October 2006 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

An appeal to SLAS members
by Chuck Hards 04 Oct '06

04 Oct '06

I would like to lobby all voting SLAS members in favor of changing the monthly meeting day from Tuesday to Thursday. This is on the current SLAS ballot just sent out, if you don't have yours already you should in a day or two. Thursday nights are the only weeknights that I have a prayer of attending any kind of meeting, due to my work schedule. I appeal to everyone with a vote to help me out if it fits with your own schedules. The change would not take place until calendar year 2007, if approved. Thanks for considering this item, and thanks for your time. C. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Which 80 mm refractor to buy?
by Michael Carnes 04 Oct '06

04 Oct '06

Hi Ann, I've heard very good things about the Orion scopes, as Chuck has verified. The scopes from William Optics are also quite highly-rated and are seductively priced. You can read about them here. http://www.william-optics.com/ Here are a couple of very good review sites. They might be helpful here and they're great for cloudy, wintry nights. http://www.cloudynights.com http://www.scopereviews.com As far as mounts go, I have a couple of thoughts. Those among us who do a lot of astrophotography might comment. Your C11 has a solid mount, except that it's alt-az. A wedge probably won't work well for a scope that heavy. But there might be software that allows you to take a zillion short exposures and then perform the field derotation before integrating the exposures. That would be great, since an 80mm scope would piggyback nicely on the C-11. I suppose you could also use the C-11 as a guide scope. But if you buy an EQ mount, take whatever load-carrying weight that's claimed for the mount and divide by 2 (3 would be better). A mount that's rated for, say 20 pounds, might carry 20 pounds without falling over. But it will shake like a Rotweiler spotting a bag full of kittens. Michael -----Original Message----- >From: Ann Blanchard <blanchard-a(a)ugs.utah.edu> >Sent: Oct 4, 2006 1:45 PM >To: utah-astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com >Subject: [Utah-astronomy] Which 80 mm refractor to buy? > >We have an 11" Celestron CPC (our first telescope purchased this June), >and we are really enjoying, but we have been thinking it would be good >to have a smaller, more portable scope, for ease of use and perhaps some >simple astrophotography. My husband, Craig has been looking at an 80 mm >refractor such as the Meade ED triplet apo (series 5000), or the Orion >ED apo, or the Celstron Onyx ED. Has anyone used these and have a >recommendation? We also don't know what would be a good, but not too >expensive equatorial mount for a refractor. Thanks for any advice you >have, when you are just starting, there are so many choices, it's hard >to know what might be best. > >_______________________________________________ >Utah-Astronomy mailing list >Utah-Astronomy(a)mailman.xmission.com >http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy >Visit the Photo Gallery: http://www.utahastronomy.com

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new comet with old technology
by daniel turner 03 Oct '06

03 Oct '06

David Levy has bagged yet another comet in the morning sky near Regulus. He did it with a 16" newtonian and using his very own eyeball. Not on the news wires yet but it is 2006t1. DT __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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(no subject)
by Tyler Allred 03 Oct '06

03 Oct '06

Hello all. I decided to reprocess my recently posted image of the Pacman Nebula, NGC281. I was able to tease out lots more detail in the dim areas of the nebula. Take a look and let me know what you think. Do you like it better than the first? Did I push it too far? Here is the link to the small version of the new image. As always, click the small version for a full resolution version. http://tinyurl.com/k45e4 Here is a link to the earlier version. http://tinyurl.com/m2beu Clear Skies to all! Thanks, Tyler _____________________________________________

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Question about Pit 'N Pole
by Olhomorto＠aol.com 02 Oct '06

02 Oct '06

When I consider Pit 'N Pole, Lakeside, and the gravel quarry I find each has benefits and deficiencies. I like the gravel quarry the best because it has the least amount of light polution panning from the northeast toward the south, which is where I tend to point my telescope the most. (And I like the dog that shows up from time to time.) For me, living in Sugar House, it's more easily accessible, too. I enjoy Lakeside (alot) because it feels remote and I can live with the glow from Salt Lake, even though it comes from the east.) Pit 'N Pole seems to have the most light polution in combination from Salt Lake and Utah valleys. I don't like the lights from Tooele, Stockton, and other minor sources, but they don't really obscure my viewing all that much. Mike B

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Re: [Utah-astronomy] Question about Pit 'N Pole
by Michael Carnes 02 Oct '06

02 Oct '06

Where's Lakeside? >If I were driving that much, I'd just as soon go to >Lakeside. > The road to Lone Rock in Skull Valley is better, in my opinion, than Rush Valley. Light pollution from SLC isn't too bad, and is mainly blocked by a couple of ranges in between. There's a little bit of light right on the deck from I-80, but there's not as much as you might think. Biggest problem with that site in the midsummer is dust--it's awful. Spring and late summer are pretty good.

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M-31
by Patrick Wiggins 01 Oct '06

01 Oct '06

M-31. 100 15" exposures w/ST-10XME & 300mm f/5.6 camera lens. Lightly processed with Photoshop. http://www.trilobyte.net/paw/slas/patrickw/PATRICKW1014.JPG If anyone want to play with the files used to create this image just let me know and I'll temporarily post them to the web. pw

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Big bino notes
by Chuck Hards 30 Sep '06

30 Sep '06

While most of the imported 15x70mm binos available are all the same model (Celestron, Barska, Oberwerk, Galileo, Bear, Brunton), with only minor, mostly cosmetic differences, I find the Galileos to have the "heaviest" rubber "armor", along with the multi-coatings that not all have. Generally the best combination of fit and finish- and I have owned them all. Some of the others are available for less money, but I noticed tonight that the Galileo brand is still listed at Apogee: http://www.apogeeinc.com/product.asp?itemid=650&catid=32 For good looks, the Galileo ties with the Brunton edition, IMO. I also noticed that Apogee's 20x100mm binos have the same true field as the 25x100mm model- 3 degrees. This helps affirm my choice to go with the 25x100mm units. A higher power at the same true field means a larger apparent field- and a shot at better contrast. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com

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Saturday Night Observing
by Olhomorto＠aol.com 30 Sep '06

30 Sep '06

Is anyone interested in observing at a site such as the gravel quarry after moonset tonight? Mike

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