Astronomy

Talk about everything but gaming in here!

Moderators: pilonv1, Juzbuffa

Post Reply
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Astronomy

Post by Misly »

A heads up thread for any astronomy events.

A total lunar eclipse will take place on June 16, 2011. It is the first of two total such eclipses in 2011, the second occurring on December 10.

This is a relatively rare lunar eclipse where the center point of Earth's shadow is on the disk. The last time a lunar eclipse was closer to the center of the earth's shadow was on July 16, 2000. The next central total lunar eclipse will be on July 27, 2018.

Will be interesting to see how much of an effect the volcanic ash high in the atmosphere has the colour of the moon-in-shadow.

For the eastern states:
  • Eclipse begins at 4.20am on June 16th
  • Total lunar eclipse begins at 5.19am
  • Its a long one with total lunar eclipse ending at 7am
  • Then lunar eclipse ending at 8.05am
First astronomy event to try out my new 15 x 70 binoculars! Lets hope the clouds fuck off!
:rock:
User avatar
General Chaos
Beano's Minion
Beano's Minion
Posts: 8102
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 08:59 am
Location: Hobart

Re: Astronomy

Post by General Chaos »

Get the tripod and the camera out? Nah too cold, need sleep.
User avatar
itch
Very Regular Member
Very Regular Member
Posts: 3208
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:08 am

Re: Astronomy

Post by itch »

So yeah. I'm awake in the middle of the night. Again.

Might as well check out this eclipse...


It even starts at 4:20, which is rad. How can I -not- vape a bowl of weed for this?

Apparently it will turn red as well. I wonder if the Australian illuminati will sacrifice any virgins tonight.


Image
Fuckit, maybe I'll stay home from work tomorrow... get this fucken PC fixed or something...
-------------------------------------
User avatar
itch
Very Regular Member
Very Regular Member
Posts: 3208
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:08 am

Re: Astronomy

Post by itch »

So... sitting alone, stoned in the paddock on a wee tarp in the dew soaked grass. Moon is hypnotizing me. Night creatures are being spooky. Moon is decidedly not red. I'm drinking a cranberry extraction with a pint of soda water, lemon and a half shot of voddy.

doing my schedule for the next week on the droid. And writing the email for my boss tomorrow... Surprised i get wifi way out here.
-------------------------------------
User avatar
itch
Very Regular Member
Very Regular Member
Posts: 3208
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:08 am

Re: Astronomy

Post by itch »

Wow, it's really mesmerizing, vague redness. Just past half eclipsed. Hearing more animals now. Could be stonedness, or maybe they are getting ready for work. Half expecting to bump into Satan. I wonder if he can fix my guitar skills.
-------------------------------------
User avatar
itch
Very Regular Member
Very Regular Member
Posts: 3208
Joined: 05 Jul 2006 01:08 am

Re: Astronomy

Post by itch »

Ok just realised im seeing tons of shooting stars moon almost completely red/black. awesome
-------------------------------------
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Late and deliriously tired, so I made this vid:
Also took this photo of the moon with my mobile phone and binoculars (cropped and rotated):

Image

Ever try holding mobile phone up to binoculars and get a steady shot. Well its bloody hard! The Moon's seas are easily visable. Shadows and craters can be seen on the right edge.
:rock:
User avatar
Burnzoire
A mayn mayn MAN!
Posts: 3332
Joined: 13 Nov 2009 12:14 pm
XBL ID: Burnzoire
Steam ID: Burnzoire
Location: Melbourne

Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

Nice vid mate. Love that song \m/

I've been wanting to get a new telescope but can't afford it right now. I've got a cheap 60mm refractor which is ok for seeing saturns rings and jupiter's moons but not much else - is it worth getting a barlow lense to get a bit more out of it, or just save up for a dobsonian or something?
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

I have been looking at the 10 inch Skywatcher Goto Dobsonian. Going by the reviews I have read, these new Goto Dobsonian have a half decent auto tracking to compensate for the Earths rotation. This staggered dobsonian mount goto tracking is okay for viewing and automatically locating 1000's of objects, but shit for taking photos (eg long exposure of deep space objects). The traditional mounts auto track smooth / far better for photography, but cost 2-3 times more.

A Barlow lens is totally worth it depending on the magnification calculation of your telescopes specs and the eyepieces you own. Here is a handy calculator: http://www.davidpaulgreen.com/tec.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Remember that huge magnification may not be ideal for your 60mm aperture telescope. On the box, or specs, a telescope marketing material may claim to be capable of 600 x magnification, but thats hype. More on that here. About 2 x the aperture mm for a rough idea of decent magnification limit. So 60mm is about 120 x magnification. You wouldnt want a Barlow to take it too far past that. So I'd definatly recomend saving up for Dobsonian for more aperture.

A great place to buy from is Andrews telescopes. Shit website here, but their prices significantly craps all over the others. The Skywatcher 10 inch Go-To Dobsonian currently listed at $1399 and the same Skywatcher 10 inch Donsonian without Go-To is $899. At high magnification the rotation of the Earth is exagerated so you are going to want the Go-To version. This saves you constantly adjusting the telescope becuase what you are viewing moves out of frame / view every 30 seconds. Also makes things far far easier to locate. The 10 inch is the aperture sweet spot for me. If I was hardly ever going to move my telescope around, I would save a bit more and go the 12 inch or higher. 10 inch is still biggish to lug around, but doable and quick to set up so I am prepared to put up with that for the increased aperature over an 8 inch...

But at the moment I only have my 15 x 70 Binoculars - The family telescope my grandfather built is interstate so thats why I wanna get a new Dobsonian!

This morning (3.20am 24/07) Jupiter was near the Moon. I saw 2 of the 4 Galilean moons of Jupiter. Checking online confirmed that I saw Callisto and Europa. Ganymede was too close to Jupiter from Earths perspective for me to make out and Io was behind Jupiter.

Mobile phone camera full digital zoom - No Binoculars
Image

I got some great Moon crater detail photos with my mobile phone and binoculars (considering no tripod, no moon filters, mobile phone camera lol -
But hey, I am taking photos of the craters on the moon with my mobile phone!).

Image
:rock:
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Tonight (28/07) and tomorrow night (29/07) are the best nights to view the annual Southern Delta Aquariids meteor shower. This shower is considered a strong shower, with an average meteor observation rate of 15–20 per hour (away from light pollution - I wonder when we will get the light pollution tax). Earth is flying through comets reminants. Great viewing for us in the Southern hemisphere. Look towards Aquarius.
:rock:
User avatar
Burnzoire
A mayn mayn MAN!
Posts: 3332
Joined: 13 Nov 2009 12:14 pm
XBL ID: Burnzoire
Steam ID: Burnzoire
Location: Melbourne

Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

Nice one misly, that really interests me. I might have to start a fund towards one of those. I'd really love it if you made a video when you you get it to give me an idea what to expect. So the movement of stars out of frame is all earth rotation and not just my scope being unbalanced? D'oh, noob alert! I'll keep that in mind, knowing that might help me compensate more easily.
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Been years since I used a telescope and when I did, my amateur astronomer Uncle was in control, so I am a noob as well with the big telescopes. A recent gift of astromony binoculars has re-sparked my interest. I am setting myself up to move back to the country and I want my future kids to have access to the wonders a telescope can bring - like I did when I was growing up.

I dont know about your telescope being unbalanced (maybe collimation), but as the Earth rotates, if you have a manual telescope, you have to keep adjusting where it is pointing to compensate for the rotation, otherwise what you are viewing moves out of the telescopes field of view. Take last night for example. I was viewing Jupiter with my binoculars on a large tripod (finally saw all four Galilean moons). I was also watching out for the shooting stars of the meteor shower. It would only take a couple of minutes for Jupiter and its moons to move out of my Binoculars view, so I had to keep adjusting where the binoculars were pointing. With a large telescope and higher magnification, the Earths rotation will be far more obvious, it can be a matter of 10's of seconds before you have to readjust your telescope again and again. The better value for money Dobsonian telescopes have not been known for Go-To auto tracking capabilities because unlike tradition mounts, they have just recently developed Go-To auto tracking for dobsonian mounts, And because the way dobsonian mounts move around, it is staggered tracking, not the smooth tracking of traditional mounts.

So I think that paying extra for Dobsonian Auto Go-To tracking is worth it. Not only will you have the compensation for the Earths rotation and a large apeture newtonain telescope for half the price of traditional mounted newtonian telescopes. You can dial up tens of thousands of interesting objects in the universe to view and the telescope will point to it automatically - saving you stuffing around spending hours looking for objects and increasing the number of objects you can view in a shorter time. With the Skywatcher series I linked to in my earlier post, if you bump the telescope, or move it manually, the tracking software takes this into account and compensates, so you dont have to calibrate over and over again.

It will be a 3 months till I get my Go-To Skywatcher Dobsonian - unless I crack and buy it sooner... But when I do I'll throw a vid together. Meanwhile check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW8nRe_-LyE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; (marketing crap but good indicator of sizes / features) and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IU1UImyv" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... re=related (10 inch non go-to)

Anyway this post is getting too long - GameHED style!

Review of the 12 inch goto Skywatcher Dobsonian (PDF) (I want the ten inch telescope)
Bunch of Australia related handy links here

Plenty of handy online tools within a short google (long google?) One example is this handy live Jupiter moon tracker.
:rock:
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

"August 12, 13 - Perseids Meteor Shower. The Perseids is one of the best meteor showers to observe, producing up to 60 meteors per hour at their peak. The shower's peak usually occurs on August 13 & 14, but you may be able to see some meteors any time from July 23 - August 22. The radiant point for this shower will be in the constellation Perseus. The full moon will definitely be a problem this year, hiding the fainter meteors with its glare. But with up to 60 meteors per hour possible, it could still be a great show"

Look north.
:rock:
User avatar
Burnzoire
A mayn mayn MAN!
Posts: 3332
Joined: 13 Nov 2009 12:14 pm
XBL ID: Burnzoire
Steam ID: Burnzoire
Location: Melbourne

Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

ty!

Damn! Cloud/fog down here. Not a star in the sky ;(
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Finally ordered my 10 inch Skymaster Goto Dobsonian with a few accessories:

13mm Baader Hyperion eye piece (Telescope comes with okay, but cheap 10mm and 25mm eye pieces)
GSO 2 x barlow to double the number of my eye pieces (turns 13mm into 6.5, 10mm into 5mm and 25 into 12.5mm)
Moon filter
ACS laser collaminator

I pick up next Thursday!

I will play with it and try not to break it until I meet up with Uncle over xmas who will show me how to use it! As promised I plan on making a video for youtube showing things I am curious about seeing now and cant find videos for!
:rock:
User avatar
Burnzoire
A mayn mayn MAN!
Posts: 3332
Joined: 13 Nov 2009 12:14 pm
XBL ID: Burnzoire
Steam ID: Burnzoire
Location: Melbourne

Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

ah I am so damn jealous! Nice work mate, look forward to pics & video!
User avatar
Shaneus
Rank AAA
Rank AAA
Posts: 9058
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 06:33 am
XBL ID: Shaneus
PSN ID: Shaneus2k2
Steam ID: Shaneus2k2
Location: Geelong

Re: Astronomy

Post by Shaneus »

Carl Sagan is awesome.
Image
Image
User avatar
Burnzoire
A mayn mayn MAN!
Posts: 3332
Joined: 13 Nov 2009 12:14 pm
XBL ID: Burnzoire
Steam ID: Burnzoire
Location: Melbourne

Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

correct! I've just finished a Cosmos marathon... that stuff is 35+ years old and still spot on
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Got my new toy. Was ikea style and easy to set up. Have only just set it up inside - bloody cloudy for the rest of the week...

A little noisy if you care about that. Moves very smooth and also easy to push around manually. So many options such as guided tours based on your location and tens of thousands of deep space objects to dial up. Tracks your manual movements, so you dont have to re-align the goto tracking. Very impressed with what I have seen so far, but I still havnt used it as a telescope yet :(

Image

Image

Video
:rock:
User avatar
Burnzoire
A mayn mayn MAN!
Posts: 3332
Joined: 13 Nov 2009 12:14 pm
XBL ID: Burnzoire
Steam ID: Burnzoire
Location: Melbourne

Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

What a beast!!
User avatar
stanard
Very Regular Member
Very Regular Member
Posts: 2256
Joined: 27 Oct 2006 05:19 pm
XBL ID: shimma
PSN ID: shimma1138
Steam ID: stanard
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by stanard »

How much does something like that cost?

Edit: don't worry, read your earlier post. That's pretty good actually, not knowing anything about telescopes looking at that one I would've thought it be a couple of thousand. Nice, would love to get into Astronomy properly one day.
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Price for the Skywatcher 10 inch GOTO Dobsonian went up to $1499 since that post. However Andrews Communication / Telescopes (looooooooooong scroll down) is still great value when you compare to Bintel ($1,699) and Australian Telescope Supplies ($1,819) for exactly the same telescope.

Dobsonians move around with a bit of resistance and a balancing act. So when you plug in a premium heavy eye piece and other bits such as a barlow, you have to compensate by adding weight to the other end. I am using a ball of blu-tac!

Dobsonians are great value. If you want the same telescope without the GOTO, its has been reduced to $749 (since my earlier post).

So everyone at work is blaming me for this long drawn out thick cloudy Sydney weather. Melbourne is teasing me with sunshine. I buy a telescope, and I'm itching to use it, but now the forecast has extended these thick cloudy conditions till after the weekend! Lucky I have Skyrim to keep me sane...
:rock:
User avatar
Shaneus
Rank AAA
Rank AAA
Posts: 9058
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 06:33 am
XBL ID: Shaneus
PSN ID: Shaneus2k2
Steam ID: Shaneus2k2
Location: Geelong

Re: Astronomy

Post by Shaneus »

Holy FUCK. I had no idea you could buy telescopes that size/complexity for home use. Well done, if only at least for the commitment.
Image
Image
User avatar
Misly
Blackened is the end
Posts: 1069
Joined: 03 Sep 2006 05:49 pm
XBL ID: Misly
Location: Sydney

Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Misly wrote:Dobsonians move around with a bit of resistance and a balancing act. So when you plug in a premium heavy eye piece and other bits such as a barlow, you have to compensate by adding weight to the other end. I am using a ball of blu-tac!
Here is a comparison pic to illustrate the point about weight.

10mm 'pack in' eyepiece, then 13mm 'premium' eyepiece and then 8mm 'premium' eyepiece plugged into the 2 x Barlow:

Image

The dobsonian 'balancing act' will handle the weight of the premium eye piece by itself, but when I use the barlow, its just a little too much weight. I have to use a blu-tac counter weight, otherwise when the telescope is pointing about 110 degrees from the ground (about same angle as the telescope pic earlier post) it loses balance and cant hold position.

One good thing about these cloudy skies is that I learn a liitle bit while playing in the comfort of inside!
:rock:
User avatar
t0mby
Cheats
Posts: 20495
Joined: 04 Jul 2006 01:09 am
XBL ID: GenerationX 360
PSN ID: Weak_Spot
Steam ID: Gen X
Location: 3700
Contact:

Re: Astronomy

Post by t0mby »

Man that price seems fantastic for what you got compared to some plane telescopes I've seen around here. Really looking forward to your vids.


Actually, now I'm posting, did anyone hear of that asteroid that was supposed to pass between the Earth and the Moon earlier this month? Astrologists had been predicting it for months, think it was around 11th Nov. Then, heard it was imminent within around 36hrs on the radio then nothing. Apparently only viewable from Europe when it happened.
selfish wrote:Being a massive fanboy and trying to hide it is Lestat's worst bottleneck.
Image
Post Reply