And from out of nowhere, it all came together!!

[nephilim]

I bought my first scope (Sky-Watcher 130m EQ2) over 6 weeks ago and due to terrible weather, had only managed a couple of good observing hours, I'd managed the moon & Jupiter with reasonable success (although stuggled with Jupiter over 100x mag due to bad seeing) I'd tried M31 &M42 with no success as my red dot finder was constantly out & I seemed to be always 'fighting' with the EQ mount & slo-mo controls (havnt set the clock drive up yet) Then suddenly last night everything 'came together' after finally locating M31 with averted vision I swung the scope into position & bingo!!! in the 25mm the core was nicely visible as were the dust lanes, I put in the 9mm Meade & it was stunning VERY clear and although it was ( as many have said) just a smudge, It was some smudge (the thought of how long those photons have travelled to be produce an image in my eye sent goose bumps down my spine). I then tried Orion & found the Trapezium easily, sparkling like diamonds. The cloud was coming so I thought I'd try & barlow Jupiter in the 9mm one last time (after several failures & answers to my questions ranging from bad seeing to naff barlow). Success again, Jupiter was amazing as always but this time I saw several bands instead of the usual two plus of course, the 4 main moons.

So after pulling my hair out over the last few weeks not knowing what i was doing wrong, the answer was 'nothing', it was a mixture of poor seeing & extreme inexperience. All I can say is, I'm so pleaded i stuck with it, as now I know what the problems were I now know how to solve them. Thanks for reading!

PS After packing away I looked up for a second & saw 2 Leonids, a perfect end to a perfect night!!

[Marki]

Good to hear! Nothing beats time to learn - now you can really start putting that kit through its paces! Roll on the next spell of good seeing .

Managed only one leonid just before I packed up...glad I saw it though!

[nephilim]

Good to hear! Nothing beats time to learn - now you can really start putting that kit through its paces! Roll on the next spell of good seeing .

Managed only one leonid just before I packed up...glad I saw it though!

Thanks Mark, It's given me the confidence to start the search for 'all' the others haha! Next targets M57 & NGC 2244.

[VigdisVZ]

Nice to hear you enjoy your new scope. It's always extra satisfying to get that super session after having struggled for a while. We wouldn't enjoy the magic moments of this hobby that much if it was perfect seeing every night.

The hunt has just begun, the sky is the limit.

[paul schofield]

From now on things should only get better with the skies and your experience. Well done on a good night, hope you get many many more and the skies stay clear for you.

Paul.

[JamesF]

Some nights are just a struggle. Especially as a beginner. Pleased to hear you've made progress.

James

[Stargazer Jack]

Very interesting report and I'm glad it was a success. Also, the explorer is a great 'scope for a beginner and you have wrote a perfect report to support that

[nephilim]

Thanks all, It made all the struggling at the start worthwhile and proves the old adage that 'practise makes perfect (or thereabouts )