eye 'floaters' obscuring planet detail - are my eye's weird?

[M4lcs67]

It is certainly an operation that shouldn't be taken lightly. My surgeon went through all the risks that are involved and I had to sign a consent form before the op. As with all surgery there is an element of risk, but where your eyes are concerned it is doubly worrying as if something does go wrong you could end up blind.

Luckily my surgeon is one of the best in the country, so I was a little less worried.

[Josh Wilson]

I have one in my right eye but it seems to come and go. I've actually noticed that when I focus manually with my right on a camera, the images aren't as sharp as with my left eye. I don't really notice it with observing all that much but I just switch eyes when I see it.

I've been told that it has something to do with how hydrated you are?

Wiki says that 98% of floaters are a result of simply getting old. That being said, I think it's time to face the truth... jk. You can always have it removed via surgery, just ask Malc ^ .

[Ags]

My left eye (my favored eye) is like a dirty snow globe. I know the only cure is a bigger scope - i think a 250PX dob will improve planetary views nicely

[M4lcs67]

My floater was a big one and before I had it removed I had to constantly blink and swirl my eye around to move it out of the way as it always seemed to drift into my field of vision.

[Ags]

That's what mine do :-(

[M4lcs67]

Seriously irritating. Once I am fully recovered though, hopefully I won't remember that I had it in the first place.

[Mr Q]

what you just described east is the same what i was getting last night when viewing jupiter, it was dead center in my FOV and i just assumed it was dust/dirt on my EP, so these floater's are they actually in you eye!!?

Yes, they are. They are strings or clumps of dead cells floating in the viscuous fluid inside the eyeball. That's why you can't seem to "look" directly at them - moving your eye moves the fluid and the floater moves with the fluid. As others have said, floaters are a normal result of the eye aging. When observing fainter objects in a scope, they are not as noticeable as when looking at a bright object.

[Eastridge]

Hey Eastridge,

I have just recovered from having a floater removed from my left eye. Have been out of commission for 4 months as my operation was a difficult one and my recovery has been long and hard as well. Just saw my specialist a month ago and everything is starting to heal, but I have to wear glasses full-time now whereas before my op I didn't need them.

My astronomy was the main reason I had the floater removed in the first place. I have had the floater for about ten years and I have managed to get along with it, but since taking up astronomy, I have found it intolerable as I struggle to see through my eyepiece, so in July I went to see an Opthalmic Surgeon who said they could remove the floater.

All that remains now it to get out with my new scope under dark skies and see if all this pain and suffering has been worth it.

Wow I have gone from relief that it was normal to being really grateful that it's not bad enough to need something like that done. I really really hope it turns out well for you.

[Eastridge]

Did the above wrong somehow and put my comment within the 'quote' box - doh sorry.

tinting 44 - what Mr Q says. As it gets worse with aging ( which I didn't know) I'm now depressed again ;-) as I have noticed them with eyes closed since being a kid, they are more now at 46, I better make the most of my viewing over the next few years before it becomes intolerable!

[tingting44]

i really am shocked by this!! never heard of this before and never noticed anything like it before i was looking at jupiter the other night i cant believe how many people have these floaters, and to think i thought it was just dirt on my EP, and why it was in the same place on different EP's, well its all explained now

[melsky]

Floaters are a problem at high power which is why I use a binoviewer, because you're using both eye's it halfs the effect of any floater. I can see more detail with my relatively cheap William Optics BV than I can with a Powermated Ethos 8mm.

Mel

[Hobbes]

I have developed floaters in my "good" eye recently. My left eye is next to useless but my right has always had excellent vision thankfully. I now have several floaters in my right eye which are in just the wrong place. My optician put it down to age (48). Apparently the vitreous gel starts to liquify as you age and cracks develop in it. What you are seeing is the shadow of these cracks projected onto your retina. A vitrectomy and cataract operation is an option but it is fairly extreme although techniques are improving and more are now being done. I have been advised to leave it for a year or two to see if they shift out of the way.

Check out the following forum for info from other sufferers

http://floatertalk.yuku.com/forums/2/Floaters-Only-Vitrectomy

[Eastridge]

Thanks for link Hobbes - interesting and I am increasingly glad it's only an issue for me with high mag EP's and planets, rather than in general.

[whooshbang]

Seriously irritating. Once I am fully recovered though, hopefully I won't remember that I had it in the first place.

I'm confident you'll forget a few years down the line. They do also say "pain has no memory" so something else to look forward to as well as good eyes

Not quite on the level of what you have been through but In 1996 i had PRK laser surgery on my eyes (under 1000 people had undergone this at the time) it was quite possibly the most uncomfortable pain ever experienced, although the procedure lasted approx 15-20 secs and was not painful at the time, the aftermath was like having an extreme case of arc eye with added sand and fairly liquid thrown in for good measure then rubbed vigorously. My eyes have worked well ever since and i very rarely give it a second thought. I get the occasional floater these days and if gets worse later i'll have to do what everyone else is doing and use it as an excuse to buy a larger aperture telescope..... either that or start imaging

Here's to making a fast and full recovery!

[IanL]

either that or start imaging

I was going to say that it is hard to get an exit pupil bigger than a laptop screen. Saves your back too as you don't have to bend over and squint through the eyepiece. Just need to build an observatory now before I get too decrepit to carry the kit out of the back door!

[BinocularSky]

A teacher in school once told us that these floaters are actually projections of your blood cells, running through the veins of your retina (or somewhere else in the eye, I forgot the details). Like looking through a microscope inside your own eyeball.

No idea if this is true,

It isn't. Most floaters are protein strands and other cell debris.

Ways to minimise floater nuisance:

• Binoculars or binoviewers -- very unlikely to have floaters in both eyes covering the same bit you are observing.
  
• Larger exit pupil: small exit pupils make them significantly worse.
  
• Orientate your eyepiece so you are not looking down: most people find they get worse when you look down into an eyepiece as opposed to up or ahead.
  

Also, they tend to be more intrusive in short-sighted people, and tend to get worse after cataract operations (but are significantly less debilitating than cataracts!)

[M4lcs67]

When I had my first consultation with the eye surgeon she said that after the floater removal operation (vitrectomy) most people develop cataracts quite soon after, so they do everything all at once rather than having to go back a few months after to have the cataract operation performed.

[Ags]

• Orientate your eyepiece so you are not looking down: most people find they get worse when you look down into an eyepiece as opposed to up or ahead.
  

I've always thought this when looking down into the eyepiece of my mak. Another reason to buy a big dob!

[BinocularSky]

I've always thought this when looking down into the eyepiece of my mak. Another reason to buy a big dob!

Or an observing stool, and orientate the diagonal so that the eyepiece is horizontal.

[earth titan]

I've just been to the optiticans and as I was there, I asked about floaters.

They shouldn't get worse and are perfectly normal. Although they can be removed by surgery this in not advisable, as there are more risks from the surgery than there are from leaving them there.

Typed by me on my fone, using fumms... Excuse eny speling errurs.

[Beulah]

A sudden increase in floaters possibly accompanied by flashing lights, dense shadowing or the sensation of small flies buzzing around you can indicate retinal detachment which requires immediate hospital treatment to prevent blindness. Astronomers tend to be meticulous when it comes to looking after our optical gear; but the MK1 eyeballs can get overlooked. A regular visit to the opticians is very much worthwhile.

I know someone who has only started visiting the opticians and was fortunate to have ROP picked up so that laser treatment could repair scar tissue in the retina to decrease the chances of retinal detachment. However It is a rare condition, affecting 1 in 10,000 in the UK. Look after your eyes!!

[Ags]

Or an observing stool, and orientate the diagonal so that the eyepiece is horizontal.

Sadly the 4SE I use does not allow re-orientation of the EP - it is fixed in up position (nor can the entire scope be rotated). I do however use an observing chair wihich helps to steady my head. When observing planets I shake my head every few seconds to chase away the floaters, but they soon settle again over my eye lens.

[jakjtb]

as this is a eye related thread, are there any problems that can occour when using glasses? i have blurry vision when not wearing my glasses...would this bring up a problem when i get my first scope in a few weeks?

[BinocularSky]

If your vision is just a focus issue, you can usually "focus it out". However, if you have astigmatism, you will need your specs to correct for it, but I find that a small (2-3mm) exit pupil also helps (too small, and the floaters become apparent).

[M4lcs67]

I had my floater surgically removed as it was beginning to have a negative effect on my quality of life. I had a stroke 4 years ago and do not work anymore. Since I took up astronomy last year it has become my only real passion (I used to have many other hobbies, but since my stroke I cannot do them anymore) so the astronomy is a huge thing to me. I have had the floater for about 10 years and I have managed up until now, but having to focus and look down an eyepiece means that you have to concentrate and put all your energy in looking at a small area, so it became pretty much intolerable as the floater kept swirling around in my field of vision.

Yes there are risks involved with any surgery, but especially eye surgery as if something goes wrong you can end up blind and my surgeon told me of all the risks beforehand, but I went ahead anyway. Unfortunately I did have some complications, but things are nearly healed. One downside is the fact that I have to wear glasses full time now, but at least I can see ok and that blooming floater is gone now.