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Posts Made By: Daryl Crowley

April 17, 2003 03:52 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

OT: Whirlpools in Space?

Posted By Daryl Crowley
There is a lot of speculation about black holes being the original building blocks of galaxies but the rotation of a galaxy (say 100K LY in diameter) is going to be powered by the gravitational mass of itself. Even a billion solar mass black hole is going to have limited reach gravitationally, as gravity falls off with the square of the distance. It does look like a drain but remember even a billion solar mass black hole is less than the size of our solar system and would be a microscopic spec in your photograph.

Daryl

April 24, 2003 04:05 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

Unable to starhop, setting circle help - newbie

Posted By Daryl Crowley
Jay,

I may have missed an earlier post but why are you unable to star hop? Is it due to light pollution or is it hard to move your mount?

I do 100% star hopping and while it may take me awhile to find DSO the first time or in those events where a DSO is all alone in large expanse with no guide stars, once I learn where an object is at I can get on it very quickly, and those with good guide stars are quick the first time.

I have an equatorial mount with fine adjust control knobs and a CORRECT IMAGE FINDER, which is a big help for star hopping.

I've rattled on here but I was confused as to why you say you can't star hop.

Daryl

April 25, 2003 12:11 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

Spring the Season of galaxies. Boring...

Posted By Daryl Crowley
Galaxies boring? Boring? How can any part of astronomy be boring? Personally I love looking at little smudges, but I back that up by reading as much as I can about those little smudges, how far away - how big – are there large x-ray sources. When I look at that little smudge I image all that is contained within - an island universe in my eyepiece.

Are you bored with globulars?

I can understand your desire for more "eye appealing" targets but when I hear someone refer to the Virgo Cluster as "boring" I can only assume that it's either someone who does not appreciate the universe, is uneducated, or a snob.

I find myself wanting to take offense at the term “boring”!

Now you may be none of these and just have a taste for other DSO but think how it sounds to other astronomers when you call the spring sky and galaxies boring.

I find golf boring and I'm sure that offends a lot of golfers, but I don't post it on their forums.

Daryl

May 8, 2003 07:25 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

Karkoschka's atlas for star hopping

Posted By Daryl Crowley
Ivan,

I for one love the software charts and here is why.

If I am looking for something hard to find, I print a mag 6 view to get myself oriented visually.

I then print a zoomed in view with mag 8 stars that I can use with the finder scope. This allows me to get very close to my target with the finder scope.

Then I will print a 3rd zoom level with mag 10 or so detail for the eyepiece. I can use very faint star patterns as signposts for starhopping.

I use the books in house but I would not trade the ability to print various mag stars and various zoom levels. Sometimes I may print only two levels if there are good star patterns for hopping.

It only takes a minute to print the maps, the fold up nicely in the pocket and if they get wet and trashed, who cares.

I have had real good success with the computer maps.

Daryl Crowley

May 8, 2003 07:28 PM Forum: Solar System Observing

Saturn Transit in 2669

Posted By Daryl Crowley
Well we very well might be able to go to Neptune and witness that but we could have just stopped at Saturn and looked at it close up;-)

May 9, 2003 08:12 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

Re: UFO Saturday Night HELP

Posted By Daryl Crowley
Well, that would have been my opinion but Soyuz was the only thing that even remotely fit. I do believe the object was in orbit and not sub-orbit. Although in either case it should having been moving at an apparent high speed.

I can offer plausible explanations for most of the observations except the fact that it didn't move (maybe a little) over 1/2 hour.

What bugs me is that in a clear sky I can find no record of anyone else who saw it. I can't believe I was the only person with knowledge of what should be in the sky that was out looking up at that time. I would have thought some other astronomer would be setting up their scope for cooling down prior to what was a great night of viewing.

Thank God I wasn't alone when I witnessed it. If I don't get a good answer this will bug me the rest of my life.

I did send an inquiry off to NASA, if they every bother to answer.

Thanks.

Daryl

May 12, 2003 12:19 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

Response to the Time magazine article

Posted By Daryl Crowley
And some folks are like me, I DON'T WANT A GPS SCOPE! If I lived in light polluted skis then I would have one so I could find things but I don't. I would like to show this TIME guy how quickly I can find a great many deep space objects with a hint of "hunt and peck" and with out a robot to point it out for me.

Don't be too hard on Time, they are like most of the rest of the world, happily ignorant of the universe around them, more concerned about who wins Survivor. (Don't even get me going on the stupid show!)

Daryl

June 4, 2003 07:27 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

Light Cup bagged Barnard's Galaxy

Posted By Daryl Crowley
Remember that in 1884 the night skies were much darker. Lanturns don't create a lot light polution. That's why Messier could find all those objects, some VERY faint, with a scope no where near as good as what most of us have, and yet he seemed to have an easier time of it. Dark, unpolluted skies is a BIG help.

When you get those rare nights when the seeing is an 11 on a 1-10 scale, make the most of it. If you have to go to work the next day, just plan on yawning a lot, it wont kill you. Make the most of the exceptionally nights. Stay up all night and just go to work tired. It will be well worth it and you can catch up on your sleep the next night. Call in sick or something if you must, but NEVER walk away from perfect seeing.

Daryl

June 10, 2003 12:14 PM Forum: Deep Sky Observing

Sagitarius RULES

Posted By Daryl Crowley
I have always felt that M22 was more spectacular than M13 in both my telescope and my binoculars. For some reason M22 is much better in the binoculars than M13. M22 is my favorite globular and M8 is as pretty as cluster can get this side of a photograph.

Sagittarius is great, globulars and fantastic clusters and nebula abound. Unfortunately for me up here in Michigan it is low to the horizon and in the direction of town, where my worst viewing is. I usually have to make trips out to a farm south of town at Sagittarius’s peak to enjoy the view best.

Daryl

June 13, 2003 11:49 AM Forum: Equipment Talk

Tripod enhancement

Posted By Daryl Crowley
I didn't mean to suggest that my tripod and mount were not steady, again I am over "tripoded" for my scope. Just looking for tricks to get it ever steadier.

Daryl

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