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Webster Telescopes Forum :: View topic - Seeing and Sketching
Webster Telescopes Forum
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Seeing and Sketching
http://webstertelescopes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=629
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Author:  observer70nrs [ Wed Sep 26, 2012 4:40 pm ]
Post subject:  Seeing and Sketching

Hi all, I have never looked through a webster telescope or any really large scope, the biggest I 've ever used was a lightbridge 16. I am curious as to what you actually see through the eyepiece. I've done many great things under heavily light polluted skies with a 70mm refractor. I want big aperture, but I feel that I will constantly want more and more aperture.
For example, on an oridinary night at my house, the milky way can NEVER be seen, or even glimpsed. However, a 30 minute drive to mount baldy will show off the Milky way quite well. I also sketch celestial objects. My dream would to not be able to sketch an object because there is so much detail.
I want to see so much with my telescopes, but there are many things that keep me from doing so. back in august, M20 (Trifid Nebula) was in a prime position to be observed. Even in an Orion 14 inch dob, I can barely see it at all, and that's frustrating because I 've seen countless gorgeous sketches with a 6 inch reflector.
What does this mean? Does dark skies make that much of a difference? HELP!

Author:  Eric [ Tue Oct 02, 2012 8:39 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Seeing and Sketching

1. You are always going to want a larger telescope. We call that "aperture fever" and there is no known cure.

2. Larger scopes show both a brighter image AND a more detailed image.

3. Larger scopes can use filters that would make the image too dim in a smaller scope. There are some objects that really can't be seen without a filter.

When you hear people say "I tried an O3 filter, but it made the image too dark to see anything" you know they did not try it in a 22 inch telescope, that's for sure!

4. One popular demonstration is to look for the Veil Nebula in a 10" scope under light polluted skies; with or without a filter, it can not be seen at all.

Next, look through a big scope and with an O3 filter (pronounced " Oh-three") and there it is.

So larger scopes let us use filters to help block some of the light pollution.

5. The darker the observing site, the bigger the rewards. If you have a dark site only 30 minutes from your home, you are truly blessed!

6. Really big telescopes start to show color in many nebula.

7. The CONTRAST of an image has much to do with the quality of the polish on the mirror. High quality American mirrors will give more contrasty views with darker backgrounds. Poorly polished mirrors or mirrors with a Turned Down Edge (a common problem with inexpensive mirrors) will have grey backgrounds that wash out the details.


So to sum it up, for great viewing you want a big scope, under dark skies, with a finely polished/figured mirror, and some O3 or UHC filters.

Author:  BlueRidge [ Tue Nov 13, 2012 8:19 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Seeing and Sketching

Hopefully you will get the chance to look through a large aperture scope. Just a word of caution - almost everyone in our club now has a large scope because they looked through someone else's first and said "gotta get a big dob"!

If you have dark skies, or at least easy access, then you are blessed. Nothing can make up for dark skies (clear,transparent is next, followed by good seeing if you are doing planetary viewing).

Filters help a great deal on nebula. And yes, you need bigger scopes to be able to take advantage of them. Your view of the ever-faint Trifid would be superb in a large scope (18" or bigger).

My advice is to start with a small, manageable scope that you can learn from, use it and see how much you like the hobby. If you're like most of us, you'll soon be hooked. I have a friend my age that has been observing since age 9- that's almost 44 years!!!

Author:  observer70nrs [ Sun Nov 18, 2012 5:54 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Seeing and Sketching

BlueRidge and Eric,
Thanks for the reply and advice, I will take them into consideration. What do you classify as a "smaller" scope? I am actually building a 4 inch f/12 ( see my progress on my personal astronomy blog). Thanks again.

Justin
theyoungastronomer.wordpress.com

Author:  BlueRidge [ Wed Nov 28, 2012 9:17 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Seeing and Sketching

Kind of hard for me to answer, because I have a 24" dob, and I don't consider it super large any more. I'm guessing anything over 16" starts to get into the 'large' category.

I'll look at your blog.....

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