11893 replies to this topic

[CHASLX200]

I observed today it was to bright out and would have to wait until it gets dark.  However, it is cloudy so I think viewing is a bust 

Clear all day and BOOM the sea fog is back jack.  Best seeing ever and can't use a scope.

[Kitfox]

Clear all day and BOOM the sea fog is back jack.  Best seeing ever and can't use a scope.

 

Fog typically indicates good seeing...

[CHASLX200]

Fog typically indicates good seeing...

It does in FEB. Always my best seeing month when warm and sea fog is about to come on shore. Most times it waits till around 9pm.  WATER TEMPS are 58f and land temps mid 80's inland. Just get some dead still nites as long as it is warm.

[Airship]

We had a mild clear afternoon with clouds rolling in at dusk. I continued familiarization tests with my 6” f/15 Jaegers to work out the kinks and smooth out the setup and operation procedures. I’m getting good at aligning the mo7nt and setting circles in daylight and was able to locate Venus, the moon, and Jupiter. Venus in daylight through this large scope is simply stunning. The gorgeous blue sky tames the brightness of the planet revealing a sharp limb, soft terminator, and tantalizing detail in the perpetual clouds. The moon looked fair in daylight, but looked stunning as dusk deepened. The level of fine detail is almost too much to take in. The moon becomes a place rather than an object. Ugh, the clouds appeared before I could spend too much time with Jupiter, but the level of detail was wonderful. I loved the gorgeous colors and fine details _between_ the equatorial belts.

 

I have a few tweaks to make yet, but this scope is proving to be very easy to set up, use, and to put away.

 

Wonderful!

[Bomber Bob]

BIF:  35 years ago, I had that B&L Bushnell 80x1000, and I don't recall seeing any colors on Jupiter; so, I can't attribute my C80's colors to age.

 

Any other C80 Owners able to see belt colors??

Edited by Bomber Bob, 06 February 2025 - 04:37 PM.

[CHASLX200]

Another drop dead nite with 9 seeing. But my scope is too new to report.

[cavedweller]

Another drop dead nite with 9 seeing. But my scope is too new to report.

 

Put a vintage finder on it and you'll be good to go.

[Cavs56]

I’m from SW Ohio. We finally made it to Florida a few days ago. This is our third year. First year with a telescope. I brought my CO-80 Celestron. Today I looked at Venus, Jupiter, Mars and the moon during daylight. Venus was excellent the best view I have seen very sharp crescent. Some CA but it did not affect the view. Jupiter was nice the moon was outstanding great contrast and amazing amounts of detail on crater walls. Mars was so so.
Tonight I went back out and looked at Orion Nebula I always love looking at it it was beautiful at 50x 110x and 180x. Trapezium was easy at 50x. Mars was much better could see the ice on the pole and some detail not much just differences in color. Mottling might be the best way to describe it. Jupiter was excellent eight zones quite a bit of detail inside craters the two main bands and especially in the central band. BomberBob had ask in an earlier post if anyone has seen color in an 80mm. I saw white, tan, a very dark brown almost black and possibly a tint of orange in some of the darker tans. Also did a star test it was perfect. The moons of Jupiter were perfect little discs. Also during the daytime view of Jupiter I saw three moons couldn’t find the fourth. It was a rough winter in Ohio. Florida is awesome. I want to see Orion on a night without the moon!

[Cavs56]

Sorry detail inside the bands.

[deSitter]

I’m from SW Ohio. We finally made it to Florida a few days ago. This is our third year. First year with a telescope. I brought my CO-80 Celestron. Today I looked at Venus, Jupiter, Mars and the moon during daylight. Venus was excellent the best view I have seen very sharp crescent. Some CA but it did not affect the view. Jupiter was nice the moon was outstanding great contrast and amazing amounts of detail on crater walls. Mars was so so.
Tonight I went back out and looked at Orion Nebula I always love looking at it it was beautiful at 50x 110x and 180x. Trapezium was easy at 50x. Mars was much better could see the ice on the pole and some detail not much just differences in color. Mottling might be the best way to describe it. Jupiter was excellent eight zones quite a bit of detail inside craters the two main bands and especially in the central band. BomberBob had ask in an earlier post if anyone has seen color in an 80mm. I saw white, tan, a very dark brown almost black and possibly a tint of orange in some of the darker tans. Also did a star test it was perfect. The moons of Jupiter were perfect little discs. Also during the daytime view of Jupiter I saw three moons couldn’t find the fourth. It was a rough winter in Ohio. Florida is awesome. I want to see Orion on a night without the moon!

I am amazed by mine. Those Vixen engineers and opticians really knew their craft. I was considering a 2" focuser but when I looked through it, my first thought was "I'm not TOUCHING this." It is the only small refractor  I've ever seen with absolutely perfect collimation. There is no way to adjust it, so they made it perfect. Problem solved.

 

-drl

Edited by deSitter, 06 February 2025 - 10:23 PM.

[Bomber Bob]

Not gonna mess with my C80P, either.  For my equally outstanding Mizar GT-80S, I bought a Baader 2" ClickLock that threads onto the largest focuser tube.  Makes this F7 perform like an RFT for Milky Way sweeping.

[CHASLX200]

Put a vintage finder on it and you'll be good to go.

I was using a old Nag. Jupiter and moon just unreal at 650x. Mars snap chap sharp but not much detail in the 12.5" Zambuto.

[starman876]

I was using a old Nag. Jupiter and moon just unreal at 650x. Mars snap chap sharp but not much detail in the 12.5" Zambuto.

you should have used a C80 like posted above on Mars

[highfnum]

cometron jr

jupiter

moon

 

 

 

 

[starman876]

cometron jr

jupiter

moon

 

Capture 2025-02-07T18_20_29jbcometronj.jpg

Capture 2025-02-07T18_27_33jbcometronmc.jpg

 

Capture 2025-02-07T18_31_38jbcometronm.jpg

there you go  Who needs a big scope with a Zambuto mirror.  

[highfnum]

That is very funny

Another CNr said I probably have

The only cometron Jr that works

 

They are very tricky to collimate 

For a beginner probably was a killer

Eh 6 hrs to get good enough for

above Images

[Paul Sweeney]

The sky was clear at sunset so I took the orange tube C8 out for a peek. The seeing was average at best. The transparency was good.

I started on Venus, which showed a very nice white cresent. There was a small amount of color, but nothing to worry about.

Jupiter was interesting tonight. Callisto was passing just under Jupiter and I watched it for a while. High thin clouds started arriving and the seeing deteriorated.

Mars showed the polar cap and dark markings. The planet would not stand still. It was bouncing and drifting, making it difficult to see anything.

The moon was surprisingly good tonight. The finest detail was not visible, but a lot could still be seen. I spent a good while going over the terminator. The haziness increased so I called it a night.

[clamchip]

I was out with this today looking for chromatic aberration. That's like looking for the biggest

guy on the beach and kicking sand in his face, you don't want to do that!

The snow is a torture test for CA and sure enough around 200X I could see some 

but not much, a very well corrected lens. I already know its an excellent lens and just curious

just how much purple fringing this one makes since it's f/17. 

This piece of ABS sewer pipe contains a Antares Research Grade Vixen Spec lens sold in

the mid-nineties by Sky Instruments in Canada. 

My 90mm has the same 1500mm focal length as the Antares 105mm X 1500mm f/15. I don't

know if having the same focal length for two different aperture sizes makes them easier to

produce. Or they just wanted to make a "special" and this one certainly is special. Still though

it's the same size and everything as the 105 so you might just as well haul out a 4 inch over

this 90. Unless you are after a little bit better correction then this 90mm f/17 might be the

better choice.

Robert

 

Edited by clamchip, 08 February 2025 - 06:53 PM.

[Cavs56]

Tampa area CO-80 moon at 180x with my new AT 5 mm. Stunning Plato 4 craters amazing detail and contrast on everything. Nothing like Ohio. Every night here is near perfect. Ohio usually average seeing comes and goes every 3 seconds. Moments of good seeing then below average seeing.

[CHASLX200]

9+ seeing and using a 2.5mm LV in the 12.5" Zambuto. May barlow it.  

[CHASLX200]

Tampa area CO-80 moon at 180x with my new AT 5 mm. Stunning Plato 4 craters amazing detail and contrast on everything. Nothing like Ohio. Every night here is near perfect. Ohio usually average seeing comes and goes every 3 seconds. Moments of good seeing then below average seeing.

Feb is always my best seeing month when super warm and sea fog is around.

[deSitter]

I was out with this today looking for chromatic aberration. That's like looking for the biggest

guy on the beach and kicking sand in his face, you don't want to do that!

The snow is a torture test for CA and sure enough around 200X I could see some 

but not much, a very well corrected lens. I already know its an excellent lens and just curious

just how much purple fringing this one makes since it's f/17. 

This piece of ABS sewer pipe contains a Antares Research Grade Vixen Spec lens sold in

the mid-nineties by Sky Instruments in Canada. 

My 90mm has the same 1500mm focal length as the Antares 105mm X 1500mm f/15. I don't

know if having the same focal length for two different aperture sizes makes them easier to

produce. Or they just wanted to make a "special" and this one certainly is special. Still though

it's the same size and everything as the 105 so you might just as well haul out a 4 inch over

this 90. Unless you are after a little bit better correction then this 90mm f/17 might be the

better choice.

Robert

 

IMG_3122.JPG

That would be an interesting comparo.

 

My 90/1400mm AO scope has so little color it's not important. Even on the Moon, it's jet black and white and no color at all. This scope did a fantastic job on the recent Mars occultation. To see color you need to go above 50x per inch and hunt for it. Lateral color in the eyepiece would have to be understood and accounted for. Next time out I will try to disappoint myself

 

-drl

[Bomber Bob]

Cloud-dodging & rushing around last night with my TS-65S / 1000:   Venus, Jupiter, The Moon, & Mars.  Rain about 40 miles NW of The Swamp, so I had to be ready to pack ASAP.  A large cloud gap opened up around 00Z, with widely-scattered popcorn clouds drifting within the rift.  Yet, planetary seeing at least 8 / 10.

 

Can an old Orion Broad-Band Filter enhance planetary details??  Yes.  Jupiter at 200x (LV-5) w/o the BBF:  4 belts (NTB very pale gray), & 1 dark Spot along the NEB's south margin.  200x with the BBF:  6 Belts - NTB is brick red & prominent; thin EB is reddish-black & obvious; NEB Spot is a Festoon with Tail.  The BBF made a significant difference.  Not too crazy about the blue Zones, but I got much more detail from this 2.6" Triplet than I expected.

 

How sharp is my TS-65?  Mars at 400x (LV-2.5) -- 156x per inch -- did not go soft / mushy.  BBF didn't help with this bland hemisphere:  Mare Sirenum was blue-black without it; and, that stretch of Utopia is thin & ragged.  The BBF does make the polar cap stand out, but it was bright enough at 200x.  IOW:  This is the finest 60mm-Class Refractor I've used so far -- beats the GOTO 60 F20 optically & mechanically.

Edited by Bomber Bob, 09 February 2025 - 09:46 AM.

[CHASLX200]

Cloud-dodging & rushing around last night with my TS-65S / 1000:   Venus, Jupiter, The Moon, & Mars.  Rain about 40 miles NW of The Swamp, so I had to be ready to pack ASAP.  A large cloud gap opened up around 00Z, with widely-scattered popcorn clouds drifting within the rift.  Yet, planetary seeing at least 8 / 10.

 

Can an old Orion Broad-Band Filter enhance planetary details??  Yes.  Jupiter at 200x (LV-5) w/o the BBF:  4 belts (NTB very pale gray), & 1 dark Spot along the NEB's south margin.  200x with the BBF:  6 Belts - NTB is brick red & prominent; thin EB is reddish-black & obvious; NEB Spot is a Festoon with Tail.  The BBF made a significant difference.  Not too crazy about the blue Zones, but I got much more detail from this 2.6" Triplet than I expected.

 

How sharp is my TS-65?  Mars at 400x (LV-2.5) -- 156x per inch -- did not go soft / mushy.  BBF didn't help with this bland hemisphere:  Mare Sirenum was blue-black without it; and, that stretch of Utopia is thin & ragged.  The BBF does make the polar cap stand out, but it was bright enough at 200x.  IOW:  This is the finest 60mm-Class Refractor I've used so far -- beats the GOTO 60 F20 optically & mechanically.

Crazy dead still seeing here as we no longer have winters and Feb's are around 82 to 90f inland.   

[deSitter]

BIF:  35 years ago, I had that B&L Bushnell 80x1000, and I don't recall seeing any colors on Jupiter; so, I can't attribute my C80's colors to age.

 

Any other C80 Owners able to see belt colors??

Oh absolutely! Jupiter was popping with color. Venus allowed for a white balance to be established. I used medium-low powers on Jupiter until the brightness was just right. And Mars provided a 3rd balance point. It was very, very good at transmitting color. That lens is fully on a par with his top-tier grand uncles from the 1960s.

 

My scope is the 80/910mm f/11 version. It came on the alt-az "Custom" mount. There is also a 80/1000mm f/12.5 version. I can't remember which came on the SP mount. Mine was on a "Custom" alt-az mount.

 

-drl