Used my new scope for the first time and now its time for the questions! :P

[benjy85pb]

Well, I finally delved into my pocket a got myself a new scope and chose one that was simple to use (being a refractor there's no collimation involved!) and had a good mount (EQ3-2).

I got the scope some days ago and have been spending my time setting up the mount and learning how to use it. The only thing that prevented me from actually using it was the weather... until last night!

I started off quite early because I wanted some light to be able to get the mount set up correctly. After I set it up I retreated back in doors to bide my time and check on stellarium periodically to see what I'd be able to see that night. According to the program Saturn, Mars and Venus were out.

So after biding my time and waiting until it was plentifully dark enough I got outside, did a basic polar alignment of the scope and started viewing. The moon was my first target and I absolutely loved the views of it, then I moved on to a little star that had appeared not too far from the moon... and boy did I have a surprise waiting for me!

It turned out to be Saturn and it was the first time I had ever seen it with my own eyes! I almost wet myself with excitement! Lol I even saw one of its moons and I believe it was Titan, it was the only other point of light I could see!

So after that pants wetting, exciting personal achievement, I decided to try and look at Venus and Mars. And this is where the questions start to appear!

When trying to find Mars I 'believe' I may have seen it, however, I'm not sure... All I got was a faint blob that may have been reddish in colour at x90 (x180 had to much distortion to make anything out), but is that what I expect to see from Mars at the moment because as I understand it, it's quite far from the Earth compared to what it can be?

Right, moving on to Venus. I've been able to identify it for a while, since its so bright in the evening sky. However, when I turned the scope onto it, I did find it and I did sort of manage to make out the shape of it's phase, if thats correct?! But the problem I had was that there was a lot of colour distortion, especially a lot of blue glow coming off of it. I'm aware of the problem occurring in refractors (can't remember what its called), but what can I do to correct it? Is it something filters can correct? I've noticed that Baader do a 'Fringer Killer' Filter, is that the sort of thing I'd need to help with what I'm experiencing? Or is something needed?

And that brings me on to another set of questions! (Go me!) I understand filters are used to help with viewing, from areas such as viewing comfort, to bringing out detail. I've read through the primer on filters and I believe I chosen what may be adequate filters from most sort of viewing, the filters I'm interested in are: #8,#12,#59A and #47.

Would those filters be suitable for most basic planetary viewing? And general purpose viewing in general? With filters, can you use more than one to combine their effects or are they strictly 'one at a time' pieces of equipment? Also with light pollution, what sort of filters should I be looking out for? I've notice that there's quite the assortment on some websites, is the one type I should be looking out for or should I be experiment with different ones?

P.S Sorry for the long post! I really must stop doing these, they must be an eye sore for you folks! So sorry!

[kidlands]

I have no idea about filters yet too new for that area, I just enjoyed your 'nearly wet yourself' comments LOL!

[benjy85pb]

Lol Well, it was that exciting for me... I couldn't think of any better way to describe how it felt for me... although in actuality the affairs was dry instead of moist. Lol

[insomnia]

Seeing as you Viewed Saturn for the first time you are allowed to trickle out a little bit of wee. We have all had that first view of Saturn moment and have all had that level of excitement.

A perfectly reasonable weeing reason.

[Doc]

I know the feeling you had seeing Saturn for the first time, it's just so awesome.

Mars is well past it's best and through your scope would only appear as a very small slightly red star like object. When it was nearer you could have seen the polar caps and maybe a little detail on the surface.

Venus does go through phases similar to our moon, sounds like you saw a crescent phase. As for the colour distortion, this is called chromatic abberation or purple fringing, this occurs as your scope is a achromatic so cannot converge all light waves into the same point.

You can get filters such as the one you mentioned that does help somewhat but not completely.

[Astro_Baby]

The bright spot near Saturn was most likley Titan by the way. Titan generally shows quite readily cos its rather big.

Mars - yes it probably was Mars. At the moment Mars is like a small orange blob even in bigger scopes. The bewt view I had of it was via my TAL 100RS where I could just about (but barely) make out a polar cap bit it was like looking at fleck of dust on a small split pea

Venus - being quite tough at the moment. Its usually low in the sky and theres lots of shimmer and haze from the atmosphere.

I have quite a collection of filters but they are almost never used apart from the moon filter and a neutral density (ND96). The only one that gets a showing really is a light yellow which helps boost contrast on Saturn. I find most of them too extreme even in an 8" reflector - thats just my opinion.

[kidlands]

when I first saw saturn I ran into the house then straight back out to the eyepiece again I didnt know what to do lol. It was like getting my zx spectrum for xmas all over again.

[davy999]

when I first saw saturn I ran into the house then straight back out to the eyepiece again I didnt know what to do lol. It was like getting my zx spectrum for xmas all over again.

I remember that exact feeling, 1985 I think I got mine!

[benjy85pb]

I know the feeling you had seeing

Venus does go through phases similar to our moon, sounds like you saw a crescent phase. As for the colour distortion, this is called chromatic abberation or purple fringing, this occurs as your scope is a achromatic so cannot converge all light waves into the same point.

You can get filters such as the one you mentioned that does help somewhat but not completely.

I had a hunch it was that effect because I read about it occurring in refractors. Especially in the cheaper models. So would it be worth getting that 'Fringe Killer' lense to help?

The bright spot near Saturn was most likley Titan by the way. Titan generally shows quite readily cos its rather big.

Mars - yes it probably was Mars. At the moment Mars is like a small orange blob even in bigger scopes. The bewt view I had of it was via my TAL 100RS where I could just about (but barely) make out a polar cap bit it was like looking at fleck of dust on a small split pea

Venus - being quite tough at the moment. Its usually low in the sky and theres lots of shimmer and haze from the atmosphere.

I have quite a collection of filters but they are almost never used apart from the moon filter and a neutral density (ND96). The only one that gets a showing really is a light yellow which helps boost contrast on Saturn. I find most of them too extreme even in an 8" reflector - thats just my opinion.

Then it quite possibly was Mars I saw then, because it definitely had a reddish/orange tint to it. Shame I'll have to wait until it comes closer to be able to prove it!

As for filters, its one of the few things I was worried about, a lot do seem to be for one specific purpose, whereas at the moment I would like a more general purpose filter or set. I just don't know where to start, although the yellow filters look pretty desirable.

But I'm still interested to know about light pollution reduction filters because of the fact that at the moment I'm viewing from the garden, and living not far from Gatwick and near to the town center the night sky can be pretty 'obstructive' at times! So I was wondering if the filters like the Skywatchers light poulltion filter of the Baader Neodymium Filter would be any good?

when I first saw saturn I ran into the house then straight back out to the eyepiece again I didnt know what to do lol. It was like getting my zx spectrum for xmas all over again.

zx what now? Lol (Actually I'm not that young, I know what they are, but I've never seen one though!)

[Talitha]

Hi Benjy, Saturn's a lovely gem isn't it? My first reaction was to stupidly blurt out "Wow, it looks just like the pictures!".. made me glad i observe alone.

Here's some info on filters, the colored ones for planetary use are listed about 2/3 of the way down the page... hope it helps.

Filter Specifications & Uses

EDIT:

BTW, regarding the fringe killer filter for the CA, i've found that a yellow filter works surprisingly well when compared to my William Optics VR-1. It's needed more on my f/5 refractors than it is on the f/8.3.

[Digz]

I think we all remember the first time we see Saturn. I remember the first view I got in a cheapo 4" reflector and almost wet myself then. Just imagine my reaction when seeing it in my 10" reflector the other week!!!! All I can say is its a good job we have no neighbours and those plastic underpants were a godsend, lol.

[Glider]

Congrats on your first night out. If you thought Saturn was good I suggest having a bucket handy when you see Jupiter for the first time.

As for filters; Astro_Baby's comments ring true, I've got all sorts but the ones I use the most are the Skywatcher Light Pollution Filter and a moon filter. I got the best view I've ever had of Saturn through PhilJ's refractor with a yellow filter. I use a blue filter on my ST80 which suffers from the same blue fringing you saw, it just makes everything bluey grey, if you see what I mean, the aberration doesn't stand out so much.

[benjy85pb]

Hi Benjy, Saturn's a lovely gem isn't it? My first reaction was to stupidly blurt out "Wow, it looks just like the pictures!".. made me glad i observe alone.

Here's some info on filters, the colored ones for planetary use are listed about 2/3 of the way down the page... hope it helps.

It is indeed a lovely sight! And I'm sure I blurted something silly out at the time, but I can't remember what! All I can remember was just the sheer excitement of seeing it for the first time.

That link is exceptionally helpful! Thank you for that, I shall favourite that as I can see that becoming very useful to me. It's already looking like the #25 and #29 seem to be the more 'general purpose' for the type of viewing I'm interested in.

[John]

While your Evostar 90 will show some false colour, at F/10 it should be reasonably well controlled. Venus is notoriously awkward with respect to this so don't be in a rush to judge the scope on the basis of just that object. My 6" F/8 in it's normal state will show more false colour than your scope and I don't find it that objectionable. The problem with MV and Fringe Killer type filters is that they add a colour cast to the view as well as reducing the false colour - it's a matter of taste I guess but I prefer to put up with the fringing !.

The only filter I use is an OIII for nebulae - I prefer the unfiltered views of other objects.

With the lack of darkness at the moment I'd recommend trying some double stars with your scope - a 3.5" F/10 refractor will show doubles really well. Try the famous "double double" Epsilon Lyrae (near Vega) and Albeiro in the "head" of Cygnus, the Swan.

Congrats on Saturn - first views of it are always so special

[benjy85pb]

I think we all remember the first time we see Saturn. I remember the first view I got in a cheapo 4" reflector and almost wet myself then. Just imagine my reaction when seeing it in my 10" reflector the other week!!!! All I can say is its a good job we have no neighbours and those plastic underpants were a godsend, lol.

Pfft... No need to boast! This isn't a 'size' competition you know! Lol I may have to invest in some 'adult nappies' for future 'first discoveries'! Lol

While your Evostar 90 will show some false colour, at F/10 it should be reasonably well controlled. Venus is notoriously awkward with respect to this so don't be in a rush to judge the scope on the basis of just that object. My 6" F/8 in it's normal state will show more false colour than your scope and I don't find it that objectionable. The problem with MV and Fringe Killer type filters is that they add a colour cast to the view as well as reducing the false colour - it's a matter of taste I guess but I prefer to put up with the fringing !.

The only filter I use is an OIII for nebulae - I prefer the unfiltered views of other objects.

With the lack of darkness at the moment I'd recommend trying some double stars with your scope - a 3.5" F/10 refractor will show doubles really well. Try the famous "double double" Epsilon Lyrae (near Vega) and Albeiro in the "head" of Cygnus, the Swan.

Congrats on Saturn - first views of it are always so special

I'm already impressed with my scopes abilities to say the least, I was just hoping to make our Venus' cresent phase far more clearly. There was just some much glare and false colour, but as you've mentioned, the evenings are very light at the moment which doesn't help!

I did have a peek a Mizar last night as well because it was easy to spot. But I'll definitely give those double stars a try though, I like seeing double stars at the moment. Just out of curiosity, with stars in general, especially double stars, can you see (with the naked eye) the different colours of stars? I ask because as I looked at Mizar I'm pretty sure one was a different shade to the other, but I just couldn't make it out clearly enough because I had a lot of distortion at the higher magnifications.

[Digz]

lol, sorry don't mean to boast , but I think the adult nappies will come in handy, lol.

Seriously though this is a great post as I am a noob myself and will eventually want to get some additional filters, such as OIII and LPS. I have at present the Revelation Photo / Visual Eyepiece set which has Red (#25), Blue(?) (#82A), Violet (#47), Yellow (#11) and ND96 filters in it but I have yet to use them. To be honest Im not sure what filter is best for what and the link posted above is great!

[Astro_Baby]

Venus shows its crescent shape better in winter months when its up early in the morning. Venus was the first thing I ever saw with a telescope that knocked me sideways - I was looking at what I thought was a star and whoa it resolved into a crescent and I almost swooned Mind you I was young back then -

It was what got me hooked.

If your near Gatwick you might be close(ish) to me (I live in Redhill). If you want to tag along when I push off to my dark sky site you'd be welcome to try some of my filters and see what works well.

Light Pollution filters are notoriously a personal taste thing and much depends on what sort of street lights you have. I found the Skywatcher one to not offer much but then where I live is light pollution hell thanks to the morons out the back on the industrial estate who insist on have ten megawatts of carbon arc lamps running all night (and day for that matter). I do find the LP filter paired with a ND96 sometimes yields good views of the moon and other bright objects.

Dont be in a rush with filters and for a smaller scope use lighter colors - dark blue for instance in hopeless on a smaller scope in my experience whereas light blue can give just an extra bit of whizz to a view.

Many astro fans end up buying filters as an obsession by the way and they can often be picked up relatively cheaply - I picked up a load at last years Salisbury star party for a smallish sum even though I knew I'd never use them much - DUH !!!

ps -handy tip - I got some filter boxes and printed on the box what filters are in it and what they are useful for cos I am clueless most of the time and always forget what works well with what cos they are so seldom used. It helps when your in a dark field and cuts down the fumble factor.

[benjy85pb]

Poo! I knew I thought I left it too late to get a good look at Venus! Oh well, that'll give me something to look forward to in the Winter months.

I live in Horsham so it's not too far from the Redhill area. Although that doesn't mean I actually know that area well! haha But yes the offer is tempting though, it's always nicer to try before you buy! But the only evening I've got free this week for the next 2-3 weeks is this coming Friday. But that may be too soon to organise anything just yet!

[Astro_Baby]

I wont be around - but when your free drop me a line by PM and I'll see if we can organise something. I normally take my TAL 100 these days so you;d get a chance to see the filters running with a similar scope to yours.

[Space Oddity6]

Talking of first time views of Saturn I'm very much hoping to get mine tonight. Set my scope up outside and am currently waiting for the mirrors etc to cool to night temperature. I think I'll start with the Moon then try to find my way up to Saturn.

BTW might be a stupid question but does Stellarium require an Internet connection to work? It would be a lot easier if I could take my laptop outside.

[John]

According to my Cartes du Ciel planetarium software (freeware !) Venus is 61% illuminated so not a crescent yet. As Astro Baby says it will become easier to observe as time goes by because, i) it's apparent diameter grows in size, ii) it enters the crescent phase and iii) it actually dims a bit (hope I've got that lot right !).

Plus there is Jupiter to look forward too !.

[Glider]

Stellarium doesn't require an internet connection to work.