astronomy buffs

[masraum]

Originally Posted by cl8ton

I routinely cruise the Nasa Hubble pics...this is one of their latest from Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF)
The two bright spots are 10 billion light years from Earth, this is a patch of night sky that is absolutely blank when viewing from Earth.

Yeah, it's amazing. Our solar system is just a tiny little spec in the Milky Way galaxy. According to Wikipedia, the estimate for the number of stars in the Milky Way Galaxy is somewhere between 200 Billion and 400 Billion stars. They believe that the next closest galaxy, Andromeda has a Trillion stars. There are at least 25 galaxies in that photo, and that photo is a tiny little section of sky. That's a lot of galaxies, and in turn, a mind boggling number of stars.

[wcc]

Originally Posted by masraum

I'm not sure if you understood what I was talking about, so here.



Usually the focus knobs are below the focus tube, and usually the finder scope is above the focus tube.

I thought I got it but apparently not. Now I think I get it. I'll mess with it tonight and take another pic and see if I get it right this time...

[krystar]

Originally Posted by cl8ton

I routinely cruise the Nasa Hubble pics...this is one of their latest from Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF)
The two bright spots are 10 billion light years from Earth, this is a patch of night sky that is absolutely blank when viewing from Earth.

looks like there might be some gravitational lensing going on there also around the center brightest star/galaxy

[Pazuzu]

Originally Posted by masraum

Usually the focus knobs are below the focus tube, and usually the finder scope is above the focus tube.

Equatorial mounts are an absolute pain when it comes to looking through an eyepiece. One finds that one must rotate the telescope tube itself inside the straps so that the eyepiece is in a reasonable position (it's never in a comfortable position...). The focuser knobs are sometimes on top, sometimes on bottom, and sometimes sideways.

Also, balancing the thing around both axes is imperative for decent performance. There are several beginner web sites that can give you an idea how to balance it quickly and efficiently, and how to align it to the North pole so it tracks properly.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Pazuzu

Equatorial mounts are an absolute pain when it comes to looking through an eyepiece. One finds that one must rotate the telescope tube itself inside the straps so that the eyepiece is in a reasonable position (it's never in a comfortable position...). The focuser knobs are sometimes on top, sometimes on bottom, and sometimes sideways.

Also, balancing the thing around both axes is imperative for decent performance. There are several beginner web sites that can give you an idea how to balance it quickly and efficiently, and how to align it to the North pole so it tracks properly.

Yeah, that's why I got the Dob. Until I can afford a $1500 mount for some AP, the Dob is fine for me.

[motion]

If you have an iPhone, get the Pocket Universe app. Outstanding.

[looneybin]

great gallery
did anyone notice the Pelican Nebula??

[motion]

Hey, so anyone know what the "Pelican BBS" of amateur astronomy would be?

[masraum]

Originally Posted by motion

Hey, so anyone know what the "Pelican BBS" of amateur astronomy would be?

Cloudy Nights is the one that I like.

Cloudy Nights Forums

They have a Beginners forum, binoculars, home built, scope specializations, astrophotography (a whole subset of forums), etc... I think there's even a pretty active OT section.

[wcc]

Ok, rotated it and took a few more pics. I'll check out that other newbie site as well for info. Sorry about the back ground toys...

[cl8ton]

Awesome pics and advice all…

I have always been an avid Internet astronomer but think I will now buy a scope to use at our mountain cabin (elev 3200/ft CA side Sierra Mtn Range)
My favorite time at Bass Lake is midnight on the lake during the Leonid meteor shower!