Quick, get the scope out !

[Stu1smartcookie]

As someone who has changed his gear more often than I care to remember , I have seemingly drifted to a visual only set up . Yesterday I had the massive good fortune to buy a skywatcher 200p dob ( my second one I stupidly sold the first!) for a really low price . The scope is immaculate and last night the skies cleared for the first time in three weeks ! So , armed with my newest purchase I nervously ( it was nervous excitement.. not bad for a 58 year old ) plonked the dob outside and used the lowest power EP ( a 2” ... 28mm ) and pointed it at the Plaides .Wow !  This view will be in my memory forever ! Crystal clear white diamonds sprinkled on a black carpet .I’ve viewed it many times before but this time seemed different . Maybe  it was the fact that it was the first clear night for ages , maybe it was new scope syndrome .. or maybe it was because there was no extensive set up time , with no polar aligning , no cables to plug in ! It was probably all of those. I then quickly set up my “new”( bought from a fellow SGL member) 102R star quest with its lovely lightweight mount .. set up time 5 minutes , and viewed the same cluster .. amazing clarity ! I even got to see a few meteors which were pleasingly slow moving. 
Sorry for the long post but I am so enthused by last night . 
Also , a big shout out for buying second hand ... as I have found recently , it’s not the minefield you may think it is as people tend to look after their gear . 
I hope everyone gets clear skies . Oh and thanks for reading .
Stu

[Moonshed]

Your comments regarding your amazing view of the Pleiades struck a chord, reminding me of my own similar experiences. I have spent the last 3 years delving into the photography side of things, with mixed results, and you have reminded me of what I have always felt astronomy is all about, the simple pleasure of looking through the eyepiece and marvelling at beauty of the stars.

Edited December 13, 2020 by Moonshed

[Stu]

Nice post @Stu1smartcookie, keeping it simple is often the way to more enjoyable observing. I quite often choose my Heritage 150p on a tripod or dob for just though reasons. I was looking at the Pleiades too last night, first time for a while and was as lovely as ever.

[mark81]

Reading reports like this is great... I can't remember the last time it was clear here,(like many of us) so hearing someone else's excitement is very welcome!

Mark

[Luke]

You're not the only one who regrets selling a solid tube dob. They are made for UK weather! For a period I tried doing astrophotography with a C11 - that was kinda the opposite of the dob in convenience. Such a pain to set up. And so demotivating if the clouds rolled in swiftly after all that setup (I had no obsy, alas).

With the dob, if you think it might be clear, just pop it outside. Cloudy? Just bring it back in. Very little hassle. Easy to move.

I was thrilled to grab a bit of observing last night with my dob. I wasn't sure if it would be clear, but it was for a bit. Out went the dob. The Orion Nebula looked fantastic considering how low it was early in the night. We took in Pleiades too, always a welcome sight!

I joked to my wife during the session that I would observe Pleiades in the finder we couldn't quite see all of it at the eyepiece. Actually, it was decent in the finder! 😄

Edited December 13, 2020 by Luke

[Mark at Beaufort]

@Stu1smartcookiea very enjoyable read. I have owned many scopes over the years and I really enjoy the quick grab and go sessions when the sky clears for a short while.

Last night I set up my 6" Newt on an AZ5 mount and had a wonderful session for a few hours. I started with the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction and then took in a number of DSOs.

I agree that a 200mm Dob is a brilliant scope for easy set up and you can take in so many objects visually.

[Stu1smartcookie]

All lovely replies... it seems so many of us are alike . Of course we are governed by our , shall we say . Inclement weather ( putting it politely ) . Maybe that’s what makes us a unique bunch . We were so spoilt earlier in the year when the sky seemed to be clear every night . But , conversely the bad weather actually makes us more enthusiastic to get the scope out . By the way , as I write this ... it’s raining !!! Zzzz

[GlenH]

Hello

I had first light last night with my Refractor I bought in 2014. Despite having a garden awash with unwanted streetlights ( Bortle 8 ) and never having dark adaptation, some of the objects I observed were a delight, seeing was incredibly good too with no distortions or twinkling. First target was Albireo, so beautiful. My 150mm 'frac' gave a breath taking view of the orange Albireo A with the Sapphire companion. Scanning the Cygnus area of the sky revealed many open clusters. Then it was time to observe Andromeda, the nucleus was visable with direct vision and with averted vision I could make out some structure. Might be time to buy a DSLR, what I saw last night has inspired me.

CS

Glen

[Tiny Clanger]

An ad. slogan might be :  "Just dob and go !"

We had clear skies for a few hours around here last night too : I've sort of got in the habit of making my final view of the night the Pleiades , a beautiful sight and an easy consolation prize if other intended targets elude me. I managed to snatch a brief look at them just before light cloud drove me indoors.

Heather

[Ande]

Damn! I thought I was the only one with the Pleiades fetish 😀.  Currently I’m without a telescope, but couldn’t resist getting out into the garden last night armed with my finder scope. First port of call was the Pleiades. Ever since I was a boy, I have always searched the heavens trying to seek her out. It was a beautiful sight. The conditions seemed super clear.  Was even able to get a tiny taste of the Orion Nebula too.  The Milky Way was well placed, but, unfortunately, my finder scope struggled to present it well. I have a ridiculous street lamp overlooking the garden that washes out so much of the night sky.
 

I was rather hoping to buy another telescope this month, as an early Xmas present to myself but I had no idea that COVID had managed to decimate stocks in quite the way it has. The shelves are pretty much bare. I keep scouring the classifieds, but very little seems to be coming up lately. Just need to exercise some patience I guess.  Sure was nice to see a clear sky though

Edited December 13, 2020 by Ande

[jacobingonzo]

Even with a dumb elephant of a 12" dob I have managed to get the set up and manoeuvring down to a reasonably quick fine art now- I made a DIY trolly arrangement so I can wheel the big bug er  about - so tonight I managed a couple of shortish sessions , between the clouds-even managed to pull it inside sharpish during a sharp shower- a little rain on the primary but it dried off by the time it was hauled out an hour later.  But the seeing was the best it has been up here in Cumbria for some time- managed a pleasant half hour observing Mars. Im just glad I plumbed for the big dob, hoping it will last me some time.

 

J

Edited December 14, 2020 by jacobingonzo

[Louis D]

On 13/12/2020 at 02:46, Stu1smartcookie said:

I even got to see a few meteors which were pleasingly slow moving. 

More than likely they were satellites.

[Stu1smartcookie]

1 minute ago, Louis D said:

More than likely they were satellites.

lol if they were then whoever owns them have two less satellites as they burnt up

  

[Louis D]

7 hours ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

lol if they were then whoever owns them have two less satellites as they burnt up

  

Were you watching them "burn up" through the eyepiece or naked eye?  I took you to mean through the eyepiece, which would be impossible to do.  I've never seen a slow moving meteor naked eye.  Perhaps y'all have different meteor showers there than here in Texas.  The only thing equivalent to a meteor I've seen that was slow moving was the Space Shuttle returning from orbit over Texas.  It took several minutes to cross the sky.

Edited December 15, 2020 by Louis D

[Moonshed]

6 hours ago, Stu1smartcookie said:

lol if they were then whoever owns them have two less satellites as they burnt up

  

I take it that when you referred to meteors that were “pleasingly slow moving” you were speaking relatively. Of course meteors are only visible for a fraction of a second, but some are significantly slower moving than others. 

[Stu1smartcookie]

15 hours ago, Moonshed said:

I take it that when you referred to meteors that were “pleasingly slow moving” you were speaking relatively. Of course meteors are only visible for a fraction of a second, but some are significantly slower moving than others. 

Er yep ... lol . As we know , some seem to be very fast whist others seem to "burn" for a longer time . I will take Louis comment as light heartedly as it was hopefully intended . 

 

 

Edited December 16, 2020 by Stu1smartcookie

[Stu1smartcookie]

19 hours ago, Louis D said:

Were you watching them "burn up" through the eyepiece or naked eye?  I took you to mean through the eyepiece, which would be impossible to do.  I've never seen a slow moving meteor naked eye.  Perhaps y'all have different meteor showers there than here in Texas.  The only thing equivalent to a meteor I've seen that was slow moving was the Space Shuttle returning from orbit over Texas.  It took several minutes to cross the sky.

yes with the unaided eye ... That space shuttle experience must have been fantastic . I actually saw one of the space shuttles at Stansted Airport many years ago as it was piggy backed on a boeing 747 . A brilliant sight .

 

[Stu1smartcookie]

UPDATE ... Had a lovely clear night ( again ) .. a bit dewey but i managed to grab a photo with my phone of the Orion nebula ( 20mm EP , 200mm Dob ) 

The photo is unedited , which is how i like to see stuff ( although i will do some tidying up on the image later ) . Aren't phone cameras great now ? 

Stu 

Edited December 16, 2020 by Stu1smartcookie

[Capt Slog]

Your comment about actually looking at the object instead of taking it's photo reminds me of the people who spend their whole time recording every event they go to using their camera/phone.  They never get to see anything live 

And this..

 

 

[Stu1smartcookie]

11 minutes ago, Capt Slog said:

Your comment about actually looking at the object instead of taking it's photo reminds me of the people who spend their whole time recording every event they go to using their camera/phone.  They never get to see anything live 

And this..

 

 

lol ... the downside to having good cams on a phone , for sure