First time using scope

[Csuka]

So the weather was clear tonight so I got to try my Skyliner out for the first time. The first thing I looked at was the moon because it's the easiest thing to find and it was my first ever time using a telescope, and it was great, I could see allot of detail.

I spent a good while looking at the moon and I got a few videos on my Iphone, after that I sorted my finder scope out and used a starmap app to get a rough idea of where Saturn was, I then positioned my finder scope at what i thought was Saturn.

When I looked through my EP I saw a sparkling star that was shimmering a blue green color, I thought that what i was seeing was Saturn but maybe I needed to get a barlow lens to see it in better detail or something.

I then aimed my scope at the star next to the one which i thought was Saturn and BAM! There was Saturn and it's rings in perfect detail, my first proper wow moment and I was chuffed that i managed to get to see it the first time i used my scope =).

I must of spent a good 40 mins or so following it trying to get a picture, but sadly I didn't manage to get a decent one, as it was hard trying to use the Iphone camera.

After that I took my scope in as I was getting cold and I've got a bad chest.

After I had taken my scope in I tried to use registax with the moon footage i captured, i couldn't get the AVI to play so i converted the file into a load of JPG's, i followed a few tutorials but it just didn't seem to want to work for me, so I gave up on that in the end, and decided i would wait until i got a proper camera before i tried again.

Now i have a few questions, first of all when I first looked at the moon it was really bright, my dad was with me and he said it made his eyes go funny, so I put the dust cap on the end of my scope as i was unsure if it could damage your eyes, so can the light from the moon have any effect on your eyes?

Second, what was the star that i was looking at that i thought was Saturn? The reason I thought it was Saturn was because it looked sort of oval shaped so I assumed that it would be Saturn's rings making it look that shape.

Third, my Mum has an SLR that she said i could use, and I would really like to get into astrophotography, what do I need to buy to attach the SLR directly to the scope?

And finally, what make of barlow lens would you guys recommend, and should i get a 2X or 3X(I have a Skyliner 150p)

?

Sorry for the long post =p

[umadog]

Light from the moon will not damage you eyes. In fact, looking at it through a telescope does not produce a brighter image than looking at it naked eye. It appears brighter because it's larger. If you are dark adapted and look at the moon through the telescope it can seem blinding. You quickly light-adapt, however, and can then view just fine. If it really bothers you, you can purchase a lunar filter. Stars should look point-like not oval-shaped. Perhaps it looked non-round because the telescope is not well collimated.

[gurneyfan67]

Hi Csuka, Happy to hear that you had your first WOW moment. I really loved my first view of Saturn through my own scope. The bright star you saw was probably SPICA in the constellation Virgo just to the right of Saturn. You can connect the SLR to your scope with a T ring adapter the is made for your camera. As for a Barlow I would recomend a 2X. I cannot say which you would want as I am in the US so we have brands that would be too expensive for you to import to UK. I do have experience with the TAL products and can vouch for their quality. Many of the members have TAL Barlows.

[Csuka]

Thanks, and gurneyfan i think you're right about it being spika, i have been looking at some online star maps and it seems like that's what it must of been, cheers for the help =)

[DOBBY]

you can connect a DSLR to a skyliner for 'snaps' of the moon & planets..but not long exposure photography...an EQ mount is needed... or you can get good results from a webcam...see this thread http://stargazerslounge.com/primers-tutorials/40665-primer-planetary-imaging-toucam.html

[stevetynant]

Hi Csuka - have you down loaded Stellarium to your PC yet - its a big help in seeing whats in the skies above you at any given time - theres a lot of cheap mods you can do to your Dob to help you find things easier as well.

I had to get up at 5am to see Saturn the first time this winter- but it is well worth it - you should get your best viewing later this month as well as its higher in the sky at a more reasonable time of the night. Have you managed to find M42 yet - thats another wow moment for most people like us starting out - but better be quick before it disappears from the winter skies for a while.

Its in the constellation of Orion - to me it looks like a large scorpion rather than a hunter - look where the body splits into the claws for faint milky cloud with bins and then get your scope alligned and wow. Check it out on stellarium its an easy find and once you've seen it once I can guarantee you'll take a quick look every time you set up whilst its still here

happy hunting

Steve