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RICHARD COFER

VdB 141 Ghost Nebula

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Posts Made By: Jerry Mason

August 21, 2006 04:34 PM Forum: Eyepieces

New Meade 5000 UWA 30mm

Posted By Jerry Mason
Floyd,

I'm really surprised, pleasantly so, to hear it performed so well near the edges in your fast Dob. I bought a Series 5000 14mm UWA, here on Astromart, to compare with my 4000. I really like its compact size and rotating eyecup (not the grease of course) over the larger 4000 but I can only use it in my f9 refractor and f15 7" Mak. The stars are simply a mess near the edges in my f4.5 and f6 Newts.

Were you using a Parcor with the 31mm?

Jerry

p.s. So do you think we could impose on you to do a review of this line of eyepieces as well? grin I'd volunteer to send you my 14mm.

September 1, 2006 02:42 PM Forum: Solar System Observing

What's the most Magnification you've used on the m

Posted By Jerry Mason
While shooting Jupiter and Saturn last year with my 16" and a ToUcam I pulled the webcam out of the 5X Powermate and, for fun, popped in an 8.8 UWA for a total of 1039X. I was blown away by how large Jupiter looked with its disk filling about a quarter of the 84ยบ field of view. No, the image wasn't tack sharp but much sharper than I would have imagined. (1828.8mm fl x 5)/8.8mm = 1039X

Of course on most nights I'm using magnifications of 600x or less.

Jerry

September 5, 2006 12:49 PM Forum: Off Topic Discussions

What if the Sun was burning out...?

Posted By Jerry Mason
In about 5 billion years our sun will make it hard on us astronomers without Coronado solar scopes. Our sun will not supernova but instead bloat into a red giant with a diameter that happens to include the earths orbit. Unfortunately, this will make it hard to find dark skies.

Regarding warnings? Well, aside from wild fluctuations in solar energy output, if you are on the equator and can see the surface of the sun at midnight then be warned -- You should have sold those light pollution filters on Astromart the week before. 8)

Jerry

September 25, 2006 11:52 PM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

Need Help Locating Telescope Retailers in California

Posted By Jerry Mason
Paul Shin said:

Also, are there any astronomy related places to visit? Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance smile

Hi Paul,

Welcome to my neighborhood!

Regarding astronomy related places to visit; when you're done with Legoland in Carlsbad you might think of heading up to Mount Palomar. They have daily tours of the ol 200". If you come on a new moon weekend you can't go wrong by heading up to Mount Pinos (just north of L.A.). Lots of friendly people and no end of telescopes to look through.

Have a nice trip!

Jerry

September 27, 2006 03:25 AM Forum: After Dark

Re: Slow Moving Satellite/?

Posted By Jerry Mason
Judson,

On second look, while SL-16 R/B was right there in the same neighborhood that you were looking in, and going in the same direction, it was moving far too fast to be what you saw. It would have moved through your 40 arc minute field of view in only a fraction of the time you experienced (more like 4 to 5 seconds).

Starry Night also estimates its brightness to be much dimmer (Mag 9.5).

Sorry for the false identification.

Anyone else with a guess?

Jerry

p.s. maybe an old glove, wrench or bolt?

October 14, 2006 01:18 AM Forum: Eyepieces

eyepice opinion

Posted By Jerry Mason
Hi Mike,

I have a 7" Meade Mak too and like to use my 14mm Series 5000 in it.

While it's easy for me to see a difference between the 4000 and 5000 14mm UWA's in my f4.5 and f6 Newts (softer stars in the outer 80% of the field of view) the view through the newer eyepiece is very nice in the longer focal length Mak. And the fact that it has a much smaller and lighter form factor makes it a pleasure to use.

I know it seems silly to keep two similar eyepieces and I may eventually put the 5000 up for sale... but not yet.

My 8.8 Series 4000 UWA works nicely in the Mak as well but, you're right, sometimes that is just too much for the seeing conditions. So I've been on the Astromart hunt for an 11mm T6 Nagler.

I don't own an 18mm UWA so can't opin on how it would work, however, my 20mm Nagler Type II works wonderfully in that scope.

Enjoy your new Mak!

Jerry

October 20, 2006 05:00 PM Forum: Solar System Observing

Mer. Trans. info. ??

Posted By Jerry Mason
Don't forget the sunscreen!

http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/image1/TM2006Nov08-Fig1.GIF

Jerry

October 28, 2006 04:43 PM Forum: Mounts

8 Inch Reflector on a tracking mount?

Posted By Jerry Mason
I realize that I sound like a broken record on this issue but if low price is an issue I would suggest you consider an LXD55 mount. Most people selling on Astromart want the "new" price for their CG-5 or LXD75 ($500 and up). You can find a used LXD55 with Autostar for about $300. Sure it's not a high end astrophotography setup but your post suggest you want a cheap solution.

I'm going on two years with my LXD55 mounts and they work just great with my 8" f6 Newt, 7" UHTC Mak and 102 ED. I did add a heavy duty field tripod (2" legs) to the mount that holds the refractor and Mak but only because dampening time was over 3 seconds with the old tripod extended. You will most likely have your legs collapsed using your Newt and in that configuration dampening is about a second or two.

Jerry

p.s. the shot attached shows an assortment of my low tech scopes.

November 7, 2006 04:19 AM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

If you had to buy one eyepiece????

Posted By Jerry Mason
I'd look for a used 20mm Type II Nagler. I occasionally see them here on Astromart for $300. Excellent edge correction (optimized for an f4) and such a view. No, it's not exactly a planetary eyepiece but it's not unusual for me to frame Jupiter and its moons in mine.

Having said that, I don't think you'll find just one eyepiece that works for both deep sky and planets (but you know that already don'tcha?!). wink

Jerry

January 13, 2007 02:16 AM Forum: Solar System Observing

Mc What?

Posted By Jerry Mason
I have Starry Night Pro v5 and have it set to download new data each time I launch it. It showed comet Mc Naught quite prominently. Unfortunately, try as I might, I was just not able to catch it for real. sad

Clear skies!

J

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