stickmaker: (Marian Holst Adamant)
Stickmaker ([personal profile] stickmaker) wrote2013-04-25 11:49 pm

Scoping Things Out

My telescope (except grey instead of red):

http://www.telescope.com/Telescopes/Cassegrain-Telescopes/Orion-StarMax-127mm-Equatorial-Maksutov-Cassegrain-Telescope/pc/-1/c/1/sc/14/p/9826.uts

Got it out tonight to look at Jupiter and the four Galilean moons. I was using the 25mm eyepiece, which gives a 61.1X magnification. Hope to try for Saturn in a few days. Will likely use the 10mm eyepiece for that.

Edit: I've had mine for a few years. I posted this because I had it out and realized that while I'd mentioned making observations I hadn't given any specifics on my instrument.

[identity profile] brotherguy.livejournal.com 2013-04-26 07:08 am (UTC)(link)
That's a lovely telescope -- just a hair larger than my 30 year old Celestron C90. A small telescope that you can carry to a dark site shows you lots more than a big telescope stuck under city lights. I hope you get a chance to carry it out into the dark!

[identity profile] stickmaker.livejournal.com 2013-04-26 01:43 pm (UTC)(link)

When I bought this I had vague plans to hold a star party at my sister's farm, but never could get the computerized controller working well enough. (Sister and brother-in-law are currently busy selling the farm prior to moving to Wyoming.) I've only used it from my own property, with city lights nearby, hills and trees. I've still seen four planets - some more than once - and several features on the Moon. If I were less lazy I could have seen a lot more by now. :-)

Clouds were too persistent to see the recent comet. Hopefully, the one approaching one will be a different story.
Edited 2013-04-26 13:44 (UTC)