Poll: How many of us are into astronomy?

[not2sharp]

Many of us developed an affection for knives from our love of the outdoors. The scenery, the foilage and wildlife, are always a refreshing change from the everyday. The air seems crisper and prevasive silence hightens the senses. The more to enjoy the early nightcalls by a small crackling fire. But as the embers settle down to glowing coals, and dusk becomes to night, we are treated to endless procession of brilliant beauty.

So it is fair to ask whether you have also been bitten by the astromy bug. I know I have.

n2s

 

[Blues]

I've been into astronomy ever since I was a little kid and still enjoy lugging the 8" reflector out into the front yard to take in planets, galaxies and other DSO's.

 

[not2sharp]

I've been into astronomy ever since I was a little kid and still enjoy lugging the 8" reflector out into the front yard to take in planets, galaxies and other DSO's.

I was also into it as a youngster; largely, gave up for a long time, and returned to the hobby a couple of years ago. I live under a big light dome, where starhopping is a real challenge; but, there is still plenty to see, especially the planets, brighter clusters and some of the brighter nebulas.

The scopes I use most often are a 90mm meade F11 refractor, and a 120mm Orion f5. Both, are at the larger end of the grab-and go-scope size; the 90 provides very nice views of the planets while, the short tube is very good for spotting man made satellites, comets, and clusters. I was lucky enough to catch the ISS once on the 120mm (using a 32 plossls) and was able to track it for nearly a minute.

n2s

 

[btboone]

I got a Meade 14" with GPS and the goto controller. Astronomy's a lot different than the days before computers. It was a major pain in the but to find stuff. Stuff like Neptune would be darn near impossible to find without some help. Just choose Neptune from the menu, and it goes there. Very cool. The sky near Atlanta's not ideal, but I get out there every now and again.

I've said it before on here, but if anyone wants awesome planetarium software that's FREE, check out www.stellarium.org I input my own pictures of my back yard in there, so I know exactly where to look for stuff. It's some of the best software I've seen and it's all free. You can now go to other planets, like Mercury and see the Sun take a swooping dip as it sets. It has real pictures of the nebulas and stuff in correct size and orientation. Almost better than the scope.

 

[Blues]

Bruce, I actually enjoy the "hunt" so opted for the "classic" version of my scope (without go-to).

I do use a Telrad and 9x50 RACI and though I am sometimes frustrated for a time by a pretty challenging faint fuzzy I usually get 'em without too much muttering under my breath. (All the while listening for bears or other critters sneaking up on me from other parts of my wooded property.)

 

[btboone]

The Telrad was a great invention. So simple, yet effective.
I also like to do "manual mode" and just see what's out there. I was doing that once and saw something slow moving like an asteroid or satellite move slowly across my field when I was really zoomed in and was able to follow it all the way across the sky. It seemed too slow to be a satellite, but I guess they have all different orbits, some of which are thousands of miles out. I don't know if an asteroid would move that fast unless it was pretty darn close. It was cool, but something I couldn't show anyone or get the coordinates for anyone else to find it again without completely losing it.

 

[L6steel]

I'm not sure I'm an astronomy buff but I absolutely love star and space pix!!!!
I have a file of them in my Documents file and love looking at them and blowing them up to see more detail!
I don't have a telescope but I was blessed to be able to buy a real nice digital camera and I already had a tripod so when it gets cool/cold enough around here and the skies get clear at night I'm going to set the rig up out back and try to get some good pix. I've been looking for a long cord to go between the camera and my computer, about 100 foot or so but haven't had any luck. That way i could set the camera up and sit in the den and watch what shows up on the screen. Besides stars and planets I'd like to get a picture of a UFO, lol! I'm 50 years old and I've haven't seen one yet!

 

[Bastid]

I took an astronomy class in school and have been hooked ever since. Even stayed in touch with the prof. long afterwards who was also head of the observatory at Fernbank here and would head over there in the middle of the night on occasions to spend time with him and learn more well after I graduated. Sadly he retired and moved 5 years ago so I do not have contact over there any more.

Just spent the week on the coast. Enjoyed great views of Jupiter and Venus last week just using binocs.
Don't get to see much in bastidville - too much haze and city lights. I love it out west especially.

 

[H2OCutter]

Been into astronomy since the mid 60's when comet Ikeya-Seki appeared, known as the great comet of 1965, its image is burned onto my memory. Standing on the balcony of my family's apartment watching as it hung in the sky, truly magical for a kid to see.

 

[shangchi108]

Space.com is practically my home page!

 

[btboone]

I went to Fernbank last week. They have a 36" telescope, but there were high clouds that night reflecting the lights of Atlanta. You could practicaly read by the background light. We saw Jupiter, Uranus, and Andromeda. I was surprised that the poor conditions made Andromeda look just about exactly as my scope sees it.

You get spoiled to all the high color and awesome views, like the ones taken by all these guys: http://www.caelumobservatory.com/links/imagerlinks.shtml Most first time astonomers are surprised that their scope only shows faint, fuzzy black and white splotches. I looked into getting one of those high end CCD cameras, but they're around $6000+ and the sky around here won't get a whole lot better, so I decided against it. Better to buy the posters from the real guys and save the learning curve and sleepless nights. I understand there are places in remote Arizona to vacation and get use of a large scope and a professional astronomer guide. Probably a lot cheaper in the long run.

 

[not2sharp]

Bruce, I actually enjoy the "hunt" so opted for the "classic" version of my scope (without go-to).

Manual mode can be alot of fun. You simply explore the sky until you come across something interesting, and then try to identify it. .

Then again, perhaps I just enjoy doing it the hard way. Yesterday, I was out with a Celestron C-150HD reflector. It is a discontinued 6 inch short tube with a spherical mirror and a built in Jones-Bird corrector on the secondary. It is one of most frustrating scopes I have played with; the thing is almost impossible to collimate and has so much coma and sperical distortion that, the whole design is counter productive.

I have been able to push it up to around 100-150x with useful results - but, then again, I took this one on as a challenge from the original owner, who had been unsuccessfully trying to get it to work for years. Jones-Bird designs are very hard to get right, and these came close but missed the mark. Even when the target is sharply focused, the slightest movement in eye position, will resolve a sharp image of the spyder instead. Which probably defines the basic problem, there seems to be very little leeway with these catadioptric short tubes.

Unless you are doing it for the challenge, I would suggest that everyone avoid these corrected short tube newtonians.

n2s

 

[Blues]

n2s,

Unless I don't have anything particular that I'm "hunting" of a particular evening, I don't usually just flit around and then try to identify objects (if that's the impression I gave) although that can be a fun way to just relax and enjoy the heavens.

Most of the time I use my Telrad and 9x50 RACI to locate and identify objects I've selected as my targets for that evening. Ordinarily it's not too terribly difficult unless there are large gaps that make "star hopping" a major challenge.

I guess the ideal would be to enjoy the best of both worlds but that'll have to wait for another day and another scope. I put most of the money in the four or five eyepieces I use regularly. You know how that is.

 

[btboone]

I'd like to go to a star party to see what I'm missing and try out some of the big Dobsonians. I'd like to see first hand what a 20" or 24" view looks like in person under dark skies. Does the aperature really gather that much more light? The numbers say it should, but has anyone here compared to see the difference? A Dobsonian is not bound to be able to track as effectively as some other scopes. (I was pretty impressed when they kept banging the rolling metal stairs into the scope at Fernbank and the scope never even blinked. Now that's a solid scope! ) I also don't know enough about eyepieces to really know what to get. I have an assortment of Plossels that I got off e-Bay. I know some eyepieces get extremely expensive. Is it worth the cost for some of those? It's an expensive hobby and only gets more and more expensive. I've even looked at the possibility of doing an observatory on the roof 4 stories up. Cha Ching!

 

[not2sharp]

n2s,

I don't usually just flit around and then try to identify objects (if that's the impression I gave) although that can be a fun way to just relax and enjoy the heavens.

Especially when you make use of both telescope and binoculars. Around dusk, it is almost hard to miss a satellite flyby.

n2s

 

[not2sharp]

I've even looked at the possibility of doing an observatory on the roof 4 stories up. Cha Ching!

These guys make prefabricated observatories:
http://www.skyshedpod.com/

I haven't tried them yet. But, if I relocate to a place with a half-way decent sky, I my try to set up a fixed observing point.

n2s

 

[Blues]

I have a pair of 10x50's I use for binocular astronomy. Great especially for comets and the more distinct DSO's.

As far as eyepieces go I have four Meade UWA's (not the most recent incarnation which by most accounts are lesser quality) in 4.7, 6.7, 8.8 and 14mm. I also have a 26mm Nagler T5. These wide angle eyepieces are a joy to work with and I much prefer them though they are pricey.

 

[btboone]

I've seen them and a couple others. I would probably do a fiberglass one around 10' diameter and replace a turret in the back part of my roof with it. It would all have to be architecturally figured out to be a self contained room in what is now my attic space, and made so the house doesn't collapse, it isn't seen from the road, doesn't leak, has inside access, etc, etc. Needless to say, it would be a major project. It would get a pretty good view from up there though. It's a hard thing to cost justify before the house is paid off, retirement's up to snuff, etc. especially when I would be the only one using it. The floor would just be the house, and not a concrete pedestal, so it would never be stable enough for a nice scope anyway.

 

[DrivebyTrucker]

I love the stars and planets at night. Always have been ever since I was a kid and went camping. My father explained to me the constellations and we always brought Binoc's and a large round star chart that should the constellations. I always carry mine with me in my vehicle. The west is great for Star Gazing even where in Los Angeles it's an hours drive into the back side of the local mountains near Edwards AFB; or just beyond Barstow toward Las Vegas. There isn't much light once your out in the desert. Also I must admit I am a big Star Trek Fan. All the series and movies. But especially DS9 and VOY of which I have seen every episode 3 times over; and every TOG and TNG episode at least once. I went to the Kennedy Space center twice this year. And I walk to the Griffith Observatory a few times a week to exercise my Dog (ok me) They just reopened it after a few years of renovation. I need to go back and get a pass I love that place. It's a full moon tonight but I feel like a night hike after reading this thread. Be back in few.........hours No worries I have a small knife on me (Busse NMFBM) a flash light, and a survival kit.

 

[not2sharp]

I have a pair of 10x50's I use for binocular astronomy. Great especially for comets and the more distinct DSO's.

As far as eyepieces go I have four Meade UWA's (not the most recent incarnation which by most accounts are lesser quality) in 4.7, 6.7, 8.8 and 14mm. I also have a 26mm Nagler T5. These wide angle eyepieces are a joy to work with and I much prefer them though they are pricey.

I haven't gone overboard on the eyepieces yet. It is hard to get myself launched on building up a collection of $600 Nagler eyepieces, when I suspect that these may soon be overtaken by some sort of variable digital eyepiece. For the moment, going digital means hauling around a laptop and a power supply; but, we may soon see a self contained digital eyepiece with the size and resolving quality of a Nagler but with the abilty to function both as a stand alone visual eyepiece, or as a computer interface.

n2s