Friday, June 5, 2009

My First "Real" Telescope

I picked up a new telescope today from a local guy. It is an Orion StarBlast 4.5" Equatorial Reflector. It's a decently built scope that apparently has good optics. It's a short tube scope, so easily manageable. The tripod and mount are fairly sturdy so they should stand up fine. Once I take some photos through it, I'll put them on this post.



The pictures below were taken last night through my new telescope. Enjoy.






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6 comments:

  1. Bob JohnsonJune 5, 2009 at 7:02 PM

    It's a good scope, should be able to get some fine images of the Moon with it, if it ever clears up that is,lol. I was thinking of calling you and going out to snap a full Moon Rise tomorrow but more cloudy skies are forecast.

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  2. Astro-NutsJune 5, 2009 at 11:33 PM

    I hope it's decent. Of course, it may be three weeks until it clears up enough to use it. I'd love to see a Moon rise. If you're thinking of going out at all over the weekend, please give me a shout. Thanks.

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  3. Hemant J. NaiduJune 6, 2009 at 7:25 PM

    Congratulations on the new scope. Happy viewing.

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  4. Astro-NutsJune 6, 2009 at 10:24 PM

    Thanks for stopping by Hemant. I think it should be okay to use. I'm also going to "borrow" my Dad's 8" refractor and see how it goes with that. Of course, by the time it ever clears up around here, I'll be too old and decrepit that I won't be able to carry it anymore.

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  5. Bob JohnsonJune 11, 2009 at 8:12 PM

    Not bad at all Colin, did you have to use a barlow to bring your DSLR into focus? It may be out of collimation but that is easy enough to fix, your dad is really good at that or if you need help just call me, did it come with a collimation insert that you put in the eyepiece? Or you could just focus on a bright star and adjust your secondary mirror's 3 screws until you get a tight sharp focus on the star.

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  6. Astro-NutsJune 11, 2009 at 8:20 PM

    Thanks Bob. Yeah, I used the barlow. I had trouble focusing with the 3x so I'm borrowing Dad's 2x to see if it's better. I'll need to get the collimation checked. I'm sure it's out a bit. It's close, but off by a bit. I could do it, but I want it done right the first time.

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