sky I don't mind; last summer from the terrace of my house in Orotelli I saw M8 with a sea of stars in the background and M7 (Orotelli is at 40º N and the tail of the Scorpion rises to the horizon). With my old Newton Starfinder 8 "the M7 stars looked like diamonds, with the 80/400 it was passable (obviously)

12 hours ago, Tiny Clanger said:

Dal codice di condotta del forum:

" Lingua ufficiale L'
inglese è la lingua ufficiale dei nostri forum perché è la lingua comune tra i nostri moderatori e utenti. Poiché non possiamo moderare il testo di post/thread in una lingua straniera, non puoi pubblicare o avere una firma nei forum in lingua altro che inglese».

I really apologize to everyone for writing in Italian in the forum. In this period I am too busy with school, so for lack of time I first write the text in Italian in Word and then I translate it into English with Google Translate, you can see that I forgot to do it before entering my message, know that it was not done on purpose. I fully agree with the rules of the forum, I consider it rude to address another in a language that he does not know. I will republish my interventions written in Italian in English as soon as I can as a matter of fairness. As I will be freer from my commitments as a teacher I propose to write directly in English in the forum, the best way to learn a language is to practice it.

Having already got a 120 ED which I guess has the 900mm focal length, surely a 127mm Maksutov for the ultra-portable planets for the holidays must be very nice; I am intrigued by the mak 90/1250 for its yield and compactness, it is certainly better than my 120/1000 (Konusuper 120) diaphragm at 90 mm because the achromatic doublet is chipped laterally. I don't know for 150/750; surely it is a nice telescope for the deep sky, for the Moon and planets there are those who see it badly and there are those who say that with a special filter the problem of chromatism is solved well, perhaps it depends how and how much the spherical aberration, far worse than chromatic aberration. I have a Ziel 120/600 refractor that I used on Mars at 200X on the last opposition giving good results for a short focus achromatic, on deep sky I used it much less.

Uso anche un 80/400 acromatico che ho comprato usato un anno fa e che ho pagato 90 euro (Konus Vista - 80). Lo tengo montato in casa su un treppiede fotografico e osservo principalmente il Sole e i panorami, ma anche la Luna. Osservandolo almeno a 100X (con un oculare al lantanio Vixen da 4mm) o anche a 200X (4mm Vixen con un Barlow 2X) o a 160X (5mm ortoscopico con il Barlow 2X) e aggiungendo dei filtri per ridurre il cromatismo (o il Baader semiapo o il W8 o il W21a) non importa. Ovviamente a 200X il treppiede fotografico è scomodo ma mi adatto. Per i doppi ho provato a raddoppiare ε Lyrae, a 100X la coppia più vicina è stata raddoppiata con un po' di difficoltà, a 200X erano ben visibili tutte e quattro. Nel cielo profondo non mi dispiace; l'estate scorsa dal terrazzo della mia casa ad Orotelli ho visto M8 con sullo sfondo un mare di stelle e M7 (Orotelli è a 40º N e la coda dello Scorpione si eleva all'orizzonte). Con il mio vecchio Newton Starfinder 8” le stelle M7 sembravano diamanti, con l'80/400 era passabile (ovviamente).

As a grab-and-go telescopes, I see very well ultrashort refractors such as 70/400, 70/300 and 50/300 (the latter would be well corrected for chromatic aberration); they are also very cheap, for a 70/300 one spends 30-40 euros, the fact that for the latter the eyepieces are 24.5 mm Huygens which are not exactly the best ... ... If you want to dedicate exclusively to Moon & planets, the Maksutov 90/1250 from what I have read are gems (clearly spending more ... .....). on principle I reject ED and apochromatics, I don't have big needs.

Hello and welcome! Binoculars are good for starting and you can use them for something else as well. If you want to buy a telescope later on, it will complement it. Unfortunately, astronomy is a passion as beautiful as it is expensive.