trying to quick

[look out hes above u]

Hi peeps, ive been out for my very 1st time tonight after getting my cpc 925 celestron 2 weeks ago and well happy with seing jupiter up close, then I tried to see orion nebula and alnitak which just looked white blurred dot, couldnt focus on it.i want to start seing nebulas and gases, am I just trying too much too fast which I think I am.do I need to upgrade some stuff, all I have is the 925 and about 5 ep ,40mm 17mm 8mm and 6mm which I got in a set for 125 quid, do I need better to see more, pls help....oh and ps.is there any clubs or society in hertfordshire I can join, I think I can get on better if I could see other people setting up and viewing the sky, thx again, im loving this hobby, makes me angry and happy at the same time lol

[Andy_E]

Your setup should be more than adequate for the Orion nebula. Just a quick question... were you looking for the Orion neb' around Alnitak? Alnitak is the home of the flame and horse head nebula... challenging targets for any scope! The Orion nebula is a bit further down; as a naked eye object it's the middle 'star' in the sword.

PS: GREAT idea trying to find a local astronomy group!

[baggywrinkle]

Many people are initially dissapointed by DSO's. Use a lower mag EP your 17 or 40mm to get a wider field of view. Focus first on a star, in fact if you had focus on Jupiter it would be the same until you change ep's, then look at the Orion Nebula. It should be fairly bright in your scope. Many DSO have to be viewed with an averted rather than direct eye and will be greyish to white misty affairs. It is only with timed photography that their structures and colours come out.

[look out hes above u]

Thx andy, yeah I tried both lol but the orion one I only could see the star out of focus, what ep should I be using for best effect t see the nebula,

[Andy_E]

As above your 40mm would probably give you the best views. Once you've had a nice wide view, try upping to the 17mm to try and pick out a little detail.

If you want to start getting in to nebulae, m78 and M1 (crab nebula) are in good positions at this time of year as well. Again, your telescope is more than capable of picking these objects up. Your 17mm may be best on these (after finding with the 40mm)

[look out hes above u]

Many people are initially dissapointed by DSO's. Use a lower mag EP your 17 or 40mm to get a wider field of view. Focus first on a star, in fact if you had focus on Jupiter it would be the same until you change ep's, then look at the Orion Nebula. It should be fairly bright in your scope. Many DSO have to be viewed with an averted rather than direct eye and will be greyish to white misty affairs. It is only with timed photography that their structures and colours come out.

thx baggy, yeah photography is the road im looking to go down and I know its a long road, lol.i got to find them b4 I can take a pic, haha.might be a silly question but what is a averted

[baggywrinkle]

Averted means not looking directly at the object but slightly to the side. Human eyes are less effective at direct vision than peripheral...hence the old expression ' I didn't see it coming. It was coming straight at me...'

[ronin]

Eyepiece wise I guess the 8mm and 6mm will get little use, the magnification will generally be too high, the 8mm will give around 300x which may be useful on Mars if conditions are in your favour (once a year). Give the 6mm away for all the use you will get from it.

A eyepiece kit is fine but on the scope you have you really only have use for the longer focal length offerings. Assuming you have plossls then better plossls are Vixen and TV, not_plossls are BST Starguiders and Celeston X-Cels.

Where in Hertfordshire are you - live at the North end and Herts is fairly big. Little point says Letchworth Club if you are down Stanmore way. Central Herts try the Hertford Club, they meet close to the QE2 hospital which is in WGC on Wednesday nights once a month. Thought there was/is a club at Cheshunt. Letchworth meet again once a month, but they also have a monthly observing night on a Friday/Saturday at Standalone Farm. The 2 occasions are seperate for you could join and go observing only.

Think there is one around Rickmansworth.