Jupiter Advice

[JeremyS]

+1 for Berlebach Charon

[John_D]

Thanks all, let's hope that Santa is reading this 😁

[John]

Those observing chairs look really excellent 👍

I prefer to stand while observing though. Odd probably but there you go 🙄

[Spile]

12 hours ago, John_D said:

Are there any recommendations for an observing chair for a reflector telescope? I normally mix viewing and imaging and stand for the viewing and take a seat while the camera is doing its thing. But it would be nice to ba able to have a seat during an extended viewing session.

( +1 for the warm clothing, that makes a huge difference in my experience. I've been taking a flask of tea out as well recently which is very pleasant. Haven't tried the hip flask yet 😁 )

My chairs are here https://astro.catshill.com/denver-chair/ but I’ve been taken by the simplicity of the Lybar.

[Gonariu]

Comfort is definitely important, I always look for a suitable chair among those I have at home, I like watching standing up much less!
As for objects for a "guest at the telescope" I would make the following classification:
1) Moon (first ever);
2) Saturn (for its ring that always elicits a "wow" of wonder),
3) The sun (by projection or with a special solar filter);
4) Jupiter (more for the Galilean satellites and less for the two equatorial bands);
5) the most conspicuous objects of the deep sky such as the Pleiades, the Hyades, M42 etc.)
6) some easy abseils (Albireo, Mizar, Castore etc.).

[Fraunhoffer]

Another fan of a chair.

Also I find the better views are late into the night when the air has cooled down to its overnight temperature and become more stable  and the dew has taken some of the moisture out if the air. I think someone already commented before dawn a good time.

I took up sketching a while back, not because im any good, and i found it helped me slow down and be really patient to see things.

[mikeDnight]

On 21/12/2023 at 12:59, Ed in UK said:

Wondered if I could ask for a little guidance please on observing Jupiter.

I've been reading loads of great reports on here of people watching GRS transits, reporting on what they see in the equatorial belts and moon shadows transits etc.  

I'm struggling to see anything like this, I can make out the belts buts seem to fall short on seeing detail. It would be nice to see a little more before Jupiter becomes too small again.

I'm not sure if this is just down to experience (lack of in my case), or is it a case it's probably beyond the limits of my kit (listed in my signature).

Greatest magnification I can achieve is x225, (8mm EP + 2x Barlow). Not too sure if greater magnification may be pushing my scope too far, or if magnification is my answer, but I also understood the Jupiter doesn't respond well to higher magnifications. 

It's been a little challenging for us all of recent with the poor weather so getting time at the eye piece hasn't come easy, happy to keep plugging away though.

Not about to give up just curious as to whether I'm trying to reach for something beyond my limits.

Any guidance gratefully received.

TIA.

Ed

 Very often there's more in the image at the eyepiece than first meets the eye, and as some have already said, taking your time to observe Jupiter really will allow you to see more. Keeping accurate focus is critical, and so you may need to regularly check you're still in true focus. As the planet rises for example, you'll be looking through different depths of atmosphere, and as this changes, so will the critical focus point of your telescope. I'm forever twiddling with my focus knob when observing the Moon and planets! 

 Another way to help you to see more of what's on view is to sketch what you're looking at. This can be a challenge at first, as controlling a scope while holding a sketch pad and pencil and drawing in very low light takes some getting used to. But even if you're not particularly artistic you'll soon find it beneficial and a great way to record observations.

 Often, observers studying Jupiter will make a full disk drawing, but you can just as easily choose to study just one point of interest, for example the Great Red Spot. Alternatively you can make a continual sketch that shows the belt and zone detail of Jupiter as over time as the planet rotates. The longer you look the more you'll usually see! 

Below are a couple of Jupiter sketches, and a timelapse sketch as examples. It's important to remember though, that the detail shown in a sketch is an accumulation of information over time, and not necessarily what you'll immediately see when you first look through the eyepiece. Hope this is helpful in some way! ☺

 

 

Edited December 27, 2023 by mikeDnight

[niallk]

As others have said, cooling, collimation, avoiding thermals from roofs etc...

One resource I find useful is the jetstream forecast: I won't bother setting up for planets if it doesn't look good:

https://www.netweather.tv/charts-and-data/jetstream

Definitely you get rewarded for being patient- some nights it can be pure mush, but oh when seeing is good... wow!!!

[Ed in UK]

1 hour ago, mikeDnight said:

 Very often there's more in the image at the eyepiece than first meets the eye, and as some have already said, taking your time to observe Jupiter really will allow you to see more. Keeping accurate focus is critical, and so you may need to regularly check you're still in true focus. As the planet rises for example, you'll be looking through different depths of atmosphere, and as this changes, so will the critical focus point of your telescope. I'm forever twiddling with my focus knob when observing the Moon and planets! 

 Another way to help you to see more of what's on view is to sketch what you're looking at. This can be a challenge at first, as controlling a scope while holding a sketch pad and pencil and drawing in very low light takes some getting used to. But even if you're not particularly artistic you'll soon find it beneficial and a great way to record observations.

 Often, observers studying Jupiter will make a full disk drawing, but you can just as easily choose to study just one point of interest, for example the Great Red Spot. Alternatively you can make a continual sketch that shows the belt and zone detail of Jupiter as over time as the planet rotates. The longer you look the more you'll usually see! 

Below are a couple of Jupiter sketches, and a timelapse sketch as examples. It's important to remember though, that the detail shown in a sketch is an accumulation of information over time, and not necessarily what you'll immediately see when you first look through the eyepiece. Hope this is helpful in some way! ☺

 

 

Thanks @mikeDnight.

Wow those are some pretty cool sketch’s and way beyond what I could achieve.

I have literally started to sketch what I see as a form of a reminder for me and also to make me look closer at subjects to record the details. As you say it is hard to get to grips with it. I have just invested in a RA Drive motor to help not only with the sketching but also to help stabilise the scope when viewing at higher magnifications. Less vibrations when the motor drives the scope compared to me twiddling with the RA flex control…….

Thanks for the guidance  

[Gfamily]

It's also worth knowing the effect that the Jetstream has on observing.

If it's streaming at high altitude over your observing site then the view of the planets will be downgraded.

I use this site to see the current position of the Jetstream

https://www.netweather.tv/charts-and-data/jetstream