Sparkliness Posted January 13, 2013 Share Posted January 13, 2013 Hello everyone. Just a short note to introduce myself (I'm being brave here as usually I hide behind the scenes). After reading this forum for a while, I decides to join. My name is Vanessa, I have been interested in astronomy since I was a child, but not so much the cold nights that go with observing.... As a child I was lucky enough to grow up on the Yorkshire coast, with relatively clear skies. I saw a number of excellent meteor showers back then. I think my most memorable moment was when I realised this wonderful new sight I'd seen was actually just Mars lining up perfectly with Gemini. Not so special - but at least I had noticed something different in the sky. Until recently I have been based amongst the pink night skies of London, but last year I moved to Dorset, looking forward to dark nights & crisp, clear skies. Of course, since I moved it has rained. And rained.... But, not to be deterred, I treated myself to a Skywatcher Heritage 130P recently, to add to my 10x50 bins... So far I have managed a couple of nice shots of the moon and a fuzzy glimpse of Jupiter. My main issue is that I struggle to focus both scope and bins at times - varifocals and astigmatism don't help! But I guess practice makes perfect! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesM Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi Vanessa and welcome to the forum. Well you seem to be building up your kit nice and slowly which is not a bad thing as there is plenty of time to upgrade as your experience grows. Now that you are located in darker skies, you might want to download some free planetarium software called "Stellarium" which you can read about here. It can be configured from your exact viewing location which is great in helping you decide what next to look at along with identifying what you discover along the way. It has lots of great features that will keep you entertained when the clouds come in (...or stay in!) and will certainly improve your knowledge of the night sky and its constellation. One particular useful feature is the advance date/time setting which allows you to fast forward the sky to see what is coming and from where, particularly useful if any part of your sky is blocked out (neighbours and trees etc) and you want to know when objects become available. From a book perspective, I would certainly recommend "Turn Left At Orion" which lists some 100 objects that you can find with binoculars and modest scopes. This book is great as it provides lots of useful information about a given object along with concise written instructions and detailed maps to help you locate them. Hope all this helps you further in your astral journey! Clear skies soon and hope you enjoy the forumJames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Double Kick Drum Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi VanessaA warm welcome to the lounge.Enjoy your new scope! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EntropyStar Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi Vanessa, Hope you continue onwards and upwards with your viewing! Glad to see you've delurked and joined us :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charon Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Welcome to the forum Vanessa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wookie1965 Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 A warm welcome to SGL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zul Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hello and Welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glowjet Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi Vanessa and welcome to SGL John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dude_with_the_tube Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 hi and welcome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Welrod50 Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Welcome to SGL Vanessa. Good to have you aboard and posting! Friendly bunch here as I'm sure you're seeing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesF Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Welcome to SGLJames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul schofield Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hello and welcome to SGL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catweazel Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi & Welcome to SGL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michigander Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Welcome to SGL, Vanessa!Dana Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VigdisVZ Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Welcome aboard Vanessa! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizibilder Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hello Vanessa and welcome to SGL!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Siriusmeg Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hello and welcome form me too - enjoy your new scope Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saturn4me Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi and welcome to SGL! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorningMajor Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi Vanessa and weclome - Glad you joined us - now, don't be shy we're all very friendly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stellawolf Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hi & welcome to SGL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tranas Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Welcome to the forum Vanessa . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Presland Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 hi welcome to SGL from peter in bedfordshire absolutely practise, practise and more practise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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