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[Mark Ross]

When I am looking at Saturn in my Zhumell 20x80 binocs sometimes I seem to get a decent view and sometimes I get a very unstable view with the image very unclear and maybe even a double image.

What I think I am seeing when Saturn is maybe up 20 degrees in the southeast is that the orientation of the rings is roughly 2 o'clock and 8 o'clock for the ring 'bumbs'.

Is this accurate? Any feedback would be appreciated.

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

Hi Mark,

Ain't Saturn a beautiful object to observe?

Now, let's see what you might be looking at with your binoculars.

Optics do funny things to observed objects. All astronomical telescopes invert the image, (after all, there is no "UP" in space), and any additional glass in line of the light path to "upright the image, degrades the image some...so we leave it alone. Some telescopes not only invert the image, but also flips them left to right - confusing things more...

But with your 20x80 binoculars, we can almost correctly assume that the image is what it is actually, due to the inherent image correctors of the prisms.

Stellarium says that the proper angle of the ring system to our perspective and at about 20 degrees high is this:

Angle about 2/7 O'clock at 8pm.


At 3:00 am this:

A 10/4 o"clock angle.

The angle of Saturn's rings do change throughout it's march across the sky.

The visual instability could be due to atmospheric distortions that is common to all objects that are low to the horizon. Together with watering eyes and shaking hands holding a heavy pair of binoculars - a double Saturn is not surprising.

Attach your binoculars to a tripod backwards - with the tripod handle away from you and wait till Saturn is higher in the sky. I have been known to use electrical tape to wrap the binocs to the tripod when no other means are available to me. With a steady view now, you will be able to make a better observation of the ringed planet.

Let us know what you discover.

[Paulie pchris00]

That would indeed be the orientation of Saturn's rings. Depending where the ecliptic is when it rises and sets, they will appear nearly vertical around these times. As it crosses the central meridian, or due south, they will appear horizontal.

Everything we see in the sky shows this same effect, but objects with a discernible north-south orientation are easiest to observe. Jupiter and it's Galilean Moons, and the Moon are most noticeable.

[Centaur]

As others have noted, Mark, the orientation of the Saturn’s rings relative to one’s local sky varies as the Earth rotates throughout a night. It also varies over the course of Saturn’s 29.5-year orbital period. The Earth’s 23.4° axial tilt combined with Saturn’s 26.7° axial tilt add to the complications.

Joe and Paulie presented excellent descriptions while Joe posted fine graphic examples. Below is the result of a program I created showing Saturn as it will appear without telescopic inversion from Chicago hourly tonight. Many more preview images and data related to Saturn can be seen on my Saturn webpage: www.CurtRenz.com/saturn

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

I have always liked Curt's multi-year graphic of Saturn's opening and closing rings throughout the years.

Check it out.

[Mark Ross]

Thanks for the excellent replies. I think I might need my binocs collimated.

Curt: Your graphic progression was really impressive.

Paulie: It took me a while, when I started spending some time observing, to figure out that the moon did not rotate 180 degrees from moonrise to moonset and that it was just my direction of observing that changed.

Joe: What size telescope do you need to pick up any of Saturn's moons?

[Chicago Astronomer - Astro Joe]

Mark,

Titan can be seen in practically all sizes of telescopes. Rhea can can be seen in a modest 4.5" reflector quite easily....but the other Satellites are much more difficult and need large apertures.

[Centaur]

Apr 10, 2012 20:37:10 GMT -6 Mark Ross said:

Curt: Your graphic progression was really impressive.

Glad your appreciative, Mark. While Saturn’s opposition from the Sun isn’t expected until April 15, its greatest brilliance for this opposition at magnitude +0.2 is estimated to have already occurred on April 6. That’s due to the apparent ring tilt decreasing while Saturn is in apparent retrograde motion: www.CurtRenz.com/saturn