My very first light

[Cartman]

So yesterday, I picked up my first scope, a Skywatcher Explorer-200PDS (EQ5).

During the day, I did some observations of the sun through a solar filter. There were many clouds, so nothing spectacular there.

I checked Star Walk on the iPhone, and noticed that most of my first goals (Mars, Jupiter, Saturn...) were in the west in the evening. Since we don't have any view to the west from our garden, I moved all the equipment to a friend of my mothers, whose house is surrounded by fields. The have a wide open view in almoast all directions (only the east and north-east are blocked by nearby trees).

I set up the equipment around 18h00 and went home to for dinner. Put the daughter into bed around 20h00 and went back to the garden where my shiny new scope was waiting for me. Since darkness fell only around 22h30, I read some more in "Turn left at Orion", a very practical book for amateur beginners like me.

But nothing but dissapointment. Clouds. I saw clouds. Through the scope, I saw nothing. No hope for first light tonight... A bit sad, since I knew I wouldn't have time for stargazing until next weekend. After all, if you have a new toy, you want tot play with it right away...

My mothers friend called me inside and offered me a hot beverage as consolidation :-) We talked a bit about stuff, and around midnight, I decided to put the scope back in the car and go home.

To my surprise, it was less cloudy when I walked out. Some stars were visible, and I could swear I saw a red dot in the west. Coud it be true? Could I see my first light after all?

Fifteen minutes later, the skies were wide open. Tinkling lights all over the place. I pointed the scope immediately towards the red dot and saw Mars. Not a lot of detail (I still have to figure out how all the stuff works), but I saw it. Twenty minutes later, I figured out were Saturn had to be approximately (thank you Star Walk and Distant Suns). In that area, I saw two bright lights. I took a random guess and went for the upper one.

I put the upper bright light in the center of the finder scope. Then, I look into the eyepiece. Wow... A globe, a ring around it. That my good sir, that is Saturn... Amazing, beautiful, enchanting. The first time I actually see this beauty, and I see it through my own scope. A moment never to forget. I would almoast call it emotional, I guess most of you will understand what I mean :-)

For the rest of the observation (until about 2h00) I hopped from one star to the other without really knowing wat I was doing or what I was looking at. Good practice to get to learn to work with the equipment and to get to learn the way around those big skies. I went back to Saturn a few times, what a beauty.

One of the most amazing things was the amount of stars that I could see through the scope. So much more that with the naked eye. I'm looking forward to the next months and years, mastering the challenge of getting to know equipment and way around the sky.

[stevetynant]

Congratulations on your first light Cartman and thanks for the report. Saturn for the first time is a real wow moment for all of us- to get it on your first light is fantastic well done. I think the 3 things may help you get the most out of this hobby and enjoy what I hope anyway will be a lifelong hobby based on my own experience of just coming to this hobby.

First thing is patience - its cloudy a lot in Northern Europe so most of us have to take our chances when we can- its frustrating for sure but it is what it is and theres no point getting wound up about it - also remember your possibly starting observing at the worst time of the year as we're only just past the longest day - the nights will get darker and longer from August onwards so the best is yet to come and also it will allow you to get familiarised with your kit before then.

Secondly - remember Astronomy is a learning hobby - when I first started last January I spent a lot of time going outside and looking at the same things - mostly Jupiter and the Orion Nebula (which are awesome by the way- you've got a real treat in front of you) you will get frustrated with this after a few times so spend a little time before you go out researching what you might like to see - I started with a goal of just one new thing each time- everything else was a bonus but it did keep me motivated and enthused and was a real buzz when I found the new objects I was looking for.

Finally - the best thing you can do from a beginners point of view is join this forum and you've already done that so your well on the way. There are so many helpful and knowlegable people on here that are just waiting to help and share their experiences with you. So in a nutshell ASK QUESTIONS we all started from the same base point but it is a learning experience and this is the best place to come to get you on your way - remember the only stupid question is the one you don't ask.

Welcome on board and congratulations on your first light -look forward to reading more reports in the future.

[swamp thing]

Congrats on your first light.

Saturn first time is a truly special sight ain't it? No mater how many better views you get of it through really expensive or giant scopes, the first time is the one that stays in your memory.

At this time of year the milky way is a wonderful place to learn all about how your scope moves in relation to the eyepiece etc. just stick your scope somewhere on it then go for a wander. It really will help later when trying to find stuff. A good wander about often brings you accross some deep sky wonders anyway.

learning to point and move your scope until it becomes something you don't even think about doing helps make observing a very 'natural' experience, and much more enjoyable IMO.

[rory]

congratulations on your first light. heres to many more.

[Cartman]

Some more stuff that I saw:

- a shooting star (not my first offcourse, but a nice extra).

- a moving dot of light, as bright as a small aircraft, no blinking/flashing lights, invisible to the naked eye, moving a bit faster than a plane. I guess a sattelite? It was around 1h30 somewhere in the southwest...

- lowflying aircraft. Lots of them. Used to work at the airport, so it's not that impressive anymore :-)

[Albenn]

Nice report Cartman. Glad the weather cleared enough for you to get a first light. Don't worry, you are not alone in your emotional reaction to your first view of Saturn. It was the same for me too and most people also - just breathtaking.

[andrew63]

enjoyed reading your first light experience - you will have many more things to look forward to when the nights get darker!

andrew

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Nice report of a most satisfying first light. Looking forward to hearing more!

[Mike73]

Great report and congrats on a successful first light!

[Double Kick Drum]

A great first light report.

Saturn is a fine sight.

Happy hunting!