Posted by whizkidd
I know there are some astronomy enthusiasts in here! I am one of them. All interested guys post here. No astrology and crap please! I guess sammy boy would love this one!
Posted by Sammy_boy
Hellooooo! I've been wondering about starting a thead on Astronomy, but you beat me to it Whizkid!
And I agree, no astrology! I have never met a tall, dark stranger.....
So, what equipment have you got, have you got a telescope?
Posted by whizkidd
I manage only with an old binocular. But i will be getting some stuff later this year. Its monsoon time here. So for now, no star gazing!
Posted by axxxr
What about Crystal balls.
On a serious note i'm looking to get a new telescope any recomendations?
Posted by whizkidd
Yeah sammy i am also getting one later this year what should i buy? You might know this for sure! ;-)
Posted by Sammy_boy
I'm still quite a newbie myself at astronomy - but any telescope by Meade should be a good one. I rather fancy one of those Meade ETXs, which are motorised, and have a 'goto' computer that will find stars, galaxies, novae, etc. for you. Either that, or the Celestron Firstscope range looks very good, and cheap.
My telescope, a Helios Explorer 130p cost me about £170, and is a good, cheap starter scope. I haven't gotten to grips with how to use it properly, but that's next on my to do list! Helios (which are also badged as Skywatcher) do some fairly good, cheap scopes.
@axxxr, do you live in London? I imagine it's very light polluted where you live. What are the skies like over in India, @Whizzkid?
Posted by whizkidd
Quite good the skies here. I live in a not so big town so not much light diffused in the sky. But for now nothing matters. The sky always remains cloudy. It would be ok by the next month i guess.
Posted by Elrond
I like astronomy. When I have time, I go to observatory, which is 5 km away from my house. I have always fun there.
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[ This Message was edited by: Elrond on 2004-08-21 17:29 ]
Posted by whizkidd
You got a telescope Elrond?
Posted by Elrond
No, I don't have. The observatory is not very far, as I mentioned and they have old, but very good one. And if it's cloudy, then we watch films in "mini cinema".
Posted by whizkidd
Lucky to have an observatory so close by. The closest one to me is more than 200 kms away! :-(
Posted by Sammy_boy
U can do astronomy with a pair of binoculars- i enjoy popping outside with a pair and gazing at the nite sky
Posted by whizkidd
Yeah, a binocular is the best tool for a newbie. Btw i am satisfied with mine! And its better than having nothing!
Posted by Elrond
I always look at stars, when I go out. And it's nothing better, then watch the sky and talk with friends on a barbeque.
Posted by *Jojo*
So, to all 'wannabees' . . . have you seen some 'aliens/UFOs' with your habit
That's the best discover any 'astronomer' can really dream of dudes 
!
Posted by kristaga
I'm in the board of my local astronomy society, "Deep sky exploration", http://www.dse.no/.
And I am studying physical geography at the university of Oslo, my master thesis will be about Mars! I am going to compare landforms on both planets to see if they are made by the same processes. Especially landforms that seem to have been made under influence of water.
Kristian André
Posted by Sammy_boy
@JN - no UFOs yet - quite a few satellites though!
Stargazing can be very therapeutic and relaxing after a stressful day, and also makes us realise exactly how small we really are in the grand scheme of things. Brings things into perspective, really!
And I enjoy it too, of course!
Posted by whizkidd
Where have you guys gone? :-)
Posted by Sammy_boy
Still about - not been able to do much astronomy for a while - it's been chucking it down despite it been supposedly the middle of summer! Then again, the British summer usually turns out to be our rainy season
So, do you have a favourite constellation, planet, star, galaxy or nebula?
I personally like the 'Double Double' in Lyra (Epsilon Lyrae I think it's official name is), the Andromeda galaxy, and the Plaedes (Mainly probably at the moment because I can actually find them!
)
Posted by whizkidd
How 'bout the orion nebula? Thats one i can clearly identify.
Posted by Sammy_boy
Oh yes, of course! Lovely sight that in winter here in the UK. That is a lovely telescope sight, even my cheap newt shows that really well!
Posted by whizkidd
Sammy, are you only into stars or do you observe our very own moon? Even with a binocular, the moon is a great sight.
Posted by Sammy_boy
I do a bit of planetary observing too. I also have this Russian terrestrial telescope that's a 20x50. It's excellent for looking at the moon! I bought an old, small tripod to go with it. Sadly, I managed to snap the bottom off one of it's legs when I nearly tripped over it! The tripod still works, but it's quite a few inches shorter now....
I'd recommend that setup for cheap kit - that telescope came from Ebay and cost £10, and the tripod was about £8, again from Ebay. I would recommend a slightly more expensive and therefore stable tripod though, this one was a bit wobbly (before I broke it, that is!)
Posted by scotsboyuk
I would like to point out that Astrology, far from being silly, is the forerunner of modern Astronomy, the history of Astrology is very interesting as it allows us to see how our anscestors studied the heavens.
Astrophysics was my subjct rather than Astronomy, but very interesting all the same.
Posted by methylated_spirit
Have you guys ever looked at uranus through your telescopes?
(I'm deeply, deeply sorry but it HAD to be done!!)
Posted by mince-inside
@meths grow up! Apologies lads. Does anyone get to explore Clitora Major at night?
Posted by whizkidd
I haven't. Btw, i only manage with a binocular!
Posted by methylated_spirit
@whizkid: do what with binoculars, look at uranus or Clitora Major? Have you seen anyone on uranus?
( i will refrain from any more jokes, im sorry it was too tempting. Apologies.)
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[ This Message was edited by: methylated_spirit on 2004-08-24 21:44 ]
Posted by Sammy_boy
@meths - you naughty boy! I wondered how long before uranus appeared.....
btw did see clitora major this evening. Didn't need binocs though!
Posted by whizkidd
Really sam! How did it look like!? :-D
Posted by Sammy_boy
Um... I'd best be gentlemanly and not say!
Posted by whizkidd
We are miles away from what this thread was intended to be! Its time we get serious folks! Sam, looks like only two of us are interested in astronomy!
Posted by Sammy_boy
And possibly axxxr - sounds like he wants to get into astronomy more as well!
Posted by whizkidd
So.... Did you star gaze last night? Btw whats the time there? Its 7:30 am here and i am sitting in a train.
Posted by jontyf
I am a proffesional astromaner thingimagig, I have a poster of something in space on my wall
Posted by Sammy_boy
@whizzkid - it was probably about 2.30am when you posted, and it's now 10.15am. Sadly still no stargazing recently, it's still cloudy and rainy here in the UK, despite it being the height of summer....
Posted by buluayam
I just noticed this thread - good one!
I've never really done astronomy before...though would really like to get started, I've always been fascinated with the heavens above and have spent many a night staring up at the night sky (and subsequently walking into lamp posts
)
I just spent the other night watching the Perseid meteor shower - sat outside for 2 hours, luckily although I stay in the city, my place is sufficiently dark enough that I managed to catch some of it. I think I missed loads of meteorites, but did manage to have a count of 11-12 meteors over that 2 hour period:D
I'm thinking of making my own telescope, found some really nifty instructions on the web about how to make one, and I've read a few other sites about what I need to know about making one. All I need now is a little bit of time to actually spend on making one!
Any enthusiasts out there who have done the same? Any advice as to where I can get mirrors cheaply - I'm thinking of making a Newtonian one:)
Posted by Sammy_boy
I haven't had experience of making telescopes, but I have recently joined a very active astronomy forum. It's predominately got US members, but they are a friendly bunch, very helpful, and located here .
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[ This Message was edited by: Sammy_boy on 2004-08-25 11:21 ]
Posted by whizkidd
Ah one more member! Welcome to the Astro thread m8!
Posted by axxxr
Came across this interesting article..................
‘Super Earth’ found circling nearby star
It’s thought to be 14 times as massive as our planet
An artist's impression shows a "super Earth" orbiting a sunlike star. Scientists say the planet is probably rocky, rather than being made of ice and gas, and it likely has a thin atmosphere. But they can't say anything else about its appearance or composition.
Posted by switchbitch
I hope you all have Solun' The Pocket Planetarium on your p900s, its a fantastic app.
Down here in upsidedown land the sky looks very different. The milky way for example, dominates the sky like a huge glittering wispy ribbon. Its quite stunning.
Posted by whizkidd
Finally! Some clear skies! Would be fun tonight. Monsoon sucks. :-D
Posted by gelfen
i used to have a mate at uni who was really into stargazing and stellar photography. he used to bring his shots in for us to "ooh" and "ahh" over. i was really keen on getting a telescope for my 21st, until i realised i have nowhere to keep it. hopefully once my house is finished i can do something about that.
here are some shots of Cassiopeia A which was in the news earlier this week:
The colours in this image of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A represent different energies of X-rays seen by the Chandra telescope. Red, green, and blue represent low, medium, and higher X-ray energies respectively.
The bright green outer ring marks the outer edge of the shock wave generated by the supernova explosion. The red jet extending towards the upper left of the picture is rich in silicon (highlighted in more detail in the next picture). The bright blue fingers located near the shock wave on the lower left are composed almost entirely of iron gas, ejected from the core of the star in a direction perpendicular to the jets.
Credit: NASA/CXC/GSFC/U.Hwang et al
This false-colour image highlights the jet and counterjet of silicon atoms around the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, detected from their X-ray emissions by the Chandra space telescope.
Credit: NASA/CXC/GSFC/U.Hwang et al
Posted by buluayam
@Bitch,
Where can we find more info about that program you mentioned?
Edit : Actually I just found it, http://my-symbian.com/9210/ap[....]cations.php?faq=33&fldAuto=229
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A train station is where a train stops.
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what more can I say
[ This Message was edited by: buluayam on 2004-08-30 14:52 ]
Posted by axxxr
Astronomy picture of the day - Lunation - full lunar cycle.
Posted by whizkidd
I truly wish i had access to a PC more often! Me mostly on WAP. So can't see those pictures. :-(
Posted by gelfen
Super-Earth spotted in Space
Posted by whizkidd
This thread needs CPR!!
Posted by whizkidd
Bump!!
Posted by Sammy_boy
I'm afraid I haven't been doing much astronomy recently, although when outside during the day last week with a pair of binoculars watching passing planes, I found a dot of light that wasn't moving. Quickly grabbing my telescope, I focussed on it, and it was a planet! It appeared to be in a half phase, I'm not sure whether it was Mercury or Venus. I hadn't realised you could see these planets during the day, I thought the magnitude of the sun obscured even these bright planets, but I was wrong.
It was quite bizarre, doing astronomy during the day!