First night ever stargazing, loved it, need advice!

[Fordos Moon]

So tonight the clouds parted and I had my first stargazing experience courtesy of my FLO supplied Skywatcher 200P!

Firstly I simply pointed it up and was blown away with the sheer number of stars in the sky, and the number of things whizzing about!

Armed with Turn Left at Orion,the iphone app Star Walk and my nail varnished torch I desperately tried to find reference points in my view restricted to west and south.

I found Vega, who I will cherish as my first personal find, and turning page 120 clockwise 90 degrees found what I believe to be The Keystone, but alas not M13 tonight, possibly hampered by some clouds that showed up. I was thrilled at what to you are probably laughable finds but I've never seen them before!

A few observations back on planet earth. Such an achey neck using the finder scope and achey brain trying to get used to the upside down bit! Don't know whether to get a telrad or a 90 degree finder scope to help me out.

Next time warm socks and a hat. And be prepared to turn the book around to line things up. I also need to work on knowing what I can expect to see in a certain direction which I am hoping will come with practice.

Also to work out when the 10mm eye piece outdoes the 25mm wide one.

But alas, what a thrilling evening and a sense of achievement when I finally found something in the book, albeit after about an hour of trying lol!

Can't wait to get out there again!!

[rowan46]

Though it's true that it's difficult to get jaded watching the universe. The repeat viewings are never quite as exciting as the first time we find something, clear skies. As to the finder I like telrads I find them wonderfully intuitive. Having said that I have never tried a right angle finder.

[themos]

I'd go with the telrad, most people get along fine with one.

[steppenwolf]

Sounds like a great first night, a good 'scope and an excellent book in 'Turn Left at Orion.' The upside down view you will get used to but I dislike straight through finders - a right angled one will make such a pleasurable difference!

Well done on finding what you did find and better luck next time with M13 - which I did find tonight and thoroughly enjoyed. With regard to the eyepieces, magnification certainly isn't everything - start with the 25mm, when you have the object nicely centred, try the 10mm and judge for yourself whether or not it is improving the view; it won't always do so as the atmospheric conditions have a part to play here as well as the size of the object you are observing.

[umadog]

Good stuff! Welcome!

[Mr Moff]

Nice one.

I will always remember my first night.

[Marki]

Cool! Glad you enjoyed your first night. I never get bored of simply sweeping scross the star fields, even if I can't identify stuff. But I agree its such a thrill when you work it our for yourself. Turn left is an excellent book - got me started really well. I duno't have a Telrad, but getting a right angled finder can really help things I think .

[Si W]

Brill, so please for you, you had your first night under the stars with a great scope .

[onesmallstep]

Hi and welcome to SGL

Congrats on your first night's observing and I'm glad it was a good one for you. Most astronomers are blown away the first time they properly observe the night sky through bins or a scope. Is your setup the Dobsonian or EQ / tripod model? I'm asking as I have the Dob model, and I'm nosey

BTW, as a general rule the 25mm EP is for low power wide field views of deep sky objects and the 10mm is used for the high power viewing of planets, stars and the Moon. Like all rules this one can be and is regularly broken. You will get to know your scope's capabilities over time as this is part of the learning curve we all go through.

Finally, it might be worth looking for astro clubs and societies local to you so that you can turn up to meetings and/or public star parties. The following link is for the Federation of Astronomical Societies, filter down by region / county for a list of clubs in Wilts.

http://fedastro.org.uk/fas/members/

[estwing]

congrats well done

[Fordos Moon]

Thanks guys, my set up is the dobsonian one which I found easy to use, I just need to develop a twisted giraffe's neck or to spend some time looking at right angled finders! What an amazing place up there!

[Monty]

Have a go at Orion and see if you can work your way around the constellation finishing at M42. Orion begins the evening almost due east at roughly 23:30 but is best viewed from about 02:15 for a decent view before it's in the southern part of the sky. You'll only need the 25mm eye piece and you should get most of M42 in the view, it'll give you a good idea of what a nebula looks like to the eye although it is one of the brightest.

[cotterless45]

Get a Telrad, or even a rdf.There's loads of downloads of finder charts for Ms and Caldwells.

Best part is you won't miss sleep,

good bright comet in Pegasus at the moment for the early evening viewing;

http://cometchasing.skyhound.com/comets/168P.pdf

Nick.

[jason.p]

Nice one Fordos

I'm still very new to this and still get that "wow" feeling. Totally agree with others that a right angle correct image finder would make things much easier. The Skywatcher 9X50 has been recommended and that is top of my wishlist, with a Telrad second. Even if you don't find your target first time you will be learning the skies while searching, getting to know the major landmarks (or is that skymarks ). There's so much to learn. Great innit

Jason Jason

[Ganymede12]

I got the 200p recently and It blew me away! The difference between a 70mm lens and a 200mm mirror is massive!

The 10mm eyepiece is best suited to planets and the moon but I have still found It useful on some DSO's.

[Charon]

Well done on your first night. I have a chronic back problem and found buying a right angled finder essential and so much easier to use.

[Space Beagle]

Cracking first report!

To be honest, if you really enjoy this passtime, the wow factor will keep on happening the further you progress!!

There are so many things to see and to go back and see again and again! As seeing conditions change, the veiw of whatever you are looking at changes too, so you'll never really get borred of looking at what will become some of your favorite sights in the night sky!

Try and avoid becomming too obsessed by the equipment and upgrading (I have made this mistake, he he!) and just use what you have to do what is the most important thing, look up and be amazed!! Saying that, there is some sound advice above about finders. The best thing I have ever bought is actually a good seat to sit on beside my own dob mounted 200P, have a good look around the forum for plenty of ideas!!

Clear skies!

Doc

[jonathan]

A straight-through 9x50 finder is not so bad on an EQ mounted scope, as it can be at eye level if you extend the tripod legs, then you only have to lean forwards slightly to look through it, unless the target is straight up then it gets tricky! I wondered about getting a right-angled add-on but apparently this doesn't work due to focal planes or some such thing.

Some sort of red dot finder is a very useful companion to a finder scope, but there is no right-angle option as far as I am aware and it can take a bit of getting used to as you try to maintain your focus on the stars while seeing the red dot.

[Double Kick Drum]

Congrats on your first session. An eight inch scope will keep you occupied for a long time.

M13 is a good target. Initially it might look like an uninspiring fuzzy ball but spend a little time and you will begin to resolve stars within the globular cluster.

M57 the Ring nebula is also quite an easy find from Vega and is worth seeking out. Beware that in a 25mm eyepiece, it might just look like an out of focus star. The 10mm should enlarge it enough to see the smoke ring.

Turn Left at Orion is a great book and will help manage expectations too.

Happy hunting!

[brantuk]

Congrats Fordos - smashing first report.

Small tip for you - when you line up the finder with the main tube - do it in daylight and do it with the 10mm eyepiece. This will give you greater accuracy for finding - and both eyepieces will work fine at night. (If you align using only the 25mm and subsequently use the 10mm during a session - the object will be way off center - even out of the eyepiece altogether).

My preference is for "right angled correct image" finders to save neck and back strain - you'll need to decide your own preference for that - SW and Orion both do very nice 9x50 raci's - so you have a choice. Telrads are good as well - I use both. And do get an adjustable chair so you can be seated whilst viewing - believe me it makes a world of difference to your comfort and control of the scope.

The best way to orientate yourself on the sky (imho) is to start facing south initially. This time of year around 11pm you will look up and see the Great Square of Pegasus for a good start point. So check the book and make sure you know what it looks like. Over to the left (or East) you should see Jupiter as the brightest point in the sky. And to the right of that - the Plieades open cluster. Use Stellarium to confirm where they are so you know where to look. All naked eye objects so should be no probs in your scope.

You can identify the pole star to the North using the Plough and Cassiopoeia technique. And armed with those little bits of knowledge you'll have a great start to discovering the position of everything else. Build on your knowledge of constellations (as they come round) as the year goes on - and you'll soon be wizzing around the sky like a seasoned stargazer.

[peeceeTal2M]

A telrad is great to use if scope is mounted on a tripod ( look through it with your head 6-8 inches back from it with both eyes open) but in my opinion with a dob setup a right angled finder would be easier

[Fordos Moon]

Great responses people! Right angled scope ordered, got to protect my dodgy back!

[Fordos Moon]

I found it tonight! Kind of a fuzzy patch which kinda focused as I twitched the scope around ever so slightly, sometimes enough to make out a large number of pinprick like mini-stars. Now to improve my focussing skills as I couldn't get the focus to hold in place with the scope dead still.

[inspectapart]

My advice is to learn the sky. South and West, if that`s your best clear direction! When I say learn the sky, I mean get yourself aquainted as best you can with the constelations that are up at the moment. Coupled with a good star book this will help you get an idea of where to find your objects of desire.

Make use of your naked eyes to learn the constelations as these are your pointers to everything.

I believe the Telrad is easy to use and well worth considering as a finder.

Everything else will become apparent as you learn and enjoy.

Bob.

[Fordos Moon]

Thanks Bob, I will do that