US vs UK Telescope sizes explained

[Swoop1]

5 hours ago, cletrac1922 said:

Hi Guys

Just picked up on this thread

Seems to be same in Australia

Down here average house is detached, on a 600 sq meter block, houses around 32 squares, with entertaining areas, pools, off street double car accommodation 

Most houses built last 30 years, also have 4 bedrooms, and average size of bedrooms are 4 metres by 4 meters, and incorporates built in wardrobes

Where I am, we live on a 2000 sq meter block, with frontage 60 meters, and 120 metres in depth

The equivalent of 20 terrace houses in the UK

Even though marginally below Tropic of Capricorn, had light pollution free skies as well

This morning when leaving home for work around 4-30am, had Jupiter on western horizon, Saturn was trailing behind, and quarter moon, all most overhead

Currently Jupiter is visible above eastern horizon, after sunset, and Saturn rises about an hour later

Around midnight, both overhead

I have 10" Dob, as well as ED80 on EQ5 mount, which store inside house without a problem

John

 

  

You can go right off people can't you............

[Swoop1]

I think another factor in the way things happen in The States is, Americans network far better than us Right Pondians.

In a previous life, i spent a number of years as a cycle patrol police officer- day in, day out astride the saddle of my Smith and Wesson patrol mountain bike. This was proper bike patrol, full on cycle equipped and fast, not the traditional view of Dixon of Dock green in his tunic and police helmet pootling around on his sit up and beg shopping type bike.

Whilst researching effective tactics, I discovered that America had an established cycle patrol ethos, bith police, paremedics and even fire prevention. There were organisations in existance to promote the tactics and train the practitioners. I joined opne of these organisations and in 2007 was invited to their annual conference in Baton Rouge. This was attended by hundreds of police officers and paramedics and was a fantastic event.

We tried to set this up in the UK. After a couple of years it had to fold due to lack of interest.

My point is that in America, people are more receptive to this networking and, networking is how you get to go hands on with bigger and better kit. Going hands on demonstrates the benefits and makes someone more likely to splash out big bucks on that extra couple of inches of apperture.

[James]

Everytime I suggest to my wife that a bigger telescope or an observatory is a good idea she asks "Oh yes? And how often will you be able to use it?"

So, no bigger scope or observatory yet...  American and Australian astronomers must face the same pressure?? Surely?

James

[John]

1 hour ago, James said:

Everytime I suggest to my wife that a bigger telescope or an observatory is a good idea she asks "Oh yes? And how often will you be able to use it?"

So, no bigger scope or observatory yet...  American and Australian astronomers must face the same pressure?? Surely?

James

Is there a correlation between the costs of divorce in various countries and scope size ?

[Macavity]

CERN (The LHC and all that!) recently offered a "Dedicated Grant" scheme
for Ph.D. students! The "salary" is CHF 3704 pcm for living in Geneva... and
CHF 1852 at your "Home Institute"? But that underlines real differences in
"cost of living" around the world? Relative salary is an important factor. 😉

https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/index

The City-related costs are not so simple... and there are (to me) the odd
surprise! It goes without saying that Texas is bigger / cheaper [teasing] 😋 

 

Edited June 27, 2019 by Macavity

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

12 hours ago, Swoop1 said:

You can go right off people can't you............

At least us cold, wet and cramped Brits don't need to check for spiders under the toilet seat...

[SIDO]

The US population is 50/50 with 50% residing in the major cities and the rest living in rural areas and the major city land mass combined would not fill the state of Texas so massive open countryside with way less LP and an acre or more the average land parcel in the countryside mine being .86.

People who have larger gardens and more room for outbuildings and less LP would indeed be more inclined to larger apertures...Their could be other input criteria but my guess is that these are the core tenants.

                           Freddie.

 

Edited June 27, 2019 by SIDO

[Louis D]

11 hours ago, John said:

Is there a correlation between the costs of divorce in various countries and scope size ?

If I recall a 20 year old story correctly, the American who wrote a then popular planetarium program got a divorce.  He lost the house along with his hand build observatory, and his hand built Dob's structure.  All he got out of the divorce was his hand figured 16" (possibly larger) primary mirror.  He ended up living in an apartment/flat.

[Louis D]

10 hours ago, Macavity said:

CERN (The LHC and all that!) recently offered a "Dedicated Grant" scheme
for Ph.D. students! The "salary" is CHF 3704 pcm for living in Geneva... and
CHF 1852 at your "Home Institute"? But that underlines real differences in
"cost of living" around the world? Relative salary is an important factor. 😉

https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/index

The City-related costs are not so simple... and there are (to me) the odd
surprise! It goes without saying that Texas is bigger / cheaper [teasing] 😋 

 

It would be interesting to know how those costs of living are calculated.  Suppose the reference for a house was a 3500 square foot detached single family home on a one acre lot.  Such a thing doesn't even exist in Manhattan, yet they abound throughout Texas.

[SIDO]

12 hours ago, James said:

Everytime I suggest to my wife that a bigger telescope or an observatory is a good idea she asks "Oh yes? And how often will you be able to use it?"

So, no bigger scope or observatory yet...  American and Australian astronomers must face the same pressure?? Surely?

James

I read your post over several times James but can't quite figure out wich pressure you are referring,  I will assume here you are referring to weather in the UK and your wife is just providing great advice 😉  

[Louis D]

16 hours ago, ollypenrice said:

Really? What happens to them?

Olly

The siding disintegrates being made of MDF, the poorly tiled showers start leaking causing water damage, the roofing needs replacing every 20 years due to use of composition shingles and wind/hail damage, double pane windows lose their seal, fog, and need replaced, foundations (slabs in particular) sag leading to wall cracks and misaligned doors, ceilings sag because joists are too far apart, PEX plumbing has a finite lifetime, cheap flooring is used throughout and needs replaced within 10 years, exterior paint needs redone within 7 years because such a poor grade was used, etc.

[ollypenrice]

7 minutes ago, Louis D said:

The siding disintegrates being made of MDF, the poorly tiled showers start leaking causing water damage, the roofing needs replacing every 20 years due to use of composition shingles and wind/hail damage, double pane windows lose their seal, fog, and need replaced, foundations (slabs in particular) sag leading to wall cracks and misaligned doors, ceilings sag because joists are too far apart, PEX plumbing has a finite lifetime, cheap flooring is used throughout and needs replaced within 10 years, exterior paint needs redone within 7 years because such a poor grade was used, etc.

Blimey, has anybody considered building houses properly???

Olly

[JamesF]

8 minutes ago, ollypenrice said:

Blimey, has anybody considered building houses properly???

Here in Blighty we appear to be unlearning how to do it.  My house was built in phases, probably as the farmers who owned it became wealthier, and we've extended it too, so some bits of it are new whilst others are 200 or even as much as 400 years old.  By comparison I am told that the life expectancy of a new build house in the UK is now only 50 years.

And that's despite the bizarre demands of the building inspectors to over-engineer just about everything.  We poured the slab for our barn conversion this week (I can use "we" in its strict sense, as the builder asked if my son and I would help out -- twenty tonnes of concrete is a lot to shift before it goes off   The barn is built on solid rock that clearly hasn't gone anywhere in hundreds of years, but despite this the building inspector insisted that 12mm steel reinforcing mesh should be buried in the concrete.  Quite what he thinks might happen that requires it to be reinforced I really don't know.  Rats burrowing in through the rock from outside and eating the rock away from underneath, perhaps?

James

[ollypenrice]

38 minutes ago, JamesF said:

Here in Blighty we appear to be unlearning how to do it.  My house was built in phases, probably as the farmers who owned it became wealthier, and we've extended it too, so some bits of it are new whilst others are 200 or even as much as 400 years old.  By comparison I am told that the life expectancy of a new build house in the UK is now only 50 years.

And that's despite the bizarre demands of the building inspectors to over-engineer just about everything.  We poured the slab for our barn conversion this week (I can use "we" in its strict sense, as the builder asked if my son and I would help out -- twenty tonnes of concrete is a lot to shift before it goes off   The barn is built on solid rock that clearly hasn't gone anywhere in hundreds of years, but despite this the building inspector insisted that 12mm steel reinforcing mesh should be buried in the concrete.  Quite what he thinks might happen that requires it to be reinforced I really don't know.  Rats burrowing in through the rock from outside and eating the rock away from underneath, perhaps?

James

OTT, maybe, but better than throwing it away after 30 years?

Olly

[Gina]

Rats can eat through concrete but steel seems to stop them.

[James]

2 hours ago, SIDO said:

I read your post over several times James but can't quite figure out wich pressure you are referring,  I will assume here you are referring to weather in the UK and your wife is just providing great advice 😉  

Yes, that's exactly right   

[Louis D]

On 27/06/2019 at 16:27, ollypenrice said:

Blimey, has anybody considered building houses properly???

Olly

Like everything manufactured today, they're built to a price point.  Competing builders cut costs where it's not visible to the average home buyer.

Here's another couple of examples: wall studs on 24" centers instead of 16" and use of chip board (OSB) instead of tongue and groove boards for the roof.  After reroofing our house last year, it became apparent that OSB won't withstand too many reroofings because the shingle nails spall the underside of the boards.  Eventually, there will be severely weakened sections requiring board replacement.  It's a sad day when plywood is considered a premium roofing material.

Edited June 30, 2019 by Louis D
Corrected stud width from 18" to 16"

[Louis D]

2 hours ago, Gina said:

Rats can eat through concrete but steel seems to stop them.

Apparently only when improperly cured.  However, they can chew through aluminum with reckless abandon.

[Guest chaz2b]

I live in a first floor flat with three bedrooms, as I’m the only occupier you would think I had enough space for a large scope! 

I have a 10” Orion intelliscope and two 8” SCTs, but transporting all that outside and then round the back of three sets of flats is quite a challenge, then there’s the fear of any of it going walkabouts when my backs turned!   It takes a few trips to get setup, then there’s the annoyance of one or more of my neighbours turning their lights on when I do.

A small portable grab n’ go scope is a boon.

chaz