Observing Report: Jupiter's Back!

Tonight was a great night and brought back memories from almost a year ago. I looked out the window and saw two bright stars low on the horizon. I checked Sky Safari Plus, and sure enough, it was Jupiter and Aldebaran. When I got home I went out at 10:00pm. Conditions weren’t great; the almost full moon lit up the sky, Jupiter was still low in the sky, and seeing was poor. However, I got a look at Jupiter for the first time on over 9 months. I clearly saw Io, Ganymede, and Callisto. Europa was behind Jupiter at the time I was observing. The Pleiades were above Jupiter, and they looked good in my 21mm Baader Hyperion. I spent some time looking at the 93% Waxing Gibbous moon. I put in my moon filter which blocks some of the light, it helped a little. I need a high powered eyepiece to observe close up, as my highest power is only 150x right now. I put in my blue filter just for fun, experiencing a “blue moon.” I spent the rest of my time getting some wide field images of Jupiter, Aldebaran, and the Pleiades. I’m really looking forward to winter and I’m getting ready for Orion and the other familiar constellations appear. This is the last part of the sky I have not observed, but I’m still excited for winter; and the long, dark nights. In the meantime I ordered SkyandTelescope’s Pocket Atlas. Pictures taken by me.

15 sec., ISO 200.

Moon: October 23, 2012

This was my first moon picture in almost two months. I definitely have to get back into the techniques and tricks I've learned in the past. This was not my best shot, but I'm looking forward to some more lunar and solar imaging in the coming weeks.

Observing Report October 15, 2012

I got a quick 25 minute session in tonight. I wasn’t planning on going out, but conditions were good so I decided to get some more observing in. I’m still a little rusty. The conditions were excellent, but seeing was average. Not that I was observing planets, Jupiter is just starting to climb above the horizon around 9:15pm. I can’t wait for later this year; Jupiter is my favorite planet to observe. The first thing I noticed tonight was M45 Pleiades through the trees. It was a great sight, it was one of the first things I observed when I first got into astronomy a year ago. That was my first time seeing it in over 7 months. I quickly glanced at Uranus then tried for M33, the Triangulum Galaxy. After 10 minutes of searching I just wasn’t able to see it. I was in the right place, I just don’t think  the skies were dark enough and my 6 inch scope may not be enough aperture to spot it in a suburban area. The last thing I looked at was M31/M32/M110. M31 wasn’t as prominent as usual so that could be a good sign regarding M33. Tonight was the first good night in a while and I’m ready for the winter constellations!

M45 Pleiades Star Cluster

Sun October 13, 2012

I finally got to do some solar imaging today. This took longer than usual because I had to get back into the routine. 1/1250 sec, ISO 200. Single shot. Nothing to interesting here but a couple nice sun spots nonetheless.

Short Report + Telescope Update

I went out last night for about 30 minutes, and the winter constellations are starting to rise earlier and earlier. I saw the Andromeda galaxy as well as the Double cluster for the first time in more than six months. This part of the sky is the last part of the sky I have yet to observe, I got into astronomy in November of 2011. I'm really excited for the winter constellations.

I am looking to get a new telescope in the next couple months. My budget range is $400-$700. I'm going to get into planetary imaging and maybe some deep-sky astrophotography soon. I'm looking for a  small 'scope in that budget range that I can utilize. Maybe a Celestron NexStar, but I don't know. I'm also hoping to get a high powered eyepiece such as a 5mm. I have an 8 and 21 Hyperion, 150x and 57x, respectively. I still need a high powered eyepiece. I'm also hoping to get out more in the coming months.

This is also my 50th blog post!