Anyone here interested in astronomy?

[#juan]

Anyone here into astronomy? My son and I have been amateur astronomers for about thirty years. Next weekend I'm helping him set up his new telescope and observatory. He has just bought a Meade 12" schmidt cass reflector and he is building an observatory in his back yard, complete with the motorized dome.....just like Mount Palomar....;-) I will post pictures of the observatory when it is finished.
I have a Meade 7" reflector that I use for viewing whenever we get some clear damn sky.

 

[hermanntrude]

I would die for a decent telescope. When i was younger I asked for an 8" dobsonian for a birthday present. at the last moment i changed my mind and decided for a computer instead. I still can't afford a telescope now. One day, though, one day

 

[#juan]

Here are a few shots of the planets taken in Vancouver from my son's back yard with a CCD camera and a pretty good 4" refractor.

Mars

Jupiter

Saturn

 

[hermanntrude]

you're making me jealous.

 

[#juan]

Here's a picture of our moon, same camera and telescope

 

[hermanntrude]

arrrgh :'(

 

[Kreskin]

Those are amazing photos #juan.

 

[#juan]

Hey Herm,

Around twenty five years ago I bought my son a 2" refractor for about a $150.00, that we made do with for almost ten years. The optics were not bad....we could see the four main moons of Jupiter and the rings of Saturn. Once my house was paid off, we could afford better toys. I can't wait to see how the new telescope performs.

 

[#juan]

Those are amazing photos #juan.

They are actually pretty good. I'm amazed that Messier, the guy who catalogued all the Messier objects actually used a smaller telescope in the seventeen hundreds. He must have had eyes like an owl.

http://cometman.com/messier.html

 

[hermanntrude]

yeah I had a 90mm refractor and used it till it fell apart. I saw a lot of good stuff but I want to see M51 and some of the fainter objects. When I next get the chanc to make a large purchase, an 8 or 10" reflector would be my dream

 

[Libra Girl]

They are indeed amazing photos yuan.

 

[#juan]

yeah I had a 90mm refractor and used it till it fell apart. I saw a lot of good stuff but I want to see M51 and some of the fainter objects. When I next get the chanc to make a large purchase, an 8 or 10" reflector would be my dream

M-51 you say:

 

[hermanntrude]

waaaaaaaah :''0(

 

[able]

Juan: I have a 40-200x 2" telescope, has its own tripod, but seems like a toy. Was looking at the bright side of the moon and noticed my eye was burning. Obviously I know nothing about astronomy, but the idea of the motorised observatory piqued my curiosity. That made me think of a freind who has a 10" and a short commitment span. What would be a good price for his?

 

[Outta here]

Juan, those pics are amazing! Look forward to seeing more as you get them..

 

[Pangloss]

juan - those pictures are trippy as hell. How do you deal with the light pollution in Vancouver - also the air is pretty humid, therefore kinda smudgy - do you go up Seymour or Cypress or something?

Pangloss

 

[MHz]

Do sidewalk telescopes come any bigger than 17"?

Don't suppose you could point one of those things at the area of the moon when the 'stuff they left behind' would be casting a long shadow?

 

[#juan]

Juan: I have a 40-200x 2" telescope, has its own tripod, but seems like a toy. Was looking at the bright side of the moon and noticed my eye was burning. Obviously I know nothing about astronomy, but the idea of the motorised observatory piqued my curiosity. That made me think of a freind who has a 10" and a short commitment span. What would be a good price for his?

Hi able

I don't know what the "40x200" means. Is there an f number or a focal length anywhere on that telescope?
You will feel a bit of warmth from the moon....remember you are concentrating the light from many square miles of hot surface into a tiny circle. This is not dangerous looking at the moon, just don't look at the sun.
Do you have a make and model number for your friend's 10" telescope?

 

[#juan]

Hi Zan, Hi Pangloss

I can't wait for those pictures either.

The light polution will always be there and it won't likely get better any time soon. What has really helped astrophotography is the digital camera. Long exposures are pretty much a thing of the past, and thank God. All of these pictures were taken from my son's backyard in Vancouver, overlooking the freeway
It helps to put the telescope out for an hour or two so it will stabilize after the change in temperature from inside to out.

 

[able]

40-200 is the magnification (as near as I know), as to his model, I was hoping you could give me a ball park figure (his is red) if that means anything. I'm from south western Ontario, so definitely have Vancouver beat for clear skies, also no nearby cities. I'm a night owl, and it would be time better spent in a motorised observatory. It doesn't take long for the internet to get on my nerves, but this forum beats the hell out of the one I left.