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[phlyersphan]

Hello!

I came across your web site while looking for information on Comet Holmes.

I've new to astronomy in the sense that I don't own any telescopes or equipment, but I've been sky watching and star gazing since I was a little kid. My dad had a telescope and would show my brother and I different stars and planets when we were little. He has since passed away and the telescope is in disrepair, though my brother has it and hopes to someday get it fixed.

I live in Lockport, IL (just north/east of Joliet, about 35 miles southwest of Chicago). I don't yet own a telescope, though I did invest in a dSLR camera this summer and a 300mm lens. I've been having great fun taking pictures of the moon (though the light pollution around here is rather awful).

Here are my moon photos:
www.flickr.com/photos/phlyersphan/sets/72157600942096544/

And here are the photos I took of the total lunar eclipse earlier this year (good thing my cat woke me up! I had fallen asleep waiting for it!):
www.flickr.com/photos/phlyersphan/sets/72157601739685191/

I'm hoping to get some decent pictures of Comet Holmes. I've been trying all week, but I've been under cloud cover here. (Frustrating!) It looks like tonight might be the night! I hope so

As for who I am... I'm a 30-something computer geek, hockey fanatic, amateur photographer. I teach web development and other computer related things at a local college by day and watch the sky by night. I'm starting to take courses in meteorology this spring, and hope to start working weather photography and possibly storm chasing into my repertoire.

Glad to find you all!

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

Shelly,

Thank you for your first post and sharing your images right off the bat with the crew. I am pleased you did register as a member and from our email, I think you have a lot to share in amateur astronomy.

Comet Holmes loves to have it's picture taken and I think you'll do well in capturing it. It's dimming fast tho, so whenerver you catch a break in the clouds, snap away.

Hope to hear more of your astronomical experiences from Lockport.

[katodog]

Welcome to the biggest gathering of useless and worthless human minds around. We all don't have a clue what we're doing, we just kinda wing it. Nobody even really knows what Joe does, either. All I can figure out is that he went from Janitor to Telescope Operator fairly quickly, so I guess there's not too much difference in the job duties. I do know that they threw him a big party, and have retired his pointy garbage picking stick. It's in with the historical astronomy items, as Joe is about as ancient history as it gets. The good thing about the job change is that now he gets to learn new vocabulary. He's also started teaching himself Japanese.

But, all joking aside. Joe is probably the only guy who works for an observatory that doesn't take astronomical pictures. So far, he's given us pictures of him and others at just about every Adler event, and a few good rounds of a spider at his house that looked like it was big enough to eat him. Honestly, I don't even think he looks through any astronomical equipment. Well, except for the scope he's been seen with, that has the Telrad duct taped to it, and the sewer pipe Dob that looks like an old Civil War canon with a bad paint job. I do know that he's pretty fond of this junky old Nikon refractor, that looks to me like an old blowgun with feet. I've yet to see him actually use it, though. He usually just stands it up and takes pictures of himself next to it.



Okay, that's enough of the funny business. Welcome to the Chicago Astronomer. Probably one of the nicest group of people you will ever interact with. If I can stick around as long as I have, then it must be pretty good. You'll enjoy your time here, and you might even learn a few things. OR, you could teach us a few things. Hopefully, you won't have to wait too long to get a scope. Staring blankly into space is a lot more fun with a telescope. If need be, ask questions. Plenty of us have been around long enough to know how to fix telescope problems, and most are easy to deal with.

It was nice of you to share your Moon pics, and any astro pics are always welcome. I'm about to throw some of mine on from last night. The one thing you may notice is that Comet Holmes is pretty dim now. It's been getting dimmer as the days go by, and it's getting harder and harder to see, especially with the lovely light pollution we get to deal with.


So, when you get bored, or it's cloudy out, stop by here as listen to our latest ramblings, and look at our latest photos. Joe is a really nice guy, and runs a great website. You may also want to drop by the Cloudy Nights forum. Not to take anything away from Joe, but CN has a much, much larger crowd, and a lot of very knowledgeable and helpful folk.

[phlyersphan]

Thanks for the welcome, everybody!

I was able to get out last night and see Comet Holmes, finally!

I'll post the photos I got in the Comet forum, but here are a couple links

www.flickr.com/photos/phlyersphan/1940283961/

www.flickr.com/photos/phlyersphan/1940285551/

The second is just a crop of the first - I was curious what the comet would look like by itself.

I'm glad I caught it while it's still visible! My camera lens is 300mm so while it does let me get shots of moon-sized stuff, it's not the most powerful thing in the world.

I'll have to ask my brother what he thinks is wrong with my dad's old telescope. Maybe it's a simpler fix than we imagine. It sat in the basement in its crate-like storage box for years.

[katodog]

Maybe if you can let us know what kind of scope it is, and what the possible problems may be, we can help you out. I personally haven't found a telescope problem yet that I couldn't fix myself. Even when I bought my brand new 12" SCT, it had a problem. But, a little scrutiny and about two seconds with an Allen wrench fixed the problem, and I've been absolutely pleased with the scope since then. Of course, working on heavy machinery all day, and being in maintenance, for over 20 years, I know my way around a shop.


Very nice shots with the camera. Looks like you've got the astro bug, and it's only a matter of time before you have a stable full of telescopes. Watch out, though. This hobby takes not only time and knowledge, but also a tiny bit of money.

Of course, if you're buying lenses for your Canon, then you probably already know about spending money. Some of the lenses I've seen cost more than my telescope.

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

Kdog spends time at the eyepiece without a hat in the colder weather, but we love him anyway.

Shelly,

Take some shots of your telescope and post them here. Perhaps we can assist in getting it back in shape.

[phlyersphan]

I've asked my brother to dig out the telescope when he pulls his holiday tree out of the attic. (That's where the telescope is stored!) I specifically asked him to see what brand it is, and maybe a model number.

I asked what he thought was wrong with it, and he said that when he looks in the eyepiece, all he sees is black. He tried googling around a couple years back, and thought that maybe it had something to do with the mirrors inside being misaligned. As he explained this to me, though, he admitted that he had no idea if there even WERE any mirrors inside, but that it sounded that way from his google searches.

Hopefully within the next couple weeks, he'll pull it out of storage and get me some details - or better yet, maybe I can get over there and get a look at it myself and maybe snap some photos in case that would help.

And - katodog - ya know, I have this habit of picking up expensive hobbies. I've been a point-and-shoot photographer since childhood (and occasionally borrowed my dad's "good" cameras, when he'd let me). It took me until the age of 32 to be able to afford to step foot into "real" photography, and now I'm hooked - so it's to the poor house I go! (But I'll arrive with a ton of nice toys!! haha). I expect astronomy to be no different

My selection of hobbies over the years (particularly in my adult life) has led my mother to say on more than one occasion, "You're just like your father!!" I take that as a compliment! My dad was pretty cool!

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

Shelly,

I anticipate your photos of the telescope and all of us working to get it up and running...perhaps intime to catch Comet Holmes as it fades on it's way to Jupiter.