Jupiter, Mars, Rigel (haha) and a few others from the 17th

[josefk]

Fabulous session last night doubling down in the main on targets viewed the night before and just trying to eke out that little bit more.

First Jupiter - the best or second best view in 6 months. Icy and hard looking and sharp details flashing on the NEB and SEB:

Next Mars - actually my scruffy annotated field sketch is better than this "finished article":

While facing in this general direction i had a go at Rigel. It split easily enough. I hope the sketch coveys there was probably 10...12" of "wobble" - basically diffraction speckle in 6" or so of the 9" separation to it's companion:

M82 - a composite of scratchings on two nights. I'm not sure i saw it quite this well on either night but nearly so - especially on the 16th darkness cutting through it horizontally was very apparent:

And M82 with Struve 1387 (STF1387 much more subtle than my pen allows here):

A very enjoyable Eskimo Nebula - i have never seen it this well before - silly magnifications clearly have their place:

...and keeping me honest a very faint Herschel - NGC 2976 (it was fainter in the EP than this pic of the sketch infers):

[JeremyS]

Super sketches. That TOA 130 is really singing for you 👍🏻
I hope get get a chance to point it at Sirius before too long.

Edited January 18 by JeremyS

[josefk]

It’s certainly a relief to see Mars and Jupiter against a black or nearly black backdrop @JeremyS  I go on about it but the diffraction spike on planets drove me nuts the last few months. When I had a reflector before (nearly 30 years ago) it was smaller and I just don’t remember them being anywhere near as striking (on the planets). 
 

I just need to be out a tad later for Sirius but I keep looking in that direction. 

[Sunshine]

Great sketches! I feel like kicking myself as a TOA 130 was offered to me just a month ago, I reluctantly passed on it as it was well above my budget. Now that I think of it, theres always more money to be made but I cannot extend my life so I should have just bit the bullet, and my wife's fist. 👊 🤣

[josefk]

ooof

11 hours ago, Sunshine said:

Great sketches! I feel like kicking myself as a TOA 130 was offered to me just a month ago, I reluctantly passed on it as it was well above my budget. Now that I think of it, theres always more money to be made but I cannot extend my life so I should have just bit the bullet, and my wife's fist. 👊 🤣

ooof. its very important to have full spousal support - i now i test the patience of mine enough running off any clear night and coming back in the early hours banging and clanking about and freezing cold to boot.

To your 5" desire dilemma - I have terrific pride of ownership in the TOA-130 (no doubt) BUT i'm not convinced it is an entirely rational purchase - even more so possibly for you against your existing kit as you already have a 4" refractor of the highest quality and more aperture using the 8" dob. 

i didn't/don't have a 100mm astro scope so for me i could convince myself it made sense to get a great refractor and go a little big on it (and not have any regrets about not going good enough/big enough) but if i did have that 100mm base covered already i would have spent this type of money and "faff investment" on a 12...18" dob. I don't have a garden so it's a small expedition to get out for anything other than "Grab 'n' Go" with small kit and in my limited experience so far everything is getting exponentially "more faff" at 5" & 10kg for marginal gains. Highly valuable and highly enjoyable and highly satisfying YES YES YES but ultimately marginal gains. 

...then again...😂

 

[mikeDnight]

On 19/01/2023 at 09:16, josefk said:

Highly valuable and highly enjoyable and highly satisfying YES YES YES but ultimately marginal gains. 

...then again...😂

 

Marginal and subtle gains can make a big difference, plus your scope is a very beautiful thing to look at when its cloudy or raining outside! ☁☁💧💧💧

 I really enjoyed your drawings by the way.