First Light - Celestron 127 SLT :-)

[ak785]

So for those who have followed my posts you'll know I was having difficulty in getting my scope lined up. However at dusk with clear skies and a near total eclipse moon I decided to have another go.

So I lined up the rdf properly this time, I made sure the rdf and the scope were lined up. Then aligned to the moon, I saw some light all blurry so I gradually and slowly turned the focus knob, and then in came the moon through my 25mm stock celestron eye piece.

Oh the relief, I'm an astronomer.

The moon was clear and I could make out a fair amount of detail the scope tracked it well, then I thought hold on this still looks a little typo far away, so I switched out for the 9mm eye piece as I understand it the lower this number the higher the magnification? And I lost it, then the clouds came in and I can't see anything.

So a couple of questions.

• if I focus in the 25mm and swap out to the 9mm do I need to refocus?

• i noticed when viewing through the 25mm there appears to be a little vibration / loss of focus then it refocused is this normal?

By the way I'm mighty relieved so pleased I've seen something. I realise its just the moon but this feels like a giant leap forward for me.

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[Mr Q]

Yes, it's common for refocusing when you change EPs if they are different focal lengths/different brands.

When you go from a low power EP to a higher power EP, the field of view gets much smaller and can "hide" the object if that object is not centered in your LP field of view. With practice, this aiming skill improves as you get used to the different fields of view with different EPs.

It will soon become second nature with lots of observing and changing EPs.

[Steep]

Vibration is a problem but there are things you can do to damp it down, like hang a heavy object underneath the tripod. don't fully extend the tripod unless you have to as the lower it is the more solid it is. Try not to move around too much as a surprising amount of vibration travels through the ground and up the tripod legs.

Well done on getting your first decent views in

[ak785]

I'm very happy I managed to get three nights in last week viewing Jupiter and the four G moons.

I'm now looking into vibration dampners but the dejection ones for tripod feet are £50.00 which to me seems a lot for some feet. I'm thinking would washing machine anti vibration feed not do the same thing?

Also decided on a Baader Planetarium 10mm EP.

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[Rockrae78]

I refused to pay £50 for the vibration dampners..., seen some brilliant home made ones on here, but my DIY skills are rubbish, so I just use a bag of flour resting on the accessories tray on the mount... Not perfect, but it does lessen the vibrations.

[Tyr]

"• i noticed when viewing through the 25mm there appears to be a little vibration / loss of focus then it refocused is this normal?"

The greatest difference I found I could make to the tripod stability / vibration was sitting very still

If you think you're not causing the movement, what you could be experiencing could also be instability of the view at the eyepiece caused by movement of the atmosphere above you, this is quite normal and will change depending on the weather.

At higher magnifications (using a lower numbered eye piece) you will notice any vibration or atmospheric instability more than you do at lower magnifications.

If you have a look in the handbook for the SLT telescope mount, I think you'll find it has a special lunar tracking mode designed for the moon specifially which you may want to experiment with in the future.

Hope you get some more observing opportunities in the near future