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NewAstronomer
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/03/04
Posts: 3020
Loc: Scranton, PA U.S.A
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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.
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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
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jrbarnett
Eyepiece Hooligan
Reged: 02/28/06
Posts: 4349
Loc: Petaluma, CA
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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
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"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)
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NorthWolf
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/23/09
Posts: 586
Loc: Laval, Canada
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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.
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Karl_Bonner_1982
sage
Reged: 05/13/09
Posts: 308
Loc: Springfield, Oregon (4.5ish ma...
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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.
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A lot of signatures are just there because people think they are "supposed" to have a signature.
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E_Look
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 03/06/08
Posts: 1208
Loc: near New York
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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.
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Ed
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Ptarmigan
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/23/04
Posts: 2366
Loc: Arctic
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Uranus is flat bluish-green with a gray tint. Kinda reminds me of Venus.
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Ptarmigans=Cute and Cuddly
Meade Starfinder 8
Nikon 10x50
Rebel XT
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Rick Woods
Postmaster
Reged: 01/27/05
Posts: 5684
Loc: Inner Solar System
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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.
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- Rick
14" LX200GPS
Dyslexics Untie!
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Mobius1
professor emeritus
Reged: 08/28/05
Posts: 700
Loc: Madison, WI / Gurnee, IL
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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.
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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)
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NorthWolf
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/23/09
Posts: 586
Loc: Laval, Canada
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Hmm, where is your post with those pictures:) I couldnt find in your previous posts!
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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
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NorthWolf
professor emeritus
Reged: 02/23/09
Posts: 586
Loc: Laval, Canada
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Oh here they are, nvm  Very nice! Link
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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
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