Moon out = No point?

[Bart]

Is there any point at all venturing out when the moon is out as well? Maybe Saturn is worth a spin but I'm guessing not much else.

On a similar note, do most astronomers hang up their scopes for the summer due to the bright nights? and if so, when does it get sufficiently dark again to get stuck into faint fuzzies? Since Jan I've managed about 40 Messiers but found it increasing difficult to find objects these days.

Thanks

Bart (newbie)

[MikeWilson]

Well, there's always the moon

[space3]

the moon aint that bad, ive often spent loads of time just cruising the scope around the moon, id never get tired of it,

as for summer nights, they are a bummer, especially when you got an early start, and of course theirs always friday and saturday night, well that can be a grey area with me, im usually have other things to be doing on those nights:D:D:D

im very close to buying a new scope, more appeture:eek: so im gona book a week off work for its arrivall,

their will be some late night that week:p, if the weather plays ball:confused:

[rowan46]

hunting doubles can be fun and of course there's always the moon:D

[MikeWilson]

In the summer you get an excellent opportunity to see the Milky Way and the clusters and nebulae within it. It's quite nice just to cruise across it with as large an aperture Newtonian as you can muster. Maybe try an OIII or UHC filter too.

[Ad Astra]

The Moon only defeats you with regard to faint, diffuse objects. Things that are intrinsically bright (Luna and the planets) don't suffer very much, if at all from light pollution. Double stars and open clusters are also very nice under a moonlit sky.

The Moon itself is my favorite object, so many features and details revealed in so many interesting angles of lighting and libration. Luna never fails to amaze me! I know most of us would just kill for a view of Mars, Jupiter or Saturn with as much detail and resolution!

A moonlit night is perfect for these sorts of sights! Don't worry about what you can't see - just enjoy the things you can!

Dan

[brianb]

Just do the best you can ...

[brantuk]

If it's too frustrating with a scope - skim around with a pair of 10x50's - I'm allways amazed with what I can see in the darker corners of the sky when the moons out

[twotter]

The Moon is a fascinating target to observe

If you usually like to bag Messiers then why not start bagging the Lunar 100 too?

[BlueAstra]

I'm mainly photographic and I've decided there's no point grumbling about whats up there. Just go with the flow. If its a bright moon then its the webcam out for the moon or planets, or maybe imaging clusters or doubles. If its minimal or no moon then its DSOs. Regarding the summer nights, having to get up for work means I can't spend to much time in the late evening. However, a bright moon is a good target, and there's aways lots of processing to get through or redo.

[ZEbbEDY]

moon out = http://the-moon.wikispaces.com/Lunar+100

[Mark at Beaufort]

I accept that if your main interest is solely viewing faint DSOs a bright Moon is not going to help.

However, although my main interest is DSOs I have enjoyed finding specific lunar features by following the Lunar 100 list. In addition there are so many great double/multiple star systems that can be viewed when the Moon is out. I bought the Cambridge Double Star Atlas for this purpose.

I appreciate that in the UK astronomical twilight has gone from about the 20th May until 25th July but you still have nautical twilight where you can view some of the brighter DSOs. I accept that as you go further North in the UK this problem of sky brightness is going to get worse but perhaps using a good pair of binos will keep the interest going until late July.

Mark

[ollypenrice]

Move south! At Latitude 44 we get four hours' astronomical darkness as a minimum on the shortest nights of the year. What is up there is also simply fabulous, the southern Milky Way in particular.

I do need the moon to call a semi halt because otherwise I would never get any sleep!

Olly

[stick]

don't discard the moon

its a fascinating object to look at

[Bart]

thanks all for input, you're right, no point moaning, just look at whats available.....and get some sleep....

Bart

[astroimpulse]

I'll take every hour I can scrounge at the moment

Sky starts to brighten about 3.30am and long exposure just sucks it up. But I can still grab a couple of solid hours imaging. The birds are a good sign that the morning light is coming. Noisy things

The clouds and mist are the biggest issue around here. Far more than lack of night. Wish they'd go off and bother someone else.

[stolenfeather]

I love taking the time to discover the moon at greater depths when it is out. As for the summer, being out late at night is key or (ahem) being outside early in the morning.

Isabelle

[AndyH]

Get yourself a moon map and an observing the moon guide. Add the Lunar 100 list and the moon will stop being an annoying light source

eg: I'm using these at the moment.

Sky & Telescope's Field Map of the Moon: Amazon.co.uk: Gary Seronik, Antonin Rukl: Books

There are 2 different types of the above to suit your scope.

Observing the Moon: The Modern Astronomer's Guide: Amazon.co.uk: Gerald North: Books

1st edition is cheap 2nd hand.

Cheers,

Andy.

[Ags]

My new years resolution is to learn the main 50 geographical features on the moon.

[mark7331]

In the summer you get an excellent opportunity to see the Milky Way and the clusters and nebulae within it. It's quite nice just to cruise across it with as large an aperture Newtonian as you can muster. Maybe try an OIII or UHC filter too.

Completely agree with Mike. The summer is the best time of year as far as I'm concerned.

The Moon's pretty cool as a target too.