Spectacular lunar seeing conditions !

[John]

If you can, get out and observe the Moon

I've just had a short session before supper with my 12 inch dobsonian and the seeing conditions seem to be outstanding currently.

I've been observing the concentric crater Hesiodus A again, which I reported on last night:

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/374414-more-unforecast-clear-skies/

The image was so sharp that I just kept piling on the magnification as my jaw dropped. Eventually I was using the 2mm (!!!) setting of the Nagler zoom for 795x and the crater looked stunning.

Gassendi, it's rilles plus the central peaks are also really spectacular !

Also picked up the more challenging concentric crater Marth. The crater itself is 7 km in diameter and the interior ring probably 3-4km so very small targets so the high magnifications that seem to be working just now helped a lot.

I don't know how long it will remain clear and steady here but I'm enjoying it while it lasts

A good evening for spotting Plato craterlets and the rille on the floor of the Valles Alpes I think.

 

[globular]

Cloudy here currently but I'm hopeful for later....

Will Hesiodus A still be viewable then?

[Saganite]

Both refractors have had good sessions on Monday and Tuesday, so I also have the 12" Dob out tonight.

[johninderby]

I’m waiting for the haze to clear. Anything over about 60x is a waste of time at the moment. Hopefully will clear later. 🙏🏼

[shropshire lad]

29 minutes ago, globular said:

Cloudy here currently but I'm hopeful for later....

Will Hesiodus A still be viewable then?

Me too 

 

[scarp15]

Was meant to be cloudy, its not, moon appears very sharp, 8" dob on the way out.

[Craney]

I'm trying to image the Apollo Craters   (Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins).   Yes, Moon looks sharp and crisp.

[Dark Vader]

It's looking very good at 337x with barely a wobble (technical term, I believe 😁) most time so far has been spent on Gassendi with the rilles and small craters on the floor very clear.

Andy

[John]

Doh ! - very thin and wispy clouds have thickened up so I can just about see the Moon and nothing else.

I'll give it some time to see if things clear up again.

Sirius split was the best I've had for ages. Could do with some more of that !

 

[Saganite]

The seeing is not that good here tonight, about 90x is sharp but not any higher. There is also cloud moving in so I may have to be thankful for Monday and Tuesday.

[globular]

1 hour ago, globular said:

Cloudy here currently but I'm hopeful for later....

Will Hesiodus A still be viewable then?

It's teasing me by keeping 2 1/2 hours ahead...

[Dark Vader]

Just come in now, thin high cloud causing a halo effect around the moon.

Before that, I tried the 2.25x Barlow on a 5mm BST. Probably pushed scope and EP beyond their useable maximum at 540x. It looked better than expected although quite dim. Saw Hesiodus A, a quick look at the Straight wall and back to Gassendi again but it looked better with the barlowed Hyperion IV zoom at 337x. 

No sign of the Pup tonight though, but Sirius was quite close to one of those pesky streetlights.

Whisky o'clock I think 🥃

Andy

Edited March 24, 2021 by Dark Vader
Typo, fat fingers!

[John]

The cloud has thinned quite a bit here so lunar observing is still going on.

Can't see too many stars though.

 

[Stu]

Sounds amazing John! Quite cloudy here, and feeling rather tired having done a 9km walk this evening so no observing for me. Enjoy!

[John]

Thanks for all the feedback folks.

Frankly, these are the best lunar views I've ever had

The seeing is still steady and the misty clouds have thinned a lot so very high magnifications are bearing fruit again. 795x on Gassendi - I've never seen so much detail

This is a LRO image but what I'm seeing is very similar even at that magnification:

Having a good look at a number of lunar domes as well. A feature that I have not paid a lot of attention too in the past but once you realise that they are quite subtle features, there are plenty of nice ones to find around the Mare Insularum. Some have nice little (well, 2km diameter) central pits as well.

 

 

[Sunshine]

17 minutes ago, John said:

Thanks for all the feedback folks.

Frankly, these are the best lunar views I've ever had

The seeing is still steady and the misty clouds have thinned a lot so very high magnifications are bearing fruit again. 795x on Gassendi - I've never seen so much detail

This is a LRO image but what I'm seeing is very similar even at that magnification:

Having a good look at a number of lunar domes as well. A feature that I have not paid a lot of attention too in the past but once you realise that they are quite subtle features, there are plenty of nice ones to find around the Mare Insularum. Some have nice little (well, 2km diameter) central pits as well.

 

 

This is a beautifully detailed image, I wish I was there to see too! it's not every day that conditions are as good as you describe.

Edited March 24, 2021 by Sunshine

[John]

7 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

This is a beautifully detailed image, I wish I was there to see too! it's not every day that conditions are as good as you describe.

Quite rare for the conditions to be this good, I agree. We have had some good seeing lately here though, for a change. Not so good transparency though but with a bright moon in the sky, faint DSO's are not on the menu anyway.

 

 

 

[Littleguy80]

Out with the 10” Dob tonight. Started with the Nova and M52. Got the concentric rings in Hesiodus A. Gassendi looks stunning. Great thread btw!

[John]

5 minutes ago, Littleguy80 said:

Out with the 10” Dob tonight. Started with the Nova and M52. Got the concentric rings in Hesiodus A. Gassendi looks stunning. Great thread btw!

Thanks Neil - glad you have the views as well

I'm probably sounding like an overgrown kid in this thread

It's nice to get a bit excited by the sky again though

[Littleguy80]

37 minutes ago, John said:

Thanks Neil - glad you have the views as well

I'm probably sounding like an overgrown kid in this thread

It's nice to get a bit excited by the sky again though

Couldn’t agree more, John. Didn’t feel like we had many good nights this winter so it’s great to have some now with the added bonus of the Nova. I’ve really felt my enthusiasm for observing come back in recent weeks. 

[Pixies]

Turned the ST80 on the moon tonight and was surprised with the steady seeing. Thought it might have been down to the aperture being smaller than I was used to, but have now read this thread!

I'm not usually too interested in the moon. Perhaps I'll try and get to know it during this summer's light skies.

I was expecting to see some Clangers though. It was that steady

[John]

7 hours ago, globular said:

Cloudy here currently but I'm hopeful for later....

Will Hesiodus A still be viewable then?

Sorry, I missed the question. The answer is yes. Hope it stayed clear for you.

 

[globular]

20 minutes ago, John said:

Sorry, I missed the question. The answer is yes. Hope it stayed clear for you.

 

Thanks John.
My skies cleared around 11pm and, like for you, the seeing was amazing but transparency poor.
Had a lovely session with the moon - picking out many of the features mentions in your threads of the last few nights.

Edited March 25, 2021 by globular

[John]

33 minutes ago, globular said:

Thanks John.
My skies cleared around 11pm and, like for you, the seeing was amazing but transparency poor.
Had a lovely session with the moon - picking out many of the features mentions in your threads of the last few nights.

Excellent

[Nik271]

I was looking at Gassendi too yesterday around 9pm. It was very good, indeed, best view of this crater so far with the Skyamx 180! I also saw three of Plato's cratelets at 270x  . The seeing did not support anything higher here. I forgot to look at Hesiodus A, but tonight will give it a try if it stays clear.

Going back at some images I took on Tuesday of Mare Nubium, I realize that I managed to capture Hesiodus A without realising it. Here is a crop:

Should look even better under full illumination now if it stays clear.

Thanks to @John for suggesting this interesting crater!

Edited March 25, 2021 by Nik271