74 replies to this topic

[waso29]

This is a nice setup for kids and young at heart:

 

fc76dcu f12 mode on space boy mount.

 

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[waso29]

on this particular night, brought out fc100dl in f14 mode mounted on em11t2z.

the metal tripod makes a nice compact sturdy setup.

 

solar system viewing for chicago's finest.

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[fate187]

Awesome! waso, how do people react seeing Jupiter and especially Saturn (for the first time). Are people usually aware of the other planets and their appearance?

[waso29]

beautiful mild summer night to spread takitis in chicago tonite.

the curious provided oohhs and ahhs upon gazing luna, saturn and jupiter.

i had fc100dl in f18 mode mounted on vixen porta.

super contrasty lunar landscape; tonite featuring the pencil mark aka straight wall.

cassini was etched on "that can't be real" saturn.

multi cloud bands on jupiter, with the 4 jovian moons pretending to be "double-double" tonite.

 

 

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[waso29]

nice stretch of smokeless skies, allow enjoyment of gas giants for all walks of life.

if weather holds, will head over to nor isle to join Chicago Astronomer/ Park District outreach star party Thurs nite.

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[waso29]

Brought out fc100dl in f18 mode to Northerly Island tonite.

Folks enjoyed sharp details around Schroter's Valley, and the distinct shadow casted on Saturn's ring.

Also observed Io starting out as a pimple, later casting Jovian solar eclipse, with grs as bystander.

It was a mild and humid night, but the Tak continued providing sharp views, while the sct in the field were quickly dewing up.

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[fiston]

What an inspiring thread, thanks for sharing.

[waso29]

beautiful clear and steady skies to celebrate mexican independence day.

brought out fc100dl f9 to showcase luna, saturno and jupiter.

tonite, plato, copernicus and tycho provided contrasting crater selection.

"is that REAL?!" saturn never disappoints.

had to wrap things up before grs made its appearance.

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[waso29]

tonite, used fs60cb in f11.8 mode using c2x adapter.

the mount used was teegul sky patrol iii in eq yoke mode, sans counterweights, on vixen tripod.

keeping track of the gas giants was a breeze.

i have the setup at a height friendly to kids and the young-at-heart.

 

 

 

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[waso29]

Used the same fs60cb mounted on sky patrol in yoke mode tonite.

Folks were impressed how sharp and powerful the smallest scope in the field was.

 

The other refractors in the field were on alt-az mounts.

The portable teegul made tracking at high magnification a breeze.

Wished Tak made a larger teegul eq mount for 4in scope.

 

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[waso29]

Joined Adler Planetarium's Scopes in the City at the annual Songs, Stars and S'mores event at Caldwell Woods tonite.

Families enjoyed great music, bat biology, starry skies and s'mores, of course.

I brought the compact fc76ds in f/15 mode.

Was able to showcase high powered views of venus, saturn, io shadow transit

and low power views of seven sisters aka subaru.

 

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[waso29]

For outreach in Chinatown, used EXQ1.6x with fc76ds in f/12 mode.

Allowed use of low powered eyepieces with more eye relief on viewing luna and planets.

The compact size of scope and smaller mount needed, made it easy for me to haul it down from my condo.

Providing top notch sharp contrasty views to guests and myself.

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[waso29]

fc100dl f9 with lunt wedge is a nice white light solar scope for outreach.

able to provide comfortable contrasty views of sunspots with wide field eyepieces.

mounted on sturdy vixen gpd2 mount.

 

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[waso29]

lunt wedge works well with fc76dcu for nice white light solar outreach.

able to provide contrasty views of sunspots in lightweight grab-n-go.

 

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[waso29]

crowds quickly filled chinatown, taking valuable parking spots.

luckily on this beautiful mild summer nite, i was able to bike over to the square with my tak setup:

fs60cb on teegul sp mount in yoke mode.

providing contrasty sharp views in small package.

inspiring next gen of skywatchers.

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[waso29]

tak's fc100dz f/8 is their most svelte 100mm doublet yet.

great in providing high contrast viewing in portable package.

nice for quick outreach setup and teardown, from the heart of america's top ten violent city.

 

looking forward to more outreach in the coming Year of the Rabbit.

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[waso29]

took advantage of clear weds night in chicago.

it is also the day the planetarium is open at nite for visitors.

felt the spring break crowds were getting back to pre-pandemic levels.

 

the compact fc100dz f/8 is light enough, i was able to mount it onto the smaller cg4.

seeing improved thru the night.

i regret i didn't bring along Q1.6x amplifier and/or shorter than 7mm eyepiece.

 

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[waso29]

one of buddies was under the weather, so i was solo tonite.

i took out the ultra light fc76dcu in f/15 mode on porta ii mount.

i also added right angle 8x50 finder to allow folks to compare views.

 

super sharp contrasty views for guests and myself.

 

 

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[waso29]

on this beautiful spring day in chicago, i biked over to adler to catch the visitors.

i took my day/nite setup: fs60cb on sky patrol gem in yoke mode.

the baader filter provided nice contrasty sunspot views.

many visitors have never seen the sun thru telescope.

we also chatted about past and upcoming eclipses.

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[waso29]

blessed with 6th clear day in a week.

to have more time to chat with folks, i decided to power up the portable sky patrol gem mount.

after viewing luna, folks were free to grab a snapshot with their camera.

 

the fc76dcu could possibly be the "goldilocks" of fluorite doublets.

breaks down into a carry-on size, yet provides sharp detailed lunar features approaching a 4in.

 

 

 

 

 

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[waso29]

nice summer afternoon to bike around town, grab a bite and do a little outreach.

tak's versatile fs60cb sky patrol system fits the bill nicely, with great color control in compact equatorial kit.

 

asked folks to help identify the "first star" in the sky.

after looking thru the scope, many folks remarked "ohh, it's the moon!"

but many realized that small bright dot in the sky couldn't be the moon.

 

folks enjoyed realizing for first time that venus also show phases like the moon.

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[waso29]

On this clear summer night, I took advantage of a block festival happening near public square.

To cut through the intense car traffic/ parking headaches, I biked over with my Tak setup.

 

I enjoyed viewing and sharing crisp views of Tycho, Gassendi, Aristarchus and Plato.

Also nice to chat with visitors from afar and near, of different backgrounds and cultures, with a common interest of the sky.

Win-win for all.

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[cmas]

This is a nice thread and great to see the pics and your effort

[waso29]

Last nite, due to the gusty cool winds, i used the shorter portable fs60cb.

Tonite, with the winds calmer, i switched up by swapping to fc76 objective.

In combo with sky patrol eq mount, it is my best portable bike-n-go setup.

 

I went solo to the overlit public square to show saturn and luna.

I was pleasantly surprised to see same family, that attended outreach event by the lake last nite.

Some folks enjoyed grabbing a snapshot of the moon.

 

Can't wait to add jupiter in the mix.

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[waso29]

Took advantage of folks coming into to the city to celebrate Mexican independence.

Tonite decided to add c2x amplifier to fs60cb, allowing use of longer focal length/ better eye relief eyepieces on saturn.

Converting the scope to f/11.8, still in a compact package.

 

A family visiting from Japan was pleasantly surprised to see a Tak during outreach in USA.

 

Unfortunately, the forecast for the rest of weekend has degraded.

Will be back hopefully with luna waxing.

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