Telescope Reviews: Stratus 21mm - First Light/Impressions

(Please read below if you have the time/desire; but if not, there's a synopsis all the way at the bottom!)

I came home from work, and there it was - a box from Orion! It would be my Stratus 21 mm!

Out of the package and looking perfect, no flaws. How long til dark? AND.....will it clear up??

A tropical storm system had blown through with 70 mph winds earlier (AND rain...LOTS of rain!), so the skies ought to be scoured clean; unfortunately, the wind was still up around 10-15 mph...

Hey, it's clearing up! Lucky I got the telescope out at 4:15...

After reading the mixed (but more good than bad) reviews on the Stratus 21mm in fast scopes, I can tell you I was anxious about looking through it for the first time while setting up and calibrating the COL with the 13 mm Stratus. What would I see? Would this be a disappointment as was the Expanse 20mm (what with more-than-soft edges and soft focus?)

I wanted bright stars for the first test, so moved to the Pleiades. While the entire cluster certainly did not fit within the AFOV, the stars seemed nicely defined and focused throughout the field. I was pleased with the edge performance, and let out a sight of relief (yes, really!)

Over to the Double Cluster: nearly fit in the field, the stars were very sharp and remained so out to the edges. There might be a TINY bit of edge - aberration? softness? - but only worth mentioning in a clinical sense; certainly not any distratction at all aesthetically!

NGC 457, NGC 7789, M39 - all good views. The wide field and sharper views than in the 20mm Expanse were nice, and there was no comparison whatever with the OLD 25 mm Plossl...

M33 yielded one of the best views EVER, and M31-32-110 were very nice also.

Slewed over and easily located M77, but no NGC 1055...even when changing to the 13mm Stratus. Back to the 21mm and off to find NGC 1407 (which had eluded me up to this point...) I know it was me because, while I didn't see it in the 21mm, I easily saw it in the 13mm....and THEN in the 21mm! I think I've become a little spoiled by the contrast and power of 13!

Couldn't stand it any more, moved over to M42. WOW! If it was nice in the 20mm Expanse, it was breath-taking in the 21 mm Stratus. And no, I'm not being over-dramatic. I stayed here awhile, playing with my UHC and OIII filters.

When it became more fully dark, I found that the field of view in the Stratus 21mm was brighter than I had been accustomed to through continual use of the Stratus 13mm (duh!) If there is anything negative about my experience last night, this is it - and only this!

While I was fooling around with the UHC/OIII filters, popped over to Cas and picked up NGC 7635, the Bubble Nebula, for the first time. Quick over to NGC 2264, and yes, there was nebulosity! Then NGC 281, which was quite spectacular, and NGCs 40 and 1501.

So, anyway, I'm not sure EXACTLY how this happened, but I found myself in Cyg(NA Nebula) - WAY too big, but you know, I saw its edges quite well (first time)!; and wouldn't you know, the Veil Nebula was still "up" (this means it was *just* above the next door neighbor's rooftop), and even though it was fairly low in the sky, I could trace along its wispy lines! Wow, first time with the OII, and it's just as everyone had said!

All of this took place in about an hour and fifteen minutes; and then whoops! here come the clouds, triumphantly returning. But my mission had been accomplished - to check out the performance of the Stratus 21mm on my scope.

Joan - you must LOVE this EP!

SYNOPSIS: The eyepiece performed admirably in my fast scope. From other posts, I saw that even the VERY expensive EPs are not *PERFECT* to the edge. To be 100% accurate, the edges in the S21 were not *PERFECT*, but they were darn close! My eye was not distracted by any edge "weirdnesses" at all, unlike the experience with the 20mm Expanse, where edge problems are **painfully** obvious. For the money, I give this EP an "A"....it performed impressively on many objects both stellar and nebular. I would recommend it to any of you with fast scopes like mine who are looking to purchase an EP in this FL range that has a nice AFOV of 68°.

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Good Seeing!

Mark

Orion 12" XTi f/4.9

VERY old Edmund 6" f/8 reflector
Assorted binoculars