Post by Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe on Nov 3, 2009 3:12:12 GMT -6
Full Moon Four Telescope Shootout
- 02 November 2009 -
- 02 November 2009 -
I thought I would do some Lunar imaging this Hunter/Beaver Full Moon of November, using the C5...but...it was a nice evening and quite clear out...
so I brought out three scopes....
From left to right: 4.5" Newtonian, (Kick-around scope), 5" Celestron SCT, and the Mighty Nikon 4" refractor
I wanted to do a "Shoot-out" between my different telescopes, using the same 25mm eyepiece and comparing them together on the lunar views.
The Moon was rising nicely over my neighbors roofs and I was ready for an evening of testing scopes and lunar imaging...
But...
I felt this would be a good night to drag out the cumbersome 8" "sewer Pipe" Dobsonian and include it in the shoot out...
I got it from the Adler, after they no longer wanted it and was taking up space. I don't know who constructed it or the history of it, but it is VERY heavy and clumsy. I included it among the scope armada...and then there were four...
So now, we had a: 4.5" Newtonian on a Alt/Az mount, 5" Schmidt-Cassegrain on an EQ, 4" refractor on an EQ and a 8" Newtonian on a Dobsonian mount.
Telescopes are like magnets, I had many neighbors and passerbys stop by and ask what was going on - and similar to my Adler activities, showed them the Moon and Jupiter, (which only had three Moons visible this evening.)...
Although I wanted to compare the the qualities of the scopes and weight the pros and cons of each, I do enjoy talking astronomy with people and sharing with them them the sights. Questions about the Oceans on Europa, why we never see the otherside of the Moon and how many Satellites Jupiter has were some of the many questions I fielded this evening. But in between visitors, I was able to shoot some images of the Moon...
In the commotion of attending to the visitors, I have forgotten which shots are thru which scopes, (which was my goal for the evening), but the first one was taken thru the 60mm finder scope on the 4.5" reflector.
Full Moons are nice to look at, but very one dimensional, washed out optically and flat...but near the limbs, sometimes one can catch the few hours old post Full Moon objects.
I was catching Rimae Petavius just on the edge of the lunar limb and viewed at a acute angle...
As a comparison to established images...
...I think it is correct. Next time I'll bring a lunar atlas with me.
I also got a nice head on shot of Copernicus...
56 miles in diameter and great ejecta rays.
It was about 10:00 pm now, have been at it for three hours and done for the night. I did swap out the finderscopes on scopes this evening. Even tho, I like the 63.5mm finder scope that I recently restored a lot, it's still a .096 one...and difficult to attach a camera to...
I took the 60mm finderscope off the 4.5 reflector, (which is 1 1/4), and installed it on the C5 for now. Maybe I can swap out the focusers....!
The sewer pipe Dob has been sitting in the basement for about three years, being so awkward, that I really haven't had the opportunity to work it. But even being it is an 8" scope, I was not too impressed in the views. Disregarding the fact that the mount is hard to manipulate, (got to bang it with a closed fist to nudge it along), the extra inches in mirror surface just did not create that much better views of the Moon or Jupiter - which I though would be brighter. But not so. Perhaps the mirrors need to be dusted off and collimated, but I'm digging the other scopes better.
One of my neighbors thought that the kick-around 4.5" reflector had the best views, while another thought the C5 did. For the Moon, both the C5 and Newt did well, but I think the C5 was the winner. The Nikon refractor will always be superior for planetary views with it's great focal length and contrast. For now, the Dob is out of the shoot out.
There will be more, better planned shootouts, perhaps with a fellow astromoner buddy to assist soon.
My desire for the night, (To compare the telescopes against each other), was not accomplished, but it was an enjoyable time...as astronomy often is. I might wait till 4:00 am and take some images of Saturn & Venus...in about one hour....
