Ouranos
sage
Reged: 11/07/06
Posts: 427
Loc: Illinois
|
|
Out last evening for 40 minutes (10:00 - 10:45) with Orion ST120 and Hyperion 17mm ep. attemping to see Uranus. No joy, at least I don't know that I saw it. How do you distinguish Uranus from the stars around it? The "Circle" of Pisces is just visible in my backyard skies. Do I need darker skies or use a bigger scope - my XT10 dob?
Paul
--------------------
East/Central Illinois
Orion XT10
Celestron C8
AstroTech 102ED
|
brianb11213
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/25/09
Posts: 2121
Loc: 55.215N 6.554W
|
|
Quote:
How do you distinguish Uranus from the stars around it?
1. It has a distinct greenish tinge, unusual amongst stars.
2. When viewed in steady seeing with a power over about x150, the tiny disc is obvious. Even in less than perfect seeing, in a scope over about 4", the diffraction ring pattern is obviously different to a star of similar brightness.
3. If you photograph its position - even a DSLR with a standard 50mm lens, 5 secs at f/4, high ISO has enough light grasp - twice, a few days apart, its motion will give it away.
Ordinary suburban skies are plenty dark enough to see Uranus, and your 10" scope should give an excellent view. With 11" and a reasonably transparent sky I've been able to see two of its satellites too, though they aren't easy.
Edited by brianb11213 (09/16/09 10:19 AM)
|
Ouranos
sage
Reged: 11/07/06
Posts: 427
Loc: Illinois
|
|
Thanks, Brian. I will give it another go. It is low in my sky before midnight making it a bit more difficult. Perhaps an argument for Go-To???
Paul
--------------------
East/Central Illinois
Orion XT10
Celestron C8
AstroTech 102ED
|
dan777
member
Reged: 11/16/07
Posts: 79
Loc: Michigan
|
|
Paul,
This is a great time to catch Uranus. It's at opposition and is at its brightest for the year. At your location it will reach an altitude of 40° plus. I had my best view of it ever a couple weeks ago at 240x in my 8" dob and white zone skies. I enjoy it because its blue-green color and the fact that it's so far away (planet-wise) sort of gives me an eerie feeling looking at it.
Dan
Edited by dan777 (09/16/09 08:31 PM)
|
Ouranos
sage
Reged: 11/07/06
Posts: 427
Loc: Illinois
|
|
Hallelujah! At 10:30 last eve - with my 10" Dob - I found Uranus. What a sight. It was smaller than I anticipated, it was prettier than I anticipated. Thanks to those who encouraged me to keep pursuing it.
--------------------
East/Central Illinois
Orion XT10
Celestron C8
AstroTech 102ED
|
Johndob
super member
Reged: 12/22/08
Posts: 146
Loc: Newport Beach,Ca
|
|
I have been looking for Uranus too (i goto Neptune in 5 sec. because of Jupiter)but scan the area where Uranus should be and have not viewed yet in the 10". Is it brighter or bigger than Neptune?
--------------------
Zhumell 10" Dob (Mods)
ETX-125PE UHTC
ETX-90AT
6"f/5 Newtonian
Classic 60x910
Ortho 6-7mm UO or.4mm
Meade 3000 5mm
Zhumell 2" ED Barlow
Zhumell 2" 32mm
UO. 2" 30mm 
GSO 2" 26mm
GSO 40mm CPL
Hyperion 8,13,17,21&FTR
Zhumell 8-24 Zoom
ED 3.8mm,7.5mm
Owl SP4,10,15
Zhumell EP&filter set 1"1/4
Baader 2" Neodymium/IR-cut,CelestronUHC/LPR
Zhumell OIII,UHC,SkyGlow,Polarizer
Zhumell 20x80 Giant&
10x50 plus 3 More Bino's
Brunton Echo Monocular
|
brianb11213
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/25/09
Posts: 2121
Loc: 55.215N 6.554W
|
|
Quote:
Is it brighter or bigger than Neptune?
About twice the disc diameter, and much, much brighter. With a good dark sky you can just about see Uranus with the naked eye (though it's just a faint star). With binoculars, even nasty little ones, it's dead easy to see, if you know where too look.
|
azure1961p
professor emeritus
Reged: 01/17/09
Posts: 731
|
|
As a kid I nailed it with a 4" reflector. It totally befuddled me - I want looking for it, I merely scanned over it at 45x and the lime-blue color was just so odd. It defied any clean definition that i was used to like Jupiter, Saturn or a close pass of Mars.
That sais - the color is NOT star-like at all. Yes, you can resolve the planet in spades with a 10". Figure over 100x to start to see the disc fairly well, while more obviously helps.
Pete
--------------------
|
Ouranos
sage
Reged: 11/07/06
Posts: 427
Loc: Illinois
|
|
Okay, so now I am on the hunt for Neptune. I assume it will be a bit more of a task than Uranus. Does it also possess color?
Paul
--------------------
East/Central Illinois
Orion XT10
Celestron C8
AstroTech 102ED
|
brianb11213
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/25/09
Posts: 2121
Loc: 55.215N 6.554W
|
|
Quote:
Does it also possess color?
Yes, Neptune is also a distinictive colour, it's a soft blue, quite different to Uranus but also stands out to those whith experience.
|
E_Look
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/06/08
Posts: 1208
Loc: near New York
|
|
Even in a finderscope, Uranus looks different than the stars around it. The best way I can put it, the way it seems to me, is that both Neptune and Uranus sort of "stare back" at you. Despite being pinpricks of light, stars are kind of "soft" to look at; Uranus has this "hard", steady, turquoise-ish colored light... and you can focus it. Neptune is similar, but to a much lesser degree, and it is definitely bluer than Uranus, though more starlike in observed size; but it still kind of "looks back at you" (sort of like, "Hey, so what are you lookin' at already! Hrumph!")
--------------------
Ed
|
dfell
professor emeritus
Reged: 06/25/05
Posts: 583
Loc: Wetaskiwin, Alberta, Canada
|
|
I have observed both in a TV102 2 years ago but on the 12th while waiting for Mars I decided to observe them both again.
Neptune was easiest being close to Jupiter, Uranus was a little harder, I had the laptop running Starrt Night Pro so i put up the telrad reticle on the screen and nailed Uranus right waya.
http://www.spacealberta.com/deep/uranus_neptune.jpg
--------------------
www.spacealberta.com
12" collapsible Dob
25" Round Table Platform
Ethos 13mm
original TV smoothside plossls
80mm f/15 Towa Refractor
PST
|
Johndob
super member
Reged: 12/22/08
Posts: 146
Loc: Newport Beach,Ca
|
|
Thanks, Uranus should be a real site in the 10" I will try again tonight.
--------------------
Zhumell 10" Dob (Mods)
ETX-125PE UHTC
ETX-90AT
6"f/5 Newtonian
Classic 60x910
Ortho 6-7mm UO or.4mm
Meade 3000 5mm
Zhumell 2" ED Barlow
Zhumell 2" 32mm
UO. 2" 30mm
GSO 2" 26mm
GSO 40mm CPL
Hyperion 8,13,17,21&FTR
Zhumell 8-24 Zoom
ED 3.8mm,7.5mm
Owl SP4,10,15
Zhumell EP&filter set 1"1/4
Baader 2" Neodymium/IR-cut,CelestronUHC/LPR
Zhumell OIII,UHC,SkyGlow,Polarizer
Zhumell 20x80 Giant&
10x50 plus 3 More Bino's
Brunton Echo Monocular
|
Ouranos
sage
Reged: 11/07/06
Posts: 427
Loc: Illinois
|
|
Last evening I found Neptune with my 10 inch Dob. I am very thankful to have seen it and Uranus.
--------------------
East/Central Illinois
Orion XT10
Celestron C8
AstroTech 102ED
|
Tim L
professor emeritus
Reged: 12/17/08
Posts: 565
Loc: Austin, TX
|
|
 Great finds.
Is Pluto on your list? I've decided pretty much not to bother with that one.
--------------------
Tim
Zhumell Z10 dob
Meade 60mm refractor
Zhumell 1.25" eyepiece and filter kit
Zhumell sky-glow, UHC, and OIII filters
|
Ouranos
sage
Reged: 11/07/06
Posts: 427
Loc: Illinois
|
|
Tim,
Thanks, Tim. Yeah, I would love to see Pluto but will need to buy bigger glass than I can afford. I would also love to see earth from a distance, but that probably won't happen either.
Paul
--------------------
East/Central Illinois
Orion XT10
Celestron C8
AstroTech 102ED
|
E_Look
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/06/08
Posts: 1208
Loc: near New York
|
|
Heh... I'd love to see Earth from a distance, too, but come back to it, as well!!
--------------------
Ed
|
NewAstronomer
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/03/04
Posts: 3020
Loc: Scranton, PA U.S.A
|
|
I imaged Pluto on Aug 25 and Aug 30 and created a GIF to confirm it moved (others here helped identify it). It was dimmer than surrounding Mag 14 stars, and smaller, if that gives you any idea of how difficult it could be
GOTO helped there!
Uranus last night at 330x in my C11 in 4/5 conditions showed a yellowish, pale, disc.
Jupiter in the same conditions allowed detailed views of ovals within the main belts. Much more interesting
--------------------
Chris
279mm f/10 C11 SCT
250mm f/4.8 GSO Dob
70mm f/6 SV70ED
Atlas EQ-G + EQMOD
SVP Intelliscope & ST-4 Autoguide Mod
Vixen Portamount on the way!
DBK 21AU04
Olympus e-500 DSLR
Meade DSI-C
|
Matthew Ota
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 04/30/05
Posts: 1096
Loc: New England
|
|
I observed Uranus and Neptune last night. Goto and TheSky 6 made it easy to get to them.
--------------------
Matthew Ota
Meade LX250GPS 10 inch SCT (Frankenscope)
Orion ED 80
ETX-90 OTA
Coronado Helios 1 H-alpha
TheSky 6 Pro
|
Tim L
professor emeritus
Reged: 12/17/08
Posts: 565
Loc: Austin, TX
|
|
Quote:
I imaged Pluto on Aug 25 and Aug 30 and created a GIF to confirm it moved (others here helped identify it). It was dimmer than surrounding Mag 14 stars, and smaller, if that gives you any idea of how difficult it could be
Hi Chris,
I saw when you posted that--quite a piece of work! Congrats on the capture!
It was actually looking at the starfield in your post that made me think that as a strictly visual observer, I'd take a pass on Pluto. 
I'll wait for the mars-hoax-like opposition when Pluto will be as big as the full moon in the sky! 
--------------------
Tim
Zhumell Z10 dob
Meade 60mm refractor
Zhumell 1.25" eyepiece and filter kit
Zhumell sky-glow, UHC, and OIII filters
|
NewAstronomer
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/03/04
Posts: 3020
Loc: Scranton, PA U.S.A
|
|
Thanks! It was fun imaging it with a 70mm scope and a DSI I , but after I was done I realized it would be pointless to visually observe it even with my 11" and 10" scopes. Unless of course you wanted to "confirm" it visually, which would be a challenge, then you should do it. I'd recommend detailed star charts however.
Neptune and Uranus should be viewed by everyone IMHO, again not great detail like Jupiter and Saturn, but interesting to observe when you realize how much smaller and much further away than their famous big brothers.
--------------------
Chris
279mm f/10 C11 SCT
250mm f/4.8 GSO Dob
70mm f/6 SV70ED
Atlas EQ-G + EQMOD
SVP Intelliscope & ST-4 Autoguide Mod
Vixen Portamount on the way!
DBK 21AU04
Olympus e-500 DSLR
Meade DSI-C
|
jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
|
|
Easy-peasy in a 4" last Saturday under magnitude ~5.2 NELM at zenith. Nice bright bluish disk at 88x. Maybe a little more magnification would help bring out the disk in your 120mm? Now I need to try it in one of my larger scopes.
Good luck!
Regards,
Jim
--------------------
"I do not know what I may appear to the world; but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me."
- Sir Issac Newton
Edited by jrbarnett (09/21/09 11:59 AM)
|
NorthWolf
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/23/09
Posts: 586
Loc: Laval, Canada
|
|
Ok if anyone still has trouble finding Uranus, try this:
Locate the Lambda (Greek L) star in Pisces's pentagon. Just to the southeast of it are 3 stars, marked 30 and 33 on this chart. Follow these 3 stars starting from the left to the right, once your at the last star on the right (30) or 20 Psc or HIP 117375, look south west west, Uranus should be the brighest object in that view.
I can find it real fast in my finder scope now. But be careful, because just to the right of Uranus, are another 3 stars in a similar straight line, confused the heck out of me the first times.
I could see it perfectly yesterday in my Pentax XW 5mm at 250x.
|
Karl_Bonner_1982
sage
Reged: 05/13/09
Posts: 308
Loc: Springfield, Oregon (4.5ish ma...
|
|
From a dark site, I don't think Uranus is hard at all.
The only hard part is getting the scope in the correct position. If Uranus is in a part of the sky with a lot of moderately dim stars (say, 4th to 7th magnitude) it will be tough to pinpoint it. But right now there are no 'bright' stars anywhere close, so it will be one of the brightest objects in the immediate area.
Uranus does look green, but know ahead of time that it's not a flamboyant shade of green. In fact its colors are quite pale compared to all the other planets, even Saturn. Look for a dull grayish-green dot at low power, then move up to a higher eyepiece. At about 100x the disk shape should be readily visible.
Neptune is much harder than Uranus because of its lower luminosity and much smaller disk. A lot of fellow star-gazers have a lot of trouble resolving Neptune's disk even at 200x, but I can see it at just over 100x without much difficulty. (I can also see a very definite disk shape to Jupiter through my 6x finder scope, and the Galilean moons are round at 150-200x, maybe 123x with a little imagination.
The most important tips for the outer planets are:
Don't expect brilliant colors;
Do familiarize yourself with nearby stars;
Know your eyes' limits when it comes to resolving disks; and
Be patient.
--------------------
A lot of signatures are just there because people think they are "supposed" to have a signature.
|
E_Look
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/06/08
Posts: 1208
Loc: near New York
|
|
I am slightly frustrated because of Uranus' position in the sky these last several weeks, where bunch of trees block my view, and the dearth of clear nights in which I'm free, I haven't seen it this year yet. By the time it moves onto a clear patch of sky for me, it's past time to quit!
I can often catch Neptune so far, but no Uranus, which is supposed to be easier. And due to its larger angular size, it's a bit more of a satisfying sight.
--------------------
Ed
|
Ptarmigan
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/23/04
Posts: 2366
Loc: Arctic
|
|
Uranus is flat bluish-green with a gray tint. Kinda reminds me of Venus.
--------------------
Ptarmigans=Cute and Cuddly
Meade Starfinder 8
Nikon 10x50
Rebel XT
|
Rick Woods
Postmaster
Reged: 01/27/05
Posts: 5684
Loc: Inner Solar System
|
|
Quote:
Tim,
Thanks, Tim. Yeah, I would love to see Pluto but will need to buy bigger glass than I can afford. I would also love to see earth from a distance, but that probably won't happen either.
Paul
Your 10" should be plenty to see Pluto from a relatively dark site.
--------------------
- Rick
14" LX200GPS
Dyslexics Untie!
|
Mobius1
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/28/05
Posts: 700
Loc: Madison, WI / Gurnee, IL
|
|
Even seeing pluto, you won't quite know it's pluto with your eye, unless you come back a few days apart. Uranus and Neptune are fun in a 24", btw (I posted images in the solar system imaging forum)- you can clearly see disk and satellites.
--------------------
Martin
William Optics 66SD
Orion 100ED
Orion 120-ST EQ
PST-Ha
Celestron CGE 1100
Canon Rebel XSI with Astronomik filters
DSI-IIC
Homemade spectroscope in progress...
Yerkes Observatory Volunteer
(24" Cass on weekends)
|
NorthWolf
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/23/09
Posts: 586
Loc: Laval, Canada
|
|
Hmm, where is your post with those pictures:) I couldnt find in your previous posts!
--------------------
A Speck of Dust
Orion SkyQuest XT10
Pentax XW 5mm
Televue 24mm Pan
Televue 9mm Nagler
TV Barlow 2x, 3x
Canon Powershot A590 IS
Itouch + Starmap Pro
www.AfocalAstrophotography.com
|
NorthWolf
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/23/09
Posts: 586
Loc: Laval, Canada
|
|
Oh here they are, nvm Very nice! Link
--------------------
A Speck of Dust
Orion SkyQuest XT10
Pentax XW 5mm
Televue 24mm Pan
Televue 9mm Nagler
TV Barlow 2x, 3x
Canon Powershot A590 IS
Itouch + Starmap Pro
www.AfocalAstrophotography.com
|
Previous
Index
Next
Threaded
Edit
Reply
Quote
[Re: 