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Observing Tips And Tricks


Mr Q

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To hasten the cool down time of a reflector, keep the OTA horizontal (and pointed at a 90 degree angle from any breeze). Warm air will exit out the top of the open end while cooler air will enter the bottom side to replace the escaping warm air. I have done this many times and it reduces the cool down time noticably.

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When using a small to medium dob, choose your eyepieces for an evening's viewing session so that you have a sequence with similar weights. You can spend a lot of time wrestling with balance problems if your heaviest EP is a lot heavier than your lightest one.

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when you find the point of best focus at higher magnifications, leave it. the seeing will change the sharpness but when that moment of clarity comes, you don't want to be fiddling with the focus again as you changed it.

A Baader neodymium filter is useful for the moon, Jupiter and Mars.

Lower magnification often reveals the Cassini Division, and moons, of Saturn more than higher.

choose one or two constellations each session (or a special target (like a SN) and 'work' them. you'll see a lot more and get to know objects and constellations a lot better.

once found, targets are a lot easier to relocate.

a Telrad (or other RDF) plus a RACI finder is a wonderful combo with dobs.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Go to where there is less light pollution to see the dimmer objects.

Put a pillow case over your head to block out periferal light. I use a towel in the winter for added warmth.

Layer your clothes in situations where there is varying or cold temperatures. Remove and add as necessary.

Spray the bug spray on your observing clothes so you don't have to apply to your skin each time you go out.

Most importantly, sketch what you see. You will begin to ferret out finer details and spend more time at the eyepiece appreciating what you find.

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Star hopping trick - Find your LP FOV on the star atlas you use and, using a circle template with a red sharp pointed felt marker, mark off the FOVs to reach targets from pilot stars. When using the atlas outside at night, a red tourch will cause the red markings to disappear or, using a very faint white light, the FOVs return as red.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

To slightly improve contrast, flock the interior of your Newtonian.

I would like to add the hint of installing a dewshield for more than one reason.

Roll up a camping mat into a tube and install it on your OTA. I started using one last year to combat dewing but with the additional flocking material on the interior of the sheild, I found that stray light pollution at ground level (such as neighbour's window lights, etc.) was cut and contrast was improved further.

What do you mean by flock the interior of a Newt?

And I have a tip too:

When observing faint DSO's, close your eyes for about 10 seconds and then open them back up while your looking at the object. The glory will last just a couple seconds, but it can give you a real shock of detail.

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What do you mean by flock the interior of a Newt?

And I have a tip too:

Josh - "flocking" is the addition of a material (usually flat black paint) to the inside surface of the OTA. This stops ambient light from bouncing off the insides of the OTA, which reduces observing contrast. Flocking material that has a surface texture adds to the prevention of stray light reflections, further increasing contrast. Most OTAs come coated with flat black paint and if yours does, you have a reasonable degree of flocking protection already and any further flocking will only increase contrast only slightly. Also, keep covers on both ends of the OTA when not in use to reduce the accumulation of dust coating the flocking material that will reduce the flocking's function by light reflecting off the light colored dust.

The below eye trick sounds interesting and I'll try it out.

When observing faint DSO's, close your eyes for about 10 seconds and then open them back up while your looking at the object. The glory will last just a couple seconds, but it can give you a real shock of detail.

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  • 1 month later...

If your sky is normally dark and transparent, when the Moon is out, you can still observe many of the brighter DSOs by keeping direct moonlight out of the OTA. With the Moon out, you may loose only a few magnitudes when observing DSOs if the above tip is used. Any light pollution and you may as well stick to the brighter planets or the Moon itself. Keeping moonlight out of the OTA allows greater contrast when viewing faint DSOs.

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  • 2 weeks later...

This ones a bit boring.

Don't drink alcohol. You will be able to see a lot more detail when sober. Plus you WILL see only one of the object in your EP.

Star parties seem to be the exception to the rule though. Kielder is the only time I can get bladdered and have fun coz I've left the dragon at home.

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Following on from the comments on dark adaptations, don't use ipad or smart phone apps when trying to observe, even when in night mode. They still give off loads of light and will kill your night vision. They are excellent for orientating yourself initially if needed, but put them away and get properly dark adapted and you will see far more. Instead, use a dim red torch and a star atlas or print maps from stellarium or off the internet.

Stu

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Do not smoke for at least a few hours before observing (better still, not at all ;)). Nicotine acts as a competitive inhibitor in the formation of rhodopsin, which is responsible for night vision. Nicotine attaches to the enzyme which produces rhodopsin, and so blocks production of rhodopsin, reducing dark adaptation.

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This ones a bit boring.

Don't drink alcohol. You will be able to see a lot more detail when sober. Plus you WILL see only one of the object in your EP.

Star parties seem to be the exception to the rule though. Kielder is the only time I can get bladdered and have fun coz I've left the dragon at home.

boo :drunken_smilie:
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This ones a bit boring.

Don't drink alcohol. You will be able to see a lot more detail when sober. Plus you WILL see only one of the object in your EP.

Star parties seem to be the exception to the rule though. Kielder is the only time I can get bladdered and have fun coz I've left the dragon at home.

WAH WASH zHAT?

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  • 3 months later...

When going on the hunt for an elusive object, check the web for monochrome (B&W) pictures to get an idea what you will be looking for but at a much fainter level. Want to see what level the light will be in your scope? Try squinting with barely shut eyes for a very dim view of the object's photo.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Copied from an old post of mine -

Some quick tips to squeeze the best out of your scope -

1) let the scope cool down, the general rule of thumb is to allow 5 minutes for each inch of aperture. Stick your scope outside for 30mins or so before you intend to view. It's perfectly fine to leave dust caps on etc during cooldown.

2) don't view over tarmac or over houses or cars, or anything that gives off heat. These things spend all day absorbing the suns heat (even on cold winter days), and give it off at night, creating thermal currents akin to the heat waves you see on tarmac in the blazing hot summer sun, they are just less obvious in the winter (until you magnify them through the scope.

3) view from the darkest place you can. Get away from the town/cities and head out into a rural area for the best experience. This makes a HUGE difference.

4) get dark adapted. It takes roughly 20 minutes of darkness for your eyes to adapt, and only a fraction of a second to destroy it. Your night vision is brought to you by a chemical called Rhodopsin, which builds up in your retina over time. It is incredibly sensitive to light, meaning it reacts well in low light, allowing you to see, but gets destroyed by brighter light. Even looking at your phone, or kitchen/lounge lights left on (if you're in the garden), or looking at bright objects like the moon/jupiter will prevent the buildup. So do yourself a favour, and at least just once on a moonless night, experience night vision at its best.

5) Spend time focusing. Sounds silly, but at higher mags, the "sweet spot" for focus gets smaller and smaller, and can be tough to find if your mount wobbles as you focus. Spend some time to make sure you got it just right.

6) Spend time at the eyepiece. I can't stress this enough. It takes time for your mind to build a detailed image of what you're looking at because it is either big and faint, or tiny and bright. My first few sessions on jupiter were basically a small disk, with 2 grey stripes on in. One night, i took a chair with me, and sat at the eyepiece for over an hour. After 20 minutes or so, a whole new world opened up to me. It wasn't a sudden thing, but i began to see small hints of swirls either side of the stripes. After 30minutes or so the swirls were definite, and i was seeing 4 stripes, and a heck of a lot of surface detail. Same with the orion nebula, though it wasn't quite so obvious - after a while i started to get hints of nebulosity through averted vision, unfortunately just as it was almost visible with direct vision i had to leave, but i have certainly learned the value of "learning to see".

I wondered why last night viewing Jupiter right next to the house I couldnt get focus but going into the back garden had no problem, didnt think about heat from the house. Good tip :grin:

Steve

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