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rolandlinda3
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/24/06
Posts: 1630
Loc: Crozet VA 22932
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I have not seen many posts where comments are made about learning curve. Because of the number of newbies and questions, I thought this thread might help. I will just offer a few comments that come from my experience with the StellaCAM EX, MallinCAM Pro Dob, and MallinCAM Hyper Color. Understand that learning curve assessments depend on the person. I am not real fast at learning new things; I can get befuddled; but I also know that familiarity with something new goes a long way, so I make judgements about usability of things AFTER I have tried them a few times. That being said, here are some comments, and perhaps some other might want to comment:
1. Astrovideo, coming from pure EP use, required a change in mindset for me: I had to learn to live with some power requirements, wires hanging around, and either a power source or AC adapters. No one really tells you this, but it takes a little getting used to. It took me 2-3 observing sessions at about an hour each to get a little more comfortable with hooking/unhooking and avoiding accidents from tripping over things. However, I quickly mastered arrangements for each scope (C-5i on tripod and 12.5 in Dob on EQ platform). Consider this part of the learning curve if you are not used to wires and the like.
2. Control operation on the cameras (MC series) or a handpad (SC EX) took a couple hours of use for my brain to sort-of remember how to get the menu button (the important button) and then the others. However, the tactile touch location of the buttons makes things easy. While it is a fast learning curve...that still means couple hours to get used to things so you don't have to think about it too much. I compare using the buttons like using Sky Commander, which I consider user friendly.
3. Learning what settings are good for what objects. This took me a little longer. Start up time for fundamental categories objects is easy....follow the recommended settings. But making adjustments to suit really bright ones (like M42) or really dim ones took a bit of learning over a few sessions. One has to get a feel for what change you see on the monitor with what change in integration periods. It changes depending on the aperture and the type of night. In any case, a few sessions concurrent with other learning, and you will be OK.
4. Heavy sky glow or haze adjustments -- learning curve. This paragraph is for newbies who are used to putting up their scopes when the moon gets high or quitting when the haze is horrendous. Don't do it. Rather, learn your tools abilities and keep observing. It takes some experimentation that relates to your aperture and the degree of terrible conditions. Once you have reasonably mastered the tool, try a "bad" night on a known object and note what your camera does on your "standard" setting, then try to improve the view by changing your gain and your integration times. They do different things so it takes a little practice. In the end (after a few "bad" night sessions) you will probably find (like most of us) that you can continue to observe.
In the end, give yourself one or two good observing sessions to get used to the new astro-video tools using recommended settings. Then use your next couple sessions to alter AGC (gain) and integration periods to see what happens with your monitor output. After that, learning to optimize for conditions or particular objects is just enjoyable practice with immediate results you can look at.
Hope this helps.
Roland
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midway199
super member
Reged: 04/21/04
Posts: 108
Loc: Illinois
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I'd like to add POLAR ALIGNMENT to the learning curve list. Being a strict visual observer with mostly alt-az mounted newtonians, I hand't really taken the time to expose myself to the nuiances of accurate polar alignment. I have a very nice tracking platform, and an LXD-55 eq mount that I purchased to get some exposure to using goto scopes, but had dome little more than eyeball the mounts in the direction of north.
I noticed immediately that the DSO's were slowly "walking off" the screen. You don't notice it with short exposures, but the longer you go, the more noticable it is, particularly when the stars and DSO's smear.
It occured to me, not having ever been concerned about accurate polar alignment before, that even though the DSO's may look good - there's no way they can be great if it's walking off the screen. As far as I'm concerned, even if it's moving one "star width" every 8 seconds, you're losing detail that would have otherwise have been there.
So you may be looking at some neat galaxy or nebulae and thinking it's amazing, but if everytime the screen updates the stars shift around or trail (even if it's just a teensy bit), you're most likely being robbed of a more interesting and detailed veiw by not adjusting the polar alignment.
Drift alignment is the way to take care of a poorly aligned equatorial mount, and may seem time consuming or even intimidating to newcomers. I personally have no patience for it. I'm the instant gratification visual observer, remember? But I'm learning and getting better every at it.
Additionally, if you are going to be using a newtonian on an equatorial platform, you need to be able to slide either the north or south end of the platform laterally to the east or west to make adjustments. Drift alsinment will show that your platform is pointed too far east or west of the north polar axis, so you have move one end to correct the error.
How do you do that when you have your dob sitting on top, and the platform feet are in the grass? Or, perhaps your scope is big and heavy? How do you move it east and west just a tiny bit? Something to think about. Whatever material you use, (bricks, 2x4's, etc..) it has to be set up on something that will permit the lateral east-west motion, but not be so slippery that you can just bump the scope and move it. Plus, whatever you have the scope sitting on will raise it up just that much higher.
Stuff to think about...
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Matthew Sherman
StellaCam 3
Celestron NexStar 11 @ f/3.3
Starmaster 12.5"
Starmaster 18"
Tom Osypowski Equatorial Platform
Butterfield East Video Observatory
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Bowmoreman
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/11/06
Posts: 2992
Loc: Bolton, MA
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Matthew: good points about Polar aligning an EQ platform! The better your alignment, the more sharp your integrations are, especially the longer ones (28 and 56 seconds)...
I have finally got a pretty dialed in polar (via drift using a 5mm Illuminated reticle EP) on my EQ mount (on a pier). So that stays pretty solid!
But the "walking images" are a nuisance on the Dob (thus far). I'm going to start the creative juices thinking about aligning the "E/W" (horizontal) axis of my RTP... and how best to make it repeatable and quick/easy.
N/S is pretty straightforwards with the raising/lowering feet...
Any ideas out there?
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Dave
Ustream
YLive
XT10i, RTP, CGE, R200CF, TMB80SS
31T5, 22T4, 13Ethos, 8Ethos, TV 3-6 Zoom; Paracorr
MallincamColorHyperPlus,SBIG STV&237A;CanonRebel Xti
WilderSkiesObservatory(BYO #90)
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midway199
super member
Reged: 04/21/04
Posts: 108
Loc: Illinois
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Here's an idea for an E-W adjuster that I found on the Yahoo! equatorial platoform group. I made one very similar to this and it does the trick. It's strong enough to push and pull the platform east or west allowing you to make surgical adjustments to cancel out alignment error. Very low-profile as well. Hope this helps!
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Matthew Sherman
StellaCam 3
Celestron NexStar 11 @ f/3.3
Starmaster 12.5"
Starmaster 18"
Tom Osypowski Equatorial Platform
Butterfield East Video Observatory
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rolandlinda3
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/24/06
Posts: 1630
Loc: Crozet VA 22932
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Yes, absolutely...polar alignment accuracy is an essential. In addition, just plain basic good setup practices, which also include collimation, are fundamental. For newbies, think of it this way: astro video cameras are usually high magnification/restricted field of view devices. This means that errors in polar alignment and collimation become accented with astro video. For instance, when I corrected my platform alignment on my Dob one evening, I was able to use much longer settings (14 and 28 seconds) in contrast to 7 seconds and less with much better results. Almost the same degree of scene improvement occurs with proper collimation of optics: especially for Dobsonians. There is no short cut with astro video tools in regard to setup: you have to do the basics correctly. Roland
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midway199
super member
Reged: 04/21/04
Posts: 108
Loc: Illinois
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With newtonians, the ability to achieve focus can be an issue. This isn't so much of a learning curve item, as a caveat: your focuser may not be able to rack inward (toward the mirror) enough to achieve focus. This is also referred to as not having enough in-focus.
If you are really close to achieving focus, but not quite there - fear not! Help is on the way...
1. Try moving your mirror forward - up the tube. The collimation bolts can be turned to push the mirror up a little bit - and that may be all you need to achieve focus. Or, you may want to think of drilling a separate set of holes for the mirror cell that are closer to the mirror.
2. Try a "negative profile" 2" adapter for your StellaCam. If you do not have the cooling option, your camera is small enough to fit inside a special 2" adapter available from AVA and Scope Stuff. I don't know if they are the same adapter.
3. Siebert Optics makes a zero magnification camera focus adapter that essentially pushes the focal plane out an inch (IIRC) to allow cameras to achieve focus. It is available in 2" and 1.25" formats.
4. Shorten your trusses to get your focuser closer to the mirror (essentially pushing out the focal plane). Or contact your scopes manufacturer to see if they can make you a shorter set, or make them yourself. If you decide to make your own, Moonlite has parts that you may be able to adapt to your existing arrangement.
5. Focal reducers? Maybe. I don't have experience with them on newtonians, but it's an avenue to explore. Find out what the focal reducer will do to your image scale. What if your f/5 dob becomes f/2.5? Sounds great for large Messier objects, but if you are into NGC galaxy clusters, they may be too small at faster f/ratios to appreciate.
Hope this helps!
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Matthew Sherman
StellaCam 3
Celestron NexStar 11 @ f/3.3
Starmaster 12.5"
Starmaster 18"
Tom Osypowski Equatorial Platform
Butterfield East Video Observatory
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smokin oakum
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/24/07
Posts: 1426
Loc: Wilmington, NC
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Quote:
With newtonians, the ability to achieve focus can be an issue. This isn't so much of a learning curve item, as a caveat: your focuser may not be able to rack inward (toward the mirror) enough to achieve focus. This is also referred to as not having enough in-focus.
If you are really close to achieving focus, but not quite there - fear not! Help is on the way...
1. Try moving your mirror forward - up the tube. The collimation bolts can be turned to push the mirror up a little bit - and that may be all you need to achieve focus. Or, you may want to think of drilling a separate set of holes for the mirror cell that are closer to the mirror.
2. Try a "negative profile" 2" adapter for your StellaCam. If you do not have the cooling option, your camera is small enough to fit inside a special 2" adapter available from AVA and Scope Stuff. I don't know if they are the same adapter.
3. Siebert Optics makes a zero magnification camera focus adapter that essentially pushes the focal plane out an inch (IIRC) to allow cameras to achieve focus. It is available in 2" and 1.25" formats.
4. Shorten your trusses to get your focuser closer to the mirror (essentially pushing out the focal plane). Or contact your scopes manufacturer to see if they can make you a shorter set, or make them yourself. If you decide to make your own, Moonlite has parts that you may be able to adapt to your existing arrangement.
5. Focal reducers? Maybe. I don't have experience with them on newtonians, but it's an avenue to explore. Find out what the focal reducer will do to your image scale. What if your f/5 dob becomes f/2.5? Sounds great for large Messier objects, but if you are into NGC galaxy clusters, they may be too small at faster f/ratios to appreciate.
Hope this helps!
I just went through all this. I ended up getting a Moonlite low profile focuser, and the took kare of all my focus issues. This, however was expensive, but to me the feel of the focuser, plus the fine rate third knob was worth every penny.
Neil
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Broadcasting live views of the night sky @
Sparkcast
C11 CGE / Hyperstar
MallinCam Hyper Plus Color
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
MoonLite Focuser
Round Table Platform
12" Parralax rings
Cape Fear Astronomy Club
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midway199
super member
Reged: 04/21/04
Posts: 108
Loc: Illinois
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I'm glad this thread was started, it's provided me an outlet to share (kind of feels like venting) some of the things I've experienced and learned from. When people post their success stories, you don't always get a sense of what it took to get there. Things don't always fall in to place: badda-bing, badda-boom. Except for Douglas and his 50" plasma, apparently. (heh heh - just teasing Douglas!)
There are some things that I think need to be considered if you are pushing a dob around by hand, particularly if you are working on objects that are "beyond the Messiers." A lot of showpiece Messiers are either visible directly, near or between bright stars, or visible in a finderscope. Get off the beaten path, and the objects aren't always near stars visible to the naked eye, so you need tools and a method to work your way to your desitination (i.e. starcharts, planetarium software, starhopping, etc...).
To see most faint DSO's, a mag 12 galaxy for instance, you need to increase the integration time in order for it to show up on the monitor. So while you see bright field stars at one or two seconds integration, to see the DSO, you may need to integrate for 6 or more seconds. The integration time is relative to your viewing location.
At one or two seconds (give or take) integration, as you move the scope around the stars are easy to track on the monitor and "flow by" smoothly as you move the scope. But to see fainter stars if you are using them to starhop, and to see the DSO itself as it moves into or through the field of view on the screen, your'e going to have to increase the integration time. With higher integrations, star movement on the screen is choppy and erratic. When you are done moving the scope, you have to wait a few seconds for the stars to "settle" down. For a four second integration, don't be surprised if you have to wait 8 to 12 seconds for things to settle down enough for you to get your bearings (i.e. recognize an asterism of stars or your target DSO). Getting into the general area of a DSO with your DSC's or appropriately sized finder is not a problem, it's the last little bit that gets dicey. And here's why:
Let's say you punch up a faint galaxy into your DSC's and start moving the scope. You're DSC's indicate you've reached your destination, and you let go of the scope. You look at the screen and it's awash with star trails, so you wait and let it settle down. No galaxy. You increase the integration, wait for the image to settle, still no galaxy. Now what do you do? Move up? Move down? Mabye left? Or is it right? With each movement, you may have to wait 8 to 12 seconds for the image to settle depending on how long you are integrating. Keep picking the wrong direction, and it may take a while before you locate your target. What if the target happens to be two fields away? How do you figure it out? Trial and error? Compare the screen to a star chart? What if the screen orientation doesn't match the chart orientation? Mental gymnastics? Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
Here's the thing that kind of surpirsed me with astro-video. Move the scope one half-degree - to get from one field to the next is a very slight movement. It's very easy to overshoot and wind up two fields away from where you started. You certainly cannot pan around at high(er) integrations like you can with an eyepiece. However, you can pan around for brighter Messiers because they show up at lower integration times. Sometimes, it feels like as soon as the scope starts to move, you have to stop it. On big dobs, truss flexure can be an issue - you push and it feels like the scope moved - but it was just the trusses flexing a bit and nothing much changes on the screen after you wait for the image to settle down because the scope barely moved.
Figuring out how to get from point A to point B if you are already familiar with starhopping is not the real challenge. The learning curve here is the waiting. Waiting for the image on the screen to settle down. Move the scope, wait, move the scope, wait. So if you are into hunting down faint planetaries or galaxies, it's going to be more time-consuming than what you're used to.
Now, I'm not posting this to scare anyone off or preach doom and gloom. And I'm sure there are dob owners out there who have had nothing but perfect experiences ("My Argo Navis puts it in the center everytime!"). But I've seen plenty of posts over the years from happy DSC scope owners reporting that the object was, "right at the edge of a one degree field in my eyepiece". Sorry, but that ain't gonna cut it for a one-half degree field. The object will just plain NOT be on the screen, so you're going to have to figure out how to move the scope efficently, you'll have to figure out which direction to move the scope, and be patient and wait for the the scope settle down over and over and over for however long it takes for you to work it out.
Some or all of this also applies to any type of goto scope as well. The thing I like about most goto scopes is that they have slow motion controls. You can set an appropriate rate and slowly pan around, which is why I aquired my 11" SCT. Hopefully, soon, I'll be one of those people saying, "it puts it in the center of the field every time!"
If you have people hanging around waiting for the next big thing to appear on the screen, it can be a bit intimidating while you're getting the hang of this. Especially when they are sitting in their lawn chairs laughing and cackling about how great the free show is while you're sweating bullets trying to figure out where the heck that friggin' galaxy is. Yee Haw!
Just more stuff to think about...
--------------------
Matthew Sherman
StellaCam 3
Celestron NexStar 11 @ f/3.3
Starmaster 12.5"
Starmaster 18"
Tom Osypowski Equatorial Platform
Butterfield East Video Observatory
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rshassell
member
Reged: 11/28/07
Posts: 77
Loc: Colorado, USA
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Quote:
Some or all of this also applies to any type of goto scope as well. The thing I like about most goto scopes is that they have slow motion controls. You can set an appropriate rate and slowly pan around, which is why I aquired my 11" SCT. Hopefully, soon, I'll be one of those people saying, "it puts it in the center of the field every time!"
One of the features of my Celestron N11GPS that I've learned to use a lot is the 'Precise GoTo'. If I slew to an object that's too dim to see in my finderscope, and if I don't see it in the camera's FOV, I'll select the 'Precise GoTo' on the hand controller. The scope then slews to a nearby star, which is visible in the finderscope. I center it in the camera's FOV, and then the scope slews back to the dim DSO. At that point, I'm more confident that it's just a matter of adjusting the camera settings to bring it into view.
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midway199
super member
Reged: 04/21/04
Posts: 108
Loc: Illinois
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Quote:
One of the features of my Celestron N11GPS that I've learned to use a lot is the 'Precise GoTo'.
Thanks for pointing that out. I plan on doing the same once I get more familiarized with my NexStar 11.
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Matthew Sherman
StellaCam 3
Celestron NexStar 11 @ f/3.3
Starmaster 12.5"
Starmaster 18"
Tom Osypowski Equatorial Platform
Butterfield East Video Observatory
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Bowmoreman
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/11/06
Posts: 2992
Loc: Bolton, MA
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Quote:
3. Siebert Optics makes a zero magnification camera focus adapter that essentially pushes the focal plane out an inch (IIRC) to allow cameras to achieve focus. It is available in 2" and 1.25" formats.
Matthew, do you think something like this would also work in a refractor where I can't back (in) focus enough? When I use my VanSlyke Slider mirror assembly (a logical flip mirror)... I can't infocus enough with my MCHP by about 1/4-3/8" - because the VS is about that much deeper (in/out) than my Vixen flip mirror... If I could somehow extend the focal plane by 1/2" or the 1" you mention... well..
that would be fabulous...
thoughts?
clear skies!
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Dave
Ustream
YLive
XT10i, RTP, CGE, R200CF, TMB80SS
31T5, 22T4, 13Ethos, 8Ethos, TV 3-6 Zoom; Paracorr
MallincamColorHyperPlus,SBIG STV&237A;CanonRebel Xti
WilderSkiesObservatory(BYO #90)
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skyguy88
member
Reged: 11/13/06
Posts: 62
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The quality of my go-tos took a giant leap forward when I started using spread fingers as calipers on the monitor, getting the allignment stars VERY accurately centered. It probably looks strange but it really works to get go-tos spot on. I try to match left/right and up/down to less than 1/4 inch on a 12 inch screen.
Bill McDonald
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Bowmoreman
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/11/06
Posts: 2992
Loc: Bolton, MA
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Another trick for best possible go to's is to make certain that all your alignment stars are as dead center as possible, using an illuminated reticle.
My approach is to use first my 13 Ethos (via flip mirror) to get it visually centered, and then substitute my 5mm illuminated reticle EP, perfectly center it, and then hit align...
if I do this on the first two, then after that, I can just do Ethos only... and everything (so far) has landed virtually dead center on the monitor...
I suppose another approach would be to put some small marks denoting the central portion of the monitor (e.g. via a film overlay so as to not mark the screen)... sorta "target marks"
clear skies
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Dave
Ustream
YLive
XT10i, RTP, CGE, R200CF, TMB80SS
31T5, 22T4, 13Ethos, 8Ethos, TV 3-6 Zoom; Paracorr
MallincamColorHyperPlus,SBIG STV&237A;CanonRebel Xti
WilderSkiesObservatory(BYO #90)
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midway199
super member
Reged: 04/21/04
Posts: 108
Loc: Illinois
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Quote:
Matthew, do you think something like this would also work in a refractor...
I believe so, he makes models for refractors and reflectors.
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Matthew Sherman
StellaCam 3
Celestron NexStar 11 @ f/3.3
Starmaster 12.5"
Starmaster 18"
Tom Osypowski Equatorial Platform
Butterfield East Video Observatory
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Douglas
Vendor - Night Vision Astronomy
Reged: 05/21/07
Posts: 293
Loc: Pound Ridge, NY
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Quote:
When people post their success stories, you don't always get a sense of what it took to get there. Things don't always fall in to place: badda-bing, badda-boom. Except for Douglas and his 50" plasma, apparently. (heh heh - just teasing Douglas!)
Thanks Matt!
Well ... I have to confess, although I did have tremendous success my first night out with the MallinCam, getting the target onto the CCD chip was challenging as Matt points out.
First, I used a high power EP when doing my star alignment in my Argo Navis which improved pointing accuracy quite a bit. I used a 7mm Nagler with the 82 degree FOV and tried to put it dead center. Dave made a good suggestion, to use an illuminated cross hair EP to center objects when doing star alignments.
While that was good enough for targets like The Ring Nebula which were smaller in size and more easily placed on the CCD chip, M27 was challenging. It is a much larger target and easy to miss when moving fields with delayed feedback and delayed time to settle enough to pump up integration settings to actually detect dim DSOs. I found a little trick here... I usually have the camera in 2.1 second mode when slewing but I pay close attention to the screen as it moves to the intended target. Often I will see the target pass through the FOV and if you watch the motion of the star field, you can figure out which direction you need to move the scope to get back to the target. It doesn't work on every target, as they get dimmer, it becomes much more difficult since you need the longer integrations to see the target.
Placing targets on the CCD chip can be challenging which is why I like to use focal reducers, it significantly improves your chances of seeing the target. Not only does it improve contrast, the increased field of view will save you aggravation and lost time.
- Doug
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Night Vision Astronomy
BIPH - Binocular Photon Machine
IDA Member
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Denk II Binos D14s & D21s
MallinCam Hyper Plus Color
Bunch of Naglers & 13mm Ethos
Stellarvue 80mm F/7 NHNG #36
PST SolarMax 40 Double Stack
Canon 15 x 50 IS Binoculars
AstroTrac
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Bowmoreman
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 09/11/06
Posts: 2992
Loc: Bolton, MA
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If nothing else, the relatively narrow fields of MCHPs (and presumably other types) will start to rejuvenate the flip-mirror use case!
Now, if I could only get my 2" Van Slyke to work in that use case - 
Seriously, a flip mirror (or slider) really makes things so much easier... visually center on your target with whatever EP gives you same, or higher magnification... then just flip the mirror.
And, as noted before, you can use it (in conjunction with the IR EP) to really NAIL your alignment (and hopefully hence your gotos)... This part is ONLY critical when tryiing to use the MCHP to go deeper than your EPs can go... And, of course, requires a pretty accurate goto...
And, I suppose it is also needed when ya wanna find things through clouds, severe LP (or Luna LP!), or, possibly in twilight, etc...
If you've never used a flip mirror, give it a go...
One thought; is it possible to have/use a flip mirror on a Newt??? (I know the neck angles could get seriously weird!)...
clear skies
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Dave
Ustream
YLive
XT10i, RTP, CGE, R200CF, TMB80SS
31T5, 22T4, 13Ethos, 8Ethos, TV 3-6 Zoom; Paracorr
MallincamColorHyperPlus,SBIG STV&237A;CanonRebel Xti
WilderSkiesObservatory(BYO #90)
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semiosteve
super member
Reged: 07/03/04
Posts: 143
Loc: NEOhio
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This was a very interesting post Matthew. It deals with a practical issue. Even if you have a good GoTo, the issues you describe are relevant. For example, I use a ServoCat and ArgoNavis with by 20" Obsession. There is a wonderful feature called spiral search that helps when finding something that does not land up dead center. The mallincam can be used during the spiral search - sort of. If you use the slowest spiral search and the fastest integration and the object is not too faint you might catch it. Otherwise, you have to pull out the MC, use an EP do the spiral until you find the object and swap in the MC again. I suppose some sort of flip mirror gizmo might be possible, but the focuser and travel is so small that I don't think it could work for the Obsession...I wish the MC had some kind of setting that max'd the detection (at the expense of noise) for 1/2 second integrations so you could do star hopping or spiral search.
I suspect this could be one of the Next Big Things for cameras like the MC.
At any rate, this issue does represent a part of the learning curve - and in about 3 months when the skies start getting clear I hope to get back on that curve!
--------------------
Steve Verba
7in. Astro-Physics StarFire
20in. Obsession
15 x 15 Rolloff (Backyard Observatories)
Mallincam Hyper Color video camera
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smokin oakum
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/24/07
Posts: 1426
Loc: Wilmington, NC
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Would a flip mirror work on a Dob? I would think that it might create some travel/focus problems, but I have no experience with these devices.
Neil
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Broadcasting live views of the night sky @
Sparkcast
C11 CGE / Hyperstar
MallinCam Hyper Plus Color
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
MoonLite Focuser
Round Table Platform
12" Parralax rings
Cape Fear Astronomy Club
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midway199
super member
Reged: 04/21/04
Posts: 108
Loc: Illinois
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I think a flip mirror would pose a problem with in-focus on a newtonian, unless for instance, you had a shorter set of trusses to compensate.
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Matthew Sherman
StellaCam 3
Celestron NexStar 11 @ f/3.3
Starmaster 12.5"
Starmaster 18"
Tom Osypowski Equatorial Platform
Butterfield East Video Observatory
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smokin oakum
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/24/07
Posts: 1426
Loc: Wilmington, NC
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That's what I was thinking too.
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Broadcasting live views of the night sky @
Sparkcast
C11 CGE / Hyperstar
MallinCam Hyper Plus Color
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
MoonLite Focuser
Round Table Platform
12" Parralax rings
Cape Fear Astronomy Club
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[Re: 