So Ali read my mind and got me a kick ass telescope for my birthday this year, the Orion XT6. Something I have always been interested in, but I never really followed through. The telescope is awesome, but like buying a new DVD player that comes with crappy cables, the telescope comes with a very basic eyepiece that gave me okay optics at 48x power. Initially, this eyepiece was great, as I saw all kind of cool stuff. However, after a bit of research, I just bought a fancy new zoom eyepiece that is considered the best available zoom. It goes from 50x, 60x, 75x, 100x to 150x. I also got a magnifier attachment to double each of these powers. Below is pictued the massive new eyepiece on the left, with the right eyepiece similar to the one I have.
So tonight was the first clear night since I got my new zoom. I took a nap, and then stayed up late to test it out. It was nothing short of amazing! I had great views of Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter. I looked at some moon craters CLOSE UP, and even saw a few shooting stars. My big failure was trying to find the Andromeda Galaxy. I'll keep working at it! From time to time, I will share my cool pics with you as I learn how to do it a little better. Here's my first few. Click on each pic for the original sized photo.
This first pic was taken in May with my original eyepiece at 48x. The rings of Saturn can clearly be seen. Right now, they are edge on to Earth, so they are not as dramatic. I couldn't take a picture of Saturn today with my new eyepiece because it set too early in the night.
This is my new eyepiece at 100x. Look at the cloud detail!!! The colors are amazing. The Great Red Spot is on the opposite side to Earth right now, so you can't see it.
The second pic, I tried to really zoom in at 200x. Gets a little blurry because it's so hot and humid, making the atmosphere thick. When the weather cools off a bit, it shoudl be crystal clear.
This last pic is at 60x. If you click it and look closely, you can see a little blip next to Jupiter. That's the moon, Io, rising over the planet! They didn't show up in this picture, but I could clearly see Calysto, Io, Europa and Ganymede lined up in a row around Jupiter.
So Ali read my mind and got me a kick ass telescope for my birthday this year, the Orion XT6. Something I have always been interested in, but I never really followed through. The telescope is awesome, but like buying a new DVD player that comes with crappy cables, the telescope comes with a very basic eyepiece that gave me okay optics at 48x power. Initially, this eyepiece was great, as I saw all kind of cool stuff. However, after a bit of research, I just bought a fancy new zoom eyepiece that is considered the best available zoom. It goes from 50x, 60x, 75x, 100x to 150x. I also got a magnifier attachment to double each of these powers. Below is pictued the massive new eyepiece on the left, with the right eyepiece similar to the one I have.
So tonight was the first clear night since I got my new zoom. I took a nap, and then stayed up late to test it out. It was nothing short of amazing! I had great views of Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter. I looked at some moon craters CLOSE UP, and even saw a few shooting stars. My big failure was trying to find the Andromeda Galaxy. I'll keep working at it! From time to time, I will share my cool pics with you as I learn how to do it a little better. Here's my first few. Click on each pic for the original sized photo.
This first pic was taken in May with my original eyepiece at 48x. The rings of Saturn can clearly be seen. Right now, they are edge on to Earth, so they are not as dramatic. I couldn't take a picture of Saturn today with my new eyepiece because it set too early in the night.
This is my new eyepiece at 100x. Look at the cloud detail!!! The colors are amazing. The Great Red Spot is on the opposite side to Earth right now, so you can't see it.
The second pic, I tried to really zoom in at 200x. Gets a little blurry because it's so hot and humid, making the atmosphere thick. When the weather cools off a bit, it shoudl be crystal clear.
This last pic is at 60x. If you click it and look closely, you can see a little blip next to Jupiter. That's the moon, Io, rising over the planet! They didn't show up in this picture, but I could clearly see Calysto, Io, Europa and Ganymede lined up in a row around Jupiter.
2 comments:
Alan: When's the next Halley's Comet?
Stu: I don't think it's for like another 60 years.
Alan: But it's not tonight, right?
This is my new eyepiece at 100x. Look at the cloud detail!!! The colors are amazing. The Great Red Spot is on the opposite side to Earth right now, so you can't see it.
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