Hello from Central Coast

[Machinetools1]

Hello everyone....I am new to Astronomy.  My dad spent several years as an amateur Astronomer. I believe this was my dad's quiet time and we were never included. I am now 59 years old and had a motorcycle hobby that has left me battered and broken. So looking for a nice relaxing hobby I can enjoy with my daughter who lives in Maine.  I purchased her a Celestron 8 se and I purchased a used Celestron 8 inch evolution. I am looking forward to a great adventure I can share with my family and especially my daughter in Maine.

Edited November 7, 2023 by Machinetools1

[Sunshine]

Welvome! the Evolution 8 is a great scope to start with, as of us what you need to know and we will help, you’re in a special place here on SGL!.

[Machinetools1]

Thank you for the welcome mat. I am reading and trying to understand what the different types of eyepieces are and the dedicated jobs they do.  When I purchased my scope, it had the Starsense auto align and this sure makes setting up a lot easier.  I have some eye pieces that I acquired from my dad, just trying to figure out their job duties. Some of the concepts are foreign to me but I will pick it up the more I dive into Astronomy and read through the forum.  Thanks for the invite.

[laudropb]

Hello and a warm welcome to the SGL.

[Bugdozer]

Welcome, you have a good couple of telescopes there that are very capable. I'm no expert on eyepieces, but the simple explanation is: the longer the eyepiece focal length, the lower the magnification. So for looking at something like a planet, you would want a shorter length eyepiece, such as 9mm, and for looking at fainter extended objects like nebulae, a longer length such as 32mm is better. But try them all and find your own preferences.

[Machinetools1]

Thanks for the reply's.  I have been searching this forum for a minute and there are some very good topics for beginners.  Its very refreshing to see the help of the other members helping newbies.  As I look through this forum it is evident that newbies can benefit a great deal from the information given.

 

Thank you

[Floater]

Welcome. I hope you - and your daughter - have lots of fun with the hobby. 🙂

[Machinetools1]

Thank you ... I am really looking forward to learning more about this fascinating hobby.  Thank you for the worm welcomes.

[drdre2030]

Welcome to SGL! 

[Pete Presland]

Hi welcome to SGL from Pete in Bedfordshire 🙂