The Official Astronomy Thread

At R17k+ for a EQ platform I'd rather stick to my plain Dob mount and to without astrophotography.

BTW the defocused star tip was to check your tracking and alignment. If you can keep a star centered in the EP it should work reasonably well for taking pics.
 
Crusader said:
At R17k+ for a EQ platform I'd rather stick to my plain Dob mount and to without astrophotography.

BTW the defocused star tip was to check your tracking and alignment. If you can keep a star centered in the EP it should work reasonably well for taking pics.
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Did you look at the link I provided? 900dollar if you want to buy one but you can make one yourself for next to nothing and is not complicated at all. concept is childs play. and the benifit for ,viewing only, on large dobs is aparently incredible worth looking at the link I provided for opinions only.

I still dont understand about the defocussing and why it helps?
 
I'm not much of a DIY person so building something myself is a bit of a problem.

The defocused star might help in the same way a illuminated EP does. You use it to make your alignment better and check the tracking. Defocusing the star helps to center it, but more importantly allows you to see the slightest movement and tweak things so it stays centered. If you get to that point then you should be properly set up for taking pics.
 
At least that's my theory. It might not actually work since I've never tested it myself. I do know the same technique helps in locating things again when swapping EPs.
 
I hope you guys have better luck than me with 100 hours of Astronomy events. I was planning on holding an impromptu sidewalk astronomy session tonight, but it's completely clouded over. :(
 
It was great here. JHB-ASSA had their monthly commitee meeting and afterwards some of us sat down on top of observatory hill, had a braai and watched the sun go down. Afterwards we opened up the dome, took a couple of beers with and turned the Innes 26" Refractor towards the southern skys and had a look around. Was a lot of fun and actually just got home now.

Eta-Carina was great and we set things up to try take a few photographs. Nothing to great, but we got some nice ideas and will be setting up an evening to try some imaging with a lap top and the D400 soon to get thh focusing down. You cant believe how awesome Eta-Carina looks through the 26". You can actually see the gas lines spilling out from the core. When the guys told me at first that you could see them. I thought they had, had one to many beers, Until I looked myself and my jaw nearly fell off the platform to the floor below, I dont think I have ever seen anything like it.

We actually had a look at Omega Centauri as well. But that was a bit of a disappointment. This is only because it is so zoomed in, you cant see the edges and just see millions of stars filling the FOV :D
 
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Kalvaer said:
Eta-Carina was great and we set things up to try take a few photographs. Nothing to great, but we got some nice ideas and will be setting up an evening to try some imaging with a lap top and the D400 soon to get thh focusing down. You cant believe how awesome Eta-Carina looks through the 26". You can actually see the gas lines spilling out from the core. When the guys told me at first that you could see them. I thought they had, had one to many beers, Until I looked myself and my jaw nearly fell off the platform to the floor below, I dont think I have ever seen anything like it.

We actually had a look at Omega Centauri as well. But that was a bit of a disappointment. This is only because it is so zoomed in, you cant see the edges and just see millions of stars filling the FOV :D
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That does sound awesome! 26" worth of anything should be an amazing sight!

That description of Omega Centauri reminds me of this picture. Definitely gives you a new appreciation of the amount of stars in Omega Centauri.
 
Here is a photo of it. Its old.. but still works really well.

IMG_3263.jpg
 
Easiest is to come to the JHB-ASSA monthly meetings/talks, They usually open the dome for viewing afterwards depending on the weather.

They are held every second Wednesday of every month, Next meeting is this Wednesday. 8:00pm
 
Bondizzo said:
Hi guys, I'd like to get into astronomy and I'm thinking of picking up the following telescope

SkyQuest™ XT6 Classic Dobsonian Reflector
http://shop.technopro.co.za/skyquest™-xt6-classic-dobsonian-reflector-p-445.html

Whats the furthest planet I'll be able to see with this telescope ?

It seems like I'd need to get something like a tripod to mount the telescope, what type of tripod am I looking at ?
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Good starter telescope. With most of our telescopes, the furtherest you'll be able to see is Saturn. You may be able to see further but they will just look like dots. Check out www.cloudynights.com forum. Their users uploads pics that they take. It will give you a good idea on what to expect.
 
The XT6 is a great beginner scope and many advanced observers have one as a grab and go scope. You don't need need a tripod, it comes with the Dobsonian mount which is much more stable than any tripod.

The only planets you can actually see details on are Mars, Saturn and Jupiter - all of which will be visible in the XT6. You might be able to spot Neptune as a blueish dot.
 
Bondizzo said:
Nice so is that all I need to get started ? any accessories I should look at getting ? Does the telescope need to be powered ?
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No power needed because you are not using some sort of guiding or tracking system (which would need power). You will get 2 eyepieces with (10mm and 25mm), which is a good starting point. All you need to do is assemble the scope once. Then all you need to do is carry the scope to wherever you wanna you observe from. It's that simple :)
You'll be able to see the moon in a way you've never seen before. Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are the 3 planets you will get a look at, of which, Saturn is a stunner :)
 
Only power you need is yourself, and maybe some gluhwein now that winter is settling in.

There are tons of accessories that are nice to have, but nothing is needed. Check what Eye pieces come with the scope, and then decide after that.

EDIT: I see Merc posted the EP's that come with :) With the moon though, be warned.. Its a HELL of a lot brigher through a scope than you think and awesome to see up close
 
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