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Hello from West midlands


les 58

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Hi , my name is Les and for a while now i have been increasingly interested and even fascinated with all that is around this rock we call home. 

 After pondering the question of telescopes for a beginner such as me ( 56 year old man with to many questions about the world)  i finally decided to take the plunge.  I have now purchased a used Skywatcher 150p on an EQ3-2 mount along with various extras which include some good beginners books , sky chart and planisphere.  There is also a phillips ccd  camera so maybe i will be able to start some simple imaging in time ??. 

 With a little time and help from our great british weather i hope to start observing soon now , so brace yourselves for questions folks .

I do intend to visit the local astronomy club  with the  view to joining but i have noticed there web site is very out of date and lacking recent posts so i will let you know how i get on . 

Just to let you know i live in a city ( wolverhampton )  where i know i will experience some degree of light pollution but i have a caravan  in rural wales which may be better from spring  to autumn  .  Between the two sites is one of the best spots in the country , the Long Mynd  which i believe has milky way classification so time permitting i could be spoiled for choice.

Ps , thanks for all the info i have already gained from this web site folks . 

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Welcome to SGL!

My eye caught your reference to the Long Mynd...it's a beautiful spot indeed. Spent many years walking on it and volunteering for the National Trust there. There has been a fair amount of work done to designate the place as a Dark Sky Discovery Site, and with the Shropshire part-night lighting schemes, even better after midnight.

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Hi Les, 

I remember the first time I took my 114p outside... it felt very strange and it was over a year before I realised the whole of the end cap on the scope should be removed (I had only been using the small hole in the cap) You have great fun and challenges ahead of you doing this hobby.  I am located in south Birmingham, joining a club is a great idea.. I'm sure there is a club over that way who go to Cosford for meetings?? 

My biggest challenge is to find a dark site close to home, and to stop buying bargains on astro sites, and to stop winning the 'bad astronomer of the week' award!!!

Good luck, clear skies, this site has some great advice on it for all things astro...

Pat

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If you stick at this and if you ever upgrade to a goto. Then one small thing to remember:- Set your own custom location.

The nearest one to you that might be in the data base will be Birmingham. The possible problem is that occasionally people see Birmingham and select it. Often it is Birmingham Alabama, and that really upsets a goto when you are in the UK. Have known it to happen.

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Wow, thanks for all the welcome messages and words of encouragement.  I have just set up and balanced my scope then got my first look at the late afternoon  moon  using 25mm eyepiece and x2 barlow and moon filter and i am amazed at the detail through such modest equipment.  :shocked:

now to check for early evening planets or anything else i can find for my first evening of observation. 

cheers all

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Hi Les,   Happy New Year and welcome to SGL - a good place to start off 2015 (ok maybe not THE best, Camelot's HQ would be a better one!).  It sounds as though you've got a few outings planned already, though I'm sure even Wolverhampton must have SOME spots that are useable!  I live not far from Leicester city centre, but there are a couple of places where the dreaded orange glow isn't totally overwhelming and a trip out into the countryside not too many miles away yields the Milky Way on clear nights. Enjoy your scope, enjoy the hobby and enjoy the company both on here and in-the-field.

Clear skies,

Paul - The BSG   

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