Jump to content

SkySurveyBanner.jpg.21855908fce40597655603b6c9af720d.jpg

******SATURN******

sabana

Recommended Posts

sabana

sabana

Posted
Posted

Down to earth here. What consumer telescope (Budget under £1000) and eyepiece would give you the best view of Saturn and its concentric rings. I don't mean just size but clarity as a factor too. Barlows allowed. I'm looking for the highest quality of visual image 'not photograph' possible. Let battle commence:glasses1:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • Replies 30
  • Created
  • Last Reply
pvaz

pvaz

Posted
Posted

For contrast, light transmission and detail in general an Orthoscopic EP will do the job well.

On scopes a good ED or APO refractor will have the edge over other designs, at a cost. A SCT will probably be close at a much decent price. Reflectors can be almost as good if you can live with the refraction spikes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
perrin6

perrin6

Posted
Posted

Do you want it with motor driven equatorial mount or or dobsonian ?

I think an 8 inch newt with F8 focal ratio, 1/10 wave optics and an undersized secondary mirror would be my choice, but I don't know where you'd get one so I've probably wasted your time !

Baader Genuine orthoscopic 9mm eyepiece or a televue 8mm plossl, perhaps.

-newtonian has good cool-down speed getting you into action quickly (especially if it's a dobsonian and with a rear-mounted fan).

-under-sized secondary mirror provides good contrasty images for high-power views.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
barkis

barkis

Posted
Posted

Saturn, without doubt a most magnificent sight in a telescope,

will remain below the celestial equator throughout 2012.

The chart below, with the Authors name attached, shows it's progress through to 2013.

Ron.

post-13213-133877689277_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MjrTom

MjrTom

Posted
Posted

I would beg to differ.

The C6 has a focal length of 1500mm with a 5mm eyepeice would equate to 300x magnification.

In the UK that level of magnification can rarely be achieved due to the seeing conditions. If you lived in Arizona then I might think differently. In the UK anymore than 200x is a rarity.

Orthoscopic eyepieces are not to everyones taste as the eyerelief is typically 0.8x the focal length equating to a little more than 4mm which is very small. This is less of an issue for the longer focal lengths.

For the price of a Pentax ortho you could get three Baader Genuine orthos of 12.5mm (120x) 9mm (167x) and 7mm (214x) totalling £225

Scope wise the C6 would a great choice for planetary and lunar viewing.

Hope that helps.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
pvaz

pvaz

Posted
Posted
Nexstar 6se cracking scope, any of the eyepieces above would be a good marriage! (do remember the limiting mag for the scope though.. so not too small FL for the ep.)

Yeah I went on a limb there with the max theoretical mag. A 7mm Ortho would keep it on the safe side.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
pvaz

pvaz

Posted
Posted
I would beg to differ.

The C6 has a focal length of 1500mm with a 5mm eyepeice would equate to 300x magnification.

In the UK that level of magnification can rarely be achieved due to the seeing conditions. If you lived in Arizona then I might think differently. In the UK anymore than 200x is a rarity.

Orthoscopic eyepieces are not to everyones taste as the eyerelief is typically 0.8x the focal length equating to a little more than 4mm which is very small. This is less of an issue for the longer focal lengths.

For the price of a Pentax ortho you could get three Baader Genuine orthos of 12.5mm (120x) 9mm (167x) and 7mm (214x) totalling £225

Scope wise the C6 would a great choice for planetary and lunar viewing.

Hope that helps.

All true, but the poster asked for a personal opinion so I didn't take limiting mag in the UK as a factor. Seeing here in Portugal is often good enough for 300x. The BGOs would be a great choice but as I already have 4 of them I rather tryout a Pentax. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
cgarry

cgarry

Posted
Posted
I would beg to differ.

The C6 has a focal length of 1500mm with a 5mm eyepeice would equate to 300x magnification.

In the UK that level of magnification can rarely be achieved due to the seeing conditions. If you lived in Arizona then I might think differently. In the UK anymore than 200x is a rarity.

I routinely use x235 magnification with my C9.25 in the UK and I really think that people should stop quoting x200 as a magical UK limit as it simply is not the case. That said however, I agree that there are only a few fantastic nights each year where the seeing will allow x300 magnification to be used with good results.

As for the 6SE, that was my first scope and I think it is a cracking scope.

Cheers,

Chris

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Dixie

Dixie

Posted
Posted

There was an 8" CPC for sale on astro ads the other day for less than £800. That would provide an excellent view of the planets. Although, as pointed out above, we are losing Saturn to the south and it won't be back to prime viewing altitudes for a long time. I find Saturn takes magnification well and on good nights I've had decent views up to about 270x plus through an 8" SCT. Seeing conditions are very variable and Arizona is no more blessed in this regard than many other places.

Dixie

Link to comment
Share on other sites
umadog

umadog

Posted
Posted

A good Newtonian will produce stunning images. The focal ratio of the primary isn't terribly important, but a slower mirror (over f/6) will produce nice images more cheaply. You can get planetary views which are just as nice at faster focal ratios, it's just that a good fast mirror is very expensive. In addition, the secondary does not have to be under-sized. The secondary obstruction has little to zero affect on contrast in typical Newtonians (including well designed fast Newts). It's much more important to have a good primary mirror and good thermal management. Diffraction spikes make the views slightly less pleasant but they don't degrade contrast within the planetary disk.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
John

John

Posted
Posted
i do wonder why the 6 inch nexstar is reccomended - surely bigger aperture is better? does the 6se have far superior optics compared to a skywatcher 200p newt to warrant the drop in aperture????

I tend to agree that a good 8" F/6 would produce better views of Saturn. You could get an Orion Optics 8" F/6 1/10 wave PV dobsonian plus, say, a 6mm TS Planetary HR eyepiece for just on the OP's budget figure. Under the right conditions that setup would delivery pretty decent Saturnian views I would have thought, although you would need to nudge-track yourself.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MjrTom

MjrTom

Posted
Posted

I would agree with you on that my only comment in addition to this is that the C6 SE is far more compact offering compared to an 8" f/6 Newtonian.

Not only is the OTA heavier but also a beefier mount will be required and should be taken into consideration. :)

Aperture is only king IF you can still manage the scope, storing it, moving it and using it :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.