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MOON........WOW


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Put the scope out to cool, got the bins out to look at the moon as it was just over the rooftops , it was stunning, then couldn't resist using the scope...hee-hee....used the 25mm and it was amazing, my son came out to have a nosey and he was like 'wow how cool is that'....then I put the 10mm in.....this is the closest I've ever looked at the moon and was blown away with the view. Even though people don't rate the basic 10mm eyepiece the 250px comes with It took my breath away...the moon wouldnt all fit in view but WOW , I could see the dimples of the craters on the outer edge, the impact craters , it was brilliant...

Then my wife and daughter came out to have a look, even they were amazed at what they were seeing..

Back indoors now , till later.......

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Look for Venus, Jupiter and Mars too in the early morning in the east. With clear skies you can see them easily even in the morning sky. All really close together, and Venus is so bright you could almost see it through thin clouds too. Jupiter will look great in any scope. Venus will be a brilliant globe, and Mars will be a small red spot. They all look great too in the same binocular field too.

Glad you enjoyed the view of the moon, but strangely when the moon is full or near to full it's not the best time to make out details as the brightness is just too much. More detailed views of all the craters can be had in the crescent and gibbous stages close to the terminator as suggested by philj rather than nearer to the full moon phase.

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Yeah, it was the Moon at around 170x that really got me hooked on astronomy and was my first 'wow' moment, well that and seeing the rings of Saturn. I like to observe the lunar surface at around 200x or more at the moment. For some reason these days I'm often drawn to the Mare Imbrium region and the Bay of Rainbows. One of the main reasons I want a bino is to view the Moon with them. 

Mare Imbrium (Virtual Moon Atlas)

imbrium2_zpsxpjyxggo.jpg

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The moon is a stunning object and much under rated. I have to be honest and admit it took me a while to appreciate the views.

As you follow it through the lunar month there is always a new delight.

The Virtual Moon Atlas mentioned by Dave is a great piece of free software. 

To give your lunar viewing some structure you might like to embark on the Lunar 100, a list of 100 features graded in difficulty from very easy to very tricky.

Good luck and enjoy.

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I was out yesterday evening getting snatches of the moon as the thin clouds went scudding by under a stiff breeze. Enough gaps though to get a stunning view. WOW indeed!

I'd like to get to know the moon better, and I had a quick look at the link that Dave posted. It looks as it's only a Windows program. Anyone know of an equivalent Android app?

Ian

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I was out yesterday evening getting snatches of the moon as the thin clouds went scudding by under a stiff breeze. Enough gaps though to get a stunning view. WOW indeed!

I'd like to get to know the moon better, and I had a quick look at the link that Dave posted. It looks as it's only a Windows program. Anyone know of an equivalent Android app?

Ian

VMA will work on Linux, Mac and Windows but AFAIK there is no Android version. There is Grzegorz Rakoczy's Moon Atlas 3D. 

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.grzyboo.MoonAtlas3D&hl=en

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The moon is a stunning object and much under rated. I have to be honest and admit it took me a while to appreciate the views.

 

As you follow it through the lunar month there is always a new delight.

 

The Virtual Moon Atlas mentioned by Dave is a great piece of free software. 

 

To give your lunar viewing some structure you might like to embark on the Lunar 100, a list of 100 features graded in difficulty from very easy to very tricky.

 

Good luck and enjoy.

I agree - I can spend hours just looking at the details as they change from night to night, not very good for my AP but hey its all "astronomy" and if you enjoy doing it then why not.

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Yes the moon is impressive but, and here is a big BUT that I have only just discovered - I put a pair of binoviewers into my scope the other night to look at the moon, it is the first time I have used them properly, and WOW.  It is impressive with one eye, with two it is unbelievable and I have never been one to sit and stare at the moon for long previously - you get a real stereo type view and it is so comfortable with both eyes you can just sit there and pick out so much detail while you float over the surface.

If you want to do lunar then I seriously suggest you try binoviewing.  I wont do it on anything else, perhaps planets sometimes, but the moon is incredible with them.  Mine weren't expensive ones - just the William Optics ones with the supplied EPs.

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Having the same scope and eyepiece, I can relate to your joy! I'll stick my neck on the heretic's block for a moment and say that the 10mm EP isn't that bad at all. Okay it's not tack sharp and loses clarity towards the edge, but it's far from being unusable as I've heard some say it is. I'm currently in the market for one or maybe two EPs in the 8-12mm range and I've been playing around with this 10mm to get a feel for what I want. I'm finding it very usable indeed. I got a super view of M2 with it a few weeks ago.

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Quickmap is an online map that goes as deep as 0.5 metres per pixel. You need an internet connection to use it.

In this view you see boulders that have rolled down inside Huygens' Rille (rimae Huygens).

post-38669-0-96129900-1445968811_thumb.p

The most beautiful view is the WAC Nearside (big shadows) texture, but that doesn't zoom in this deep.

"Nomenclature" turns on the labels.

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Many, many years ago I was on the Isle of Wight and one evening I was at Blackgang Chine and they had one of those pay to look telescopes. Looked at the moon through that and was completely blown away by the detail and relief, especially along the terminator.

This got me into astronomy.

It is amazing that the moon is taken for granted by so many on Earth when, if you take the time to look at it even through moderate magnification, you see how dramatic and beautiful it looks. It never ceases to amaze me when I look at it.

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.......... people don't rate the basic 10mm eyepiece the 250px comes with It took my breath away...the moon wouldnt all fit in view but WOW.......

The supplied SUPER 10mm  will give everyone their first Wow! as in most cases, this is the first eyepiece they will have ever used,  its just a standard eyepiece that does the job. I was the same, and my Mrs couldn't believe the Moon could appear so close and detailed!

But the fact that many folk recommend you exchange it  is because  (1)  Its the highest magnification eyepiece, and you want/could do better? (2)  there is something better out there that is more comfortable to use, having better eye-relief, so your eye lashes are not sweeping the eye lens, and the field of view  could be  wider than that afforded by the 10mm with its affective field of view of 50°, and lastly, depending on the optical quality of the eyepiece, better quality images too, no discolouration!

My first upgrade, the  8mm Starguider replaced my SUPER 10. The SUPER is still in my eyepiece case, but rarely ever used. But if using the supplied eyepieces is all you require / need, you could save yourself a fortune and any headaches in searching for something else, as everyone has their favourites and recommendations, as you will surely find out?

The supplied 25mm is a decent eyepiece too, but for me, just not wide enough to take in the vastness of M31 Andromeda, when viewed from a darker site. The 25mm BST is still too narrow a view( 60°afov) so I rely on the Skywatcher Panaview.  At 70°afov its fine for my needs, but for some folk with their +80° afov eyepieces, the  Panaview 70° will seem too tight for their needs.

Happy hunting. 

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I originally purchased these Celestron Omni Plossls and Barlow for lunar viewing as they could give me a good range of magnifications from 80x to around 200x. They are not particularly expensive and good quality but I wanted to view the Moon with more than the 50° view a Plossl could give me and more like I was getting with a Celestron Kellner I have.

IMG_20151029_181514_zpsnxa4zoqs.jpg

So I got a 10mm Celestron Luminos and discovered that I could add a Barlow directly threaded into it to achieve a magnification for lunar viewing that didn't exceed my Mak's resolution limit of 241x.

CelestronLuminos1box%20-%20Copy_zpsr4c2l

LuminosPlusBarlowElement_zpspklz2xvr.jpg

Inevitably I upgraded to a TeleVue 19mm Panoptic and a 16mm T5 Nagler to be used in combination with my Powermate. As the Luminos is a tad heavy at 3/4 of a pound in weight.

TV%20Pan%2019mm%20%20Nag%20T5_zpst0qdcsm

The Nagler (on the right) has given me the best lunar views to date, it has the same 82° AFOV as the Luminos but is much better quality. I have two 19mm Panoptics I plan to use in a binoviewer predominantly for viewing the Moon. Until I get the bigger SCT I will use them on my 102mm Mak but I'm a bit concerned about the all up weight of the combined Pan's and a bino being over 2 lb on a small Mak. I'm not sure what I can upgrade the SW 10mm EP's with for the bino. I have an 11mm TeleVue Plossl, so technically I'll only need one other. 

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