*** The Official Astronomy & Universe Thread ***

[Cosimo]

 

[NeverWinter]

So, I saw it tonight, about 2 hours ago. Used my housemates telescope which isn't brilliant but you could just about make it out! Need to get myself a good telescope I think! Something I can link up to a laptop to take images...

 

[Cosimo]

 

[Tibbz2]

So, I saw it tonight, about 2 hours ago. Used my housemates telescope which isn't brilliant but you could just about make it out! Need to get myself a good telescope I think! Something I can link up to a laptop to take images...

Trouble is with astrophotography you're looking at a decent scope, but the mount needed and other equipment like the camera makes the cost ridiculously high! Depends on the scope size, but for minimum I think most people recommend the HEQ 5 pro mount, which is about £650+ on its own!

I wish I had the money for it

 

[NeverWinter]

Yeah, not any time soon then for me! Ah well, I'm gonna keep my eye out for a 2nd hand scope, something like a 6" Newtonian.

 

[Spook187]

Yeah, not any time soon then for me! Ah well, I'm gonna keep my eye out for a 2nd hand scope, something like a 6" Newtonian.

Just buy the one in my pic i posted, then be done with it

I'm dripping at the mouth for a decent scope.

 

[Tibbz2]

Dobs are very cheap very big and very easy to use transport and maintain

 

[Spook187]

It looks like one the best clear nights i have had up here for a while, and i'm to tired to go outside in the field beside me

 

[NickK]

Cheapest option for imaging is going for bright targets - sun (with special solar film "white light"), moon and then planets using a webcam.

Ok, the scope & mount are expensive but this is what you can do with a £3 asda webcam:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou0xBloe-Tk

Dob + web cam with the moon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFn7hoc6Dhw
Dob + web cam with Saturn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXyeBAVU4V4
Dob + webcam and Jupiter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YSHGdv6dA0

If you're targetting something bright, then you can use a high frame rate which means you can let the target drift over the field of view.

 

[Spook187]

yeah i see xbox cam works wonders as well

 

[Spook187]

Sod it, going outside for half hour to see Saturn.

 

[Spook187]

Saturn was good, very small with the Bins, but could just make out the rings, very pleased.

 

[Cosimo]

 

[NeverWinter]

Saturn was good, very small with the Bins, but could just make out the rings, very pleased.

Yeah, that's how it was with me the other night, could only just make them out. Still an awesome thing to see.

 

[Spook187]

Would anyone be interested in doing our own star camp next year.

 

[Von Smallhausen]

Not long read some facts on VY Canis Majoris. It is truly mind blowing.

 

[Tibbz2]

Would anyone be interested in doing our own star camp next year.

Not sure there would be enough people for that tbh, but I might be wrong!

 

[Tibbz2]

Not long read some facts on VY Canis Majoris. It is truly mind blowing.

Indeed, epic scale, then I read about how big NML Cygni was!

 

[Spook187]

Not long read some facts on VY Canis Majoris. It is truly mind blowing.

Indeed

 

[mrk]

Although this news has a more local Earth bound affect on us it will also bring about some interesting Space focused things in the future no doubt. Those interested in quantum computing news will find this a good read.

Especially where this projected is supported/funded by Microsoft and:

Kouwenhoven’s team hopes to use a scheme called “topological quantum computation” that could evade decoherence at the hardware level by storing quantum information non-locally, which could lead to a Nobel Prize for Kouwenhoven and total domination of the future of quantum computing by Microsoft.

http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblo...at-the-border-between-matter-antimatter-.html

I find it fascinating how quantum computing went from being Sci-Fi to reality in a ~decade yet the ideas and theory of their existence started off way back in the early 20th Century with great thinking.