Normal viewing? My first good Jupiter!

[McMoon]

Got what I think must be my best night so far with my 3rd time out on the SW 200P. Getting good Jupiter views and can make out the bands on it..finally! This in on x200 with my barlow.

Can Jupiter take a higher magnification and on x200, is what appears to be a flash of brighter washed out colour on the pole nearest the edge of the viewing normal?

Just leving it to darken more here, getting my son off to bed and then I am popping back out for an hour.

[brantuk]

Hi Andy - Jupiter is past it's best right now and the seeing has left a lot to be desired recent;y. If you saw it at 200x then I'd say that's lucky cos that's around the average limit for UK seeing. I view mostly around 150x to 180x so you did well. You may get 250x to 300x when it's clearer and more transparent with higher objects and least atmosphere. But there aren't so many of those moments these days

(In a few weeks Saturn will be in the early evening sky - so you can look forward to that.)

[McMoon]

The seeing has dropped off now as I cannot make any real detail at any mag. Thanks for the info though.

The trouble that I will have is that being right up in NE Scotland, as the year moves on, I will not get any truely dark skies!!

[LukeSkywatcher]

Jupiter is dancing with Venus low in the west right now, so is past its "best before" date.

Mars is still a good target, but needs really good conditions to be happy with and see any detail.

Saturn is the one we are all waiting for. Already putting on a good show but quite late in the evening/night.

[McMoon]

Saturn is the one we are all waiting for. Already putting on a good show but quite late in the evening/night.

Think I will have to travel with that one to see it at its best. I may live in the back of beyond in rural Aberdeenshire but anything eastish is over the small newbuild phase I live on so I have a fantastic orange hue there:( but put me on any kind of westerly and it is just .. well..nothing:glasses1: I open out onto fields, glens and the cairngorms.