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jmflatt
newbie
Reged: 03/15/09
Posts: 2
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I have seen ads for mounting kits for Skyscout and am curious if anyone has any experience using Skyscout with their Questar.
I have a new to me 3.5 that I am delighted with, but I was having some difficulty using the integral viewfinder in my light-polluted skies. I mounted a green laser pointer using a poly pipe collar and that has helped me find objects quickly. I am wondering if mounting a Skyscout might help me find fainter objects more quickly.
Any shared experience will be greatly appreciated.
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ColoHank
professor emeritus
Reged: 06/07/07
Posts: 507
Loc: western Colorado
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Are you relying solely on the viewfinder to locate objects, or are you having difficulty locating objects through the viewfinder after dialing them in with the setting circles?
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Questar 3.5 standard - pyrex and BB coatings
Powerguide II
8mm, 12mm, 16mm, 24mm and 32mm Brandons
modified Bogen 3030 w/ homebuilt wedge
Homebuilt Galileo scope and very large and ugly homemade tripod
other odds and ends, including iPod Touch with StarMap Pro (what a marvelous combo)...
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"Nothing exists but atoms and empty space. Everything else is opinion."
Titus Lucretius Carus 99-55 B.C.
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jmflatt
newbie
Reged: 03/15/09
Posts: 2
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I am learning to use the setting circles, but I am not very handy with them yet. I also recently downloaded "Stellarium" and that has been helpful.
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ColoHank
professor emeritus
Reged: 06/07/07
Posts: 507
Loc: western Colorado
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The viewfinder is admittedly difficult to rely on when you're dealing with significant light pollution, so by all means try to become more adept at using setting circles. Once you've properly aligned your Questar, the setting circles should put targets in or at worst just outside the eyepiece view. Use the viewfinder, as desired or if necessary, to pick up brighter targets or those occasional near-misses. Basic alignment (just finding and centering Polaris and calibrating the RA circle on a second known star), takes only a couple of minutes and yields about a 3/4° pointing error. More advanced alignment techniques yield greater accuracy.
I'm not familiar with Stellarium, but if it lists the celestial coordinates (RA and Dec) of objects you're looking for, it sure beats leafing through the pages of an atlas. Basic alignment gets me up and running much quicker than my friends with their go-to scopes, and with Starmap Pro in an iPod Touch, I often can locate objects using setting circles as quickly as their go-to scopes can slew to them.
Hang in there, and good luck!
--------------------
---------------------
Questar 3.5 standard - pyrex and BB coatings
Powerguide II
8mm, 12mm, 16mm, 24mm and 32mm Brandons
modified Bogen 3030 w/ homebuilt wedge
Homebuilt Galileo scope and very large and ugly homemade tripod
other odds and ends, including iPod Touch with StarMap Pro (what a marvelous combo)...
---------------------
"Nothing exists but atoms and empty space. Everything else is opinion."
Titus Lucretius Carus 99-55 B.C.
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