First light...hmmmmm

[Hootsitabernacle]

okay so i got my 8" dobs out tonight and went straight for jupiter..thought i would be seeing the red spot...i did see one or two bands and a couple of moons. i dont think the fact my neighbours putting lights on and a street light in my FOV helped much tho. I did try to look for a cluster or nebula or two but all i saw was lots and lots of wee stars...a tad disappointed as its a very clear sky tonight and i was hoping for more WOW!. i did leave my scope out for a good half hour or so to cool down...should i be expecting more? i managed a cheeky wee pic using my smartphone..amazed it worked but u get the gist..

[Stargazer_00]

The supplied 10mm barlowed to 5mm should wow you on Jupiter in my opinion. With good seeing in that scope you'd pick out many of the bands. The GRS isnt up at the moment I think but there is a moon transiting the face, did you see the shadow?

[John]

You need to spend time viewing objects to get the most from them. There are some features that are clear straight away but others, including the Great Read Spot (when it's visible) don't just jump out at you. The more you observe, the more you will see. Your eye gradually "tunes in" to the more subtle details and they pop in and out of view all the time as the seeing varies.

With the exception of the moon, astronomy is not really a hobby of quick wins really - the stuff that is described is often faint, subtle and hard to spot.

I'd say 30 mins is OK but the views at high power will improve as the scope cools further as well. Some nights the seeing conditions are kind, but reasonably often they are mediocre and your scope just can't quite give it's best.

Keep at it - your scope has good potential

[ronin]

The GRS is actually not that big on Jupiter and Jupiter is small also when viewing it. Making it out could be a little on the difficult side. The word "great" can mislead one's thinking.

Take a look at this image of Jupiter on Wikipedia, it shows the GRS and it appears about 1/8 the dia of Jupiter:

Jupiter

I think that the GRS is about the dia of the earth and Jupiter is 11x the dia of the earth, so yes it is big but you are looking for something on Jupiter that is in the region of 1/10 the size of Jupiter, and I am betting that the image of Jupiter you see isn't that big.

You will need something like a 5mm or 6mm eyepiece to get the magnification and stop the image being swamped with light, and the 10mm and barlow will give the equivalent of 5mm but the image quality is generally poor. I suppose there is someone out there that has managed to get a decent 10mm and barlow combination but so far no one has owned up.

[Hootsitabernacle]

i have a 10mm and a 25 mm..the 25mm showed a bright white disc..the 10 showed some bands..didnt see any shadows tho. i have ordered a barlow but wont be in stock for a couple of weeks..the street lights dont help..i may need to venture into the wild methinks

[KevUU]

Don't worry, give it a bit of time to find your way around and get your eye in, and the wow will soon follow with an 8" scope

Nebulae and galaxies can be troublesome if you have LP problems (you mention lights intruding) - although you could give the M81/M82 pair a go, basically straight up in the sky, and see how you fare?

Clusters are much more tolerant. The globular cluster M3 recently gave me my first full-on !!WOW!! moment after stepping up from a small refractor to an 8" dob. That's over in the East. To the South you should find the dense open cluster M44 (The Beehive) very doable, and if you get that try the nearby M67, more of a challenge but worth spending some time for the detail to start coming out; I find it has more depth and interest than M44.

Happy Hunting

[jasonp]

The 25mm will show detail but you need to look more.

The brightness initially will cause your eye to not show detail. Believe me there is.

Don't be put off by the supplied eyepieces. They are not that bad.

[Apollo Paul]

You are not going to get a wow moment using the supplied 10mm on Jupiter.

I would buy a good 8mm eyepiece. The views will be lots better providing the seeing conditions are good enough.

I didnt like the supplied 25mm either.

Paul

[jasonp]

I disagree. The 10mm is good enough to give you a nice view. I own many different eyepieces and while yes that are better the 10mm for Jupiter will be fine.

I just don't want people thinking that if they rush out and buy new eyepieces things will be better.

When first starting out there are so many things to learn and it could be a simple case of bad focussing , poor seeing , bad collimation etc.

Again I'm not saying that the 10mm is perfect and yes an 8mm would be a good addition but don't go out and buy any old eyepiece or you will be even more disappointed.

Take your time.

[Stargazer_00]

I agree with Jason, the supplied eyepieces are absolutely fine. When I got my first scope, the Explorer 150p, I was utterly wowed for many months with just the 2 supplied eyepieces and a barlow. Having a barlow does make a differene as it gives you a broader range of magnifications.

The seeing wasn't very good yesterday with the wind, certainly down south. I am sure that you will find the scope will deliver the goods in due course. The 200p is good on planets and moon but also good on DSOs so give them a spin too. M81 and M82 are 2 galaxies in a perfect position at the moment.

[Hootsitabernacle]

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/skywatcher-eyepieces/skywatcher-planetary-eyepieces.html

are these good for planets?

[Stargazer_00]

Far too short in my opinion, they would disappoint.

You'd be better off with a 8mm or 5mm BST in my opinion if you wanted a fix focal length eyepiece for high magnification.

My advice, honestly, would be get the barlow and use the eyepieces you have a few times before buying anything else. The barlow will show you what a 5mm looks like and a 12.5mm.

Get a feel for the magnfications, and get a feel for the objects you want to look at. One night out isnt enough to make a decision, you need to get a few under your belt as it were to tell the difference between what is caused bby conditions and what is an attribute of your equipment. There is no rush and nothing worse than making bad purchase decisions early which could put you off for life. The hobby for you is in its infancy, you need to give it a little time to grow and fill out. Once you feel you are at the limit of what you own then you will know what you want.

[KevUU]

What he said ^

Good advice that, Stargazing00.

[jasonp]

If you have any Astro society's or anyone near you from SGL I'm sure they would be more than happy to let you try an eyepiece in your scope.

That's what I did with mine before, so I had a goo idea where my hard earned penny's where going.

[John]

While I do advise not rushing into purchasing better eyepieces until you have had some experience with the scope, I don't feel the supplied 3 element eyepieces allow the scope to perform to it's full potential.

I believe that the eyepiece is half the optical system that delivers the images to your eye and, as such, needs to be as free of aberrations as possible. The eyepieces supplied with most scopes just don't do this particularly well (and, yes, I've tried many of them !).

There is no need to blow big bucks on eyepieces but well made £30-£50 plossls and orthoscopics will allow your scope to perform much closer to what it's optical quality, state of collimation and cooling, and the seeing conditions will allow.

I have a couple of the 3 element (standard issue) eyepieces and occasionally I pop them in a scope to see how they fare on a challenging object. The results are invariably an instant reduction in contrast, sharpness and resolution. Light scatter and ghosting is noticeably increased too.

Decent plossls and orthoscopics on the other hand (and some other well known low cost but good designs) can run even premium priced eyepieces pretty close in performance, especially in the central part of the field of view.

Thats how I see it, anyhow

[KevUU]

I do agree with that John - I was very happy once I got my 30mm and 8mm Vixen NPLs, especially the big wide 30mm with good eye relief - but I don't think that takes anything away from the viewpoint that you should get more familiar than just a first light with your first scope before trying to decide how to upgrade, that's all. Do you want a better 25mm, or a wider 30mm, or a tighter potentially more contrasty 20 or 22? I would advise taking the time to form an opinion of what needs improving, before trying to decide how to do so. Only my 2p'th of course, and I am vastly less experienced and knowledgeable than John

[AstroGeek99]

That's about the same as what I saw tonight, tomorrow I will focus on it more and try to get a better view

[Hootsitabernacle]

set the scope up just as light was fading and then BOOM!...the clouds rooooled in. I have ordered a barlow but wont get hat until nearer the end of the month. I have also been advised to check out BST's but the website is empty...doing his books so it seems. With regards to my picture..i had a look at others and it seems mine is abou the same as others posted..so maybe i should be more patient?

Gordon

[Lorne]

If you get along to any of the CSOG meets I'd (and anyone else) be happy to let you try my eyepieces in your scope to see the different views you can get.

[Hootsitabernacle]

i will try to do that Lorne

Gordon

[tibbz2]

I have started seeing some detail with my 25mm now... 10mm shows more detail but the quality isn't great. My 6mm gives me 200x mag, and on a good night it gives amazing views, however I can't track it very well yet due to the speed it moves across the FOV!