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Any of You Speedy Freaks into Telescopes or Astronomy?

tpatta
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Here is the outside of my observatory. Obviously can't use it in the snow, but......
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And here is one of the telescopes inside........
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Professor
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Well too much overcast earlier and snow tonight so no joy re Christmas star here. On the positive side there's a good chance of viewing the wall of fire on the horizon from tomorrows asteroid strikes. There should be several minutes of prime viewing before the shockwaves hit.
 
befobe
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DSC_4047.JPG


My phone, in my very old C8!... (Guess you recognized M42, Orion)
 
Dsloan
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befobe befobe
DSC_4047.JPG


My phone, in my very old C8!... (Guess you recognized M42, Orion)

The only nebula I can really see in my light polluted skies!
 
befobe
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Jones in LA Jones in LA
I've spent a wee bit of time with telescopes (and Speedmasters). Here's my story:
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
 
calalum
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Any advice on getting a new Celestron 8 or 9.25, including alternatives, options to get, etc.? Have a great dark sky location for it. This will be my third telescope but first in quite a while. Thanks all.
 
Jones in LA
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The diameters you’re considering are at an excellent crossing of capability and portability. This is where many globular star clusters start to be “seeable”, for example. The 9.25 will give you 1/3 more light gathering capability with only a modest increase in bulk and weight. I would skip a GPS add on, as you can get location and time from your phone (or Google Earth beforehand if you’re going to a place without cell service). The telescope you buy will likely come with a couple of eyepieces, and I’d just go with them for a while as you learn which magnification and Field-of-View combos work best for the things you’re interested in observing. Then you can spring for higher quality eyepieces (expensive and worth it). Ultimately, the quality of your experience comes down to the quality of the eyepieces (and for the record, Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes have excellent native optics).
 
YYTIN
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Hi there,

I can really find anything here in OF. Like that ! Thanks for sharing those stories.

I did search "astronomy" and found this thread as I'm intending to start looking up at the sky 😀

I've none experience of any telescope ever (feel shameful saying so, but that's it). I vividly remember dreaming about stars, constellations, space when I was a kid but mainly through books... only being amazed as everyone is when looking at the sky on a clear summer night.

I'm now willing to get a telescope mainly to go out - hopefully getting my kids interested in it too, they are 5 and 8 years old. I'm living in a house in a medium city : I could try watching the sky from here as the lights around are not the ones of a capital for sure, but I'm also having in mind to go in the nearby national park (1/2 hour drive from my place) during warm summer nights and enjoy a time out and some space observation.
Not intending to take pictures though.

What would you advise to start with ? One telescope that I could bring along and walk with for 1hour... I check the celestron 8 and 9.25 you are mentioning but apart from the price which I guess is a little bit high to start a hobby I am wondering if even the 12Kg of the C8 is not too much. Any recommendation from you more knowledgeable ones ?

Thanks
 
tpatta
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Take a look at the Celestron Nexstar5. Small, lightweight and easily transportable. Great optics and a GoTo system built in for easy object location. Under 800USD. Happy stargazing.
Edited:
 
YYTIN
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tpatta tpatta
Take a look at the Celestron Nexstar5. Small, lightweight and easily transportable. Great optics and a GoTo system built in for easy object location. Under 800USD. Happy stargazing.
Thanks. This looks great !
I'll do that 😀
 
SpeedyPhill
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Amazing homemade reflector up for auction !
Initially built in 1944, Clyde Tombaugh's homemade "Grazzer Gazzer", a 26 cm reflector with hand grinded mirror in a tube, rebuild in 1985 upon a disused lawn mower chassis, coming up for auction May 19 - 20.
As an amateur astronomer, Tombaugh constructed a dozen reflectors and worked as a volunteer at Flagstaff Observatory in Arizona.
In February 1930, Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto using the 33 cm astrograph blink comparator at Flagstaff observatory and he is officially credited by the Minor Planet Center with discovering 15 asteroids!
(Photos: Heritage auctions)
#Astronomy #Pluto #SidewalkAstronomy #Telescope
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1944_20cm_Tombaugh.jpeg 1944_25cm_GrazzerGazzer_Tombaugh.jpg
 
ghce
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Always had a life long interest in astronomy and in my early years had intended to grind a 12 inch mirror and construct the rest but at that age ( 11 years old) was unable to find a decent peice of glass locally, by the time I did find a good source for glass puberty had kicked in and other things held my interest 😁 though I had amassed quite an extensive knowledge base on the how to front of building mirrors.
I still am interested in building a large mirror but would be of a large segmented design.
 
Dsloan
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SpeedyPhill SpeedyPhill
Amazing homemade reflector up for auction !
Initially built in 1944, Clyde Tombaugh's homemade "Grazzer Gazzer", a 26 cm reflector with hand grinded mirror in a tube, rebuild in 1985 upon a disused lawn mower chassis, coming up for auction May 19 - 20.
As an amateur astronomer, Tombaugh constructed a dozen reflectors and worked as a volunteer at Flagstaff Observatory in Arizona.
In February 1930, Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto using the 33 cm astrograph blink comparator at Flagstaff observatory and he is officially credited by the Minor Planet Center with discovering 15 asteroids!
(Photos: Heritage auctions)
#Astronomy #Pluto #SidewalkAstronomy #Telescope
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1944_20cm_Tombaugh.jpeg 1944_25cm_GrazzerGazzer_Tombaugh.jpg

If only I had room for that! But, I also feel like it really deserves to be in a museum.
 
SpeedyPhill
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Halley's comet
The Bayeux tapistry is a 70 m long embroidered cloth depicting the 1066 Norman conquest of England. It also shows the very first clear depiction of Halley's comet, which has a period of 75.5 years, as an omen in the skies.
Istimirant Stella = Men wondering at the star !
Halley's Comet reached its farthest point from the Sun on December 8, 2023. It is now heading sunward and will be visible again in 2061.
(Photo: SpeedyPhill MWU)
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BAYEUX.jpg
 
pdxleaf
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SpeedyPhill SpeedyPhill
Halley's comet

... It is now heading sunward and will be visible again in 2061.

Speak for yourself...😁
 
SpeedyPhill
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NASA JPL Voyager pins
In 2023, NASA's unmanned Voyager 2 spacecraft overtook unmanned Pioneer 10 as the second farthest spacecraft leaving our Solar System !
Late 1970s & 1980s Voyager pins - collection
Note ""Goodbye SATURN"" inversed reads ""Hello URANUS""
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NASA_TimHogle.jpg NASA_Voyager_Planets.jpg
 
krogerfoot
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We recently began spending weekends and holidays out in the mountains and I was idly wondering where I might pick up a cheap telescope. I walked into our local resale shop and encountered this one, listed as “junk” and priced at roughly US$8. I’ve got a lot to learn about how to use it but I finally managed to get a glimpse of Jupiter this evening, killing time waiting for the New Year to finally arrive so we can all go to bed.

IMG_1590.jpeg
 
pdxleaf
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krogerfoot krogerfoot
We recently began spending weekends and holidays out in the mountains and I was idly wondering where I might pick up a cheap telescope. I walked into our local resale shop and encountered this one, listed as “junk” and priced at roughly US$8. I’ve got a lot to learn about how to use it but I finally managed to get a glimpse of Jupiter this evening, killing time waiting for the New Year to finally arrive so we can all go to bed.

IMG_1590.jpeg


Happy New Year my friend!
 
krogerfoot
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pdxleaf pdxleaf
Happy New Year my friend!
¡Igualmente, amigo! We look forward to hosting you at our astroturfed mountain estate.
2024.01.01 0:05 am
 
Dsloan
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krogerfoot krogerfoot
We recently began spending weekends and holidays out in the mountains and I was idly wondering where I might pick up a cheap telescope. I walked into our local resale shop and encountered this one, listed as “junk” and priced at roughly US$8. I’ve got a lot to learn about how to use it but I finally managed to get a glimpse of Jupiter this evening, killing time waiting for the New Year to finally arrive so we can all go to bed.

IMG_1590.jpeg

Nice! How dark are the skies up there? I'm in a major city, so all I can really see with an 8" dob are planets.
 
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