The moon is easy to see and impossible to miss after a few seconds…
Saturn however is much smaller from here…
And so, it is much harder to target.
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Saturn is bright point to the left of the Moon. Jupiter is the bright point to the right of the Moon.
I don’t think that either can be considered stars because they are planets.
If the weather is good this weekend I plan on taking some shots of Saturn and Jupiter.
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That only happens when those planets happen to be there, they move around all the time and also show up at different places.
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The first night out I viewed Jupiter.
When I looked through the telescope and noticed moons orbiting around what I thought was a star I thought maybe I was seeing stars that were further away and didn’t appear in the night sky.
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Yeah.
I didn’t get to see Jupiter from a telescope yet.
I did see Saturn, and the ring(s), I could even draw you the relative resolution which I saw, and describe how small it was in the higher focused lens. For some reason, it also didn’t show up on the finder tube.
I think that we had to guide ourselves with some of the surrounding constellations of stars, to get a general idea of where it would be.
I think the person that owned the telescope may have done some study or research before inviting me so as to have a general idea as to where to look for Saturn that day/ evening/ just before the night.
(I didn’t see any moons, except our own moon, yet.)
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I took some more videos last night. Better quality this time around. More light and less orangish brown.
The first three screenshots were taken with a 25% Moon filter. The rest were taken without a Moon filter.
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Hopefully I will be able to get a better camera before the end of the year. Or maybe for next Spring. The images and video taken above were with a 3 mega pixel. The next step up will be the 5 meg pixel. I might also be looking into getting one of these.
I could probably make my own for a lot cheaper.
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That’s pretty much how I saw the moon back in around 1982…
So, 37 years ago, already…
I have a strong feeling that we’ll soon be able to see the moon much more accurately than before, not unlike the google map details, and, perhaps, have a google cam on the moon to map it as well, why not?
Well, I know why not.
It’s for the same reasons that here on earth, including off-limit area with government control, or some other control supported by government, to stop Google map to get unwanted details, or, details that are not on a need-to-know basis.
The same goes for some of the underwater area, or, some uncharted underground, or, under-the-ocean, or lakes (or, other areas than bodies of water), caves, or, more than 67% of them.
It was mostly black and white from what I remember but I didn’t have any filter and the lens quality was likely of older quality than the current up-to-date lens quality.
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I already submitted an App idea to NASA that would involve taking the images of the surface of the Moon and Mars and convert them into a VR app. Well not really a VR app, but the app would display the are of the Moon or Mars that you wanted to be in. You then start walking around and the app adjusts its direction to make it appear that you are walking on the Moon.
Such an idea would be an awesome means for people to discovery the surface of the Moon or Mars along with the surface of other planets such as Europa or Enceladus. Just imagine getting up on a Saturday morning and hiking around all day long outside using such an App. Being in two places at once can be pretty cool.
Just imagine if the App was used with exercise machines. Instead of watching the hottie in front of you, which isn’t a bad thing but can get you in trouble, you could instead exercise by running your routine to the surface of Pluto, the Moon or Mars. Not only do you get exercise but you would also get to explore the planets at the same time.
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I recently added to upgrades to my telescope.
The first is a dew shroud / light blocker.
I made it from a plastic gallon bucket.
First I traced the diameter of the telescope end where the light comes in. Next, I cut the piece out with my Dremel leaving the about a 1/2" diameter to fit around the telescope. After that I cut up some old printer cabling into three sections and wrapped them around the inside of the shroud. Once satisfied the length was correct, I used Gorilla Glue to adhere the pieces to the shroud. Once dry, I then wrapped the opening the I had cut out with Gorilla Tape to create snug tight fit. Once I had taped the the inside I then spray painted the shroud black.
The next upgrade is another DYI. Going to the local hardware store I explained what I wanted to do.
The two guys couldn’t find any PVC pipe to work but then suggested that I use s six inch piping with a rubber washer and twist tight ring.
I fit the pieces together and it worked perfectly.
After taping the threaded end and the end that goes into the tube itself I then spray painted the extension black to ensure that outside light did not interfere with viewing. The end of the tube that goes in the telescope is approx. an 1 11/16" in depth.
I used a Sharpie to draw an outline around the tube while it was in the telescope to ensure I got the correct depth.
From left to right: eyepiece, ring tightener, eyepiece seat with rubber O-ring (comes with the tubing kit) tubing.
Total cost for the extension tube kit was $2.99 with tax.
With the above extension tubing kit fitting perfectly together you can create any length from the tube.
To determine the length of the visible section simple measure from the flange down. For example if you wanted a 1/2 " extension tube, simply measure down a 1/2"(.50") from the flange make a mark of 1/16"(.0625) tolerance between the extension and the unpainted portion and then measure another 1 11/16"(1.6875") for the section that goes into the telescope tube, then cut off.
You now have a 2.25" extension tube for your telescope that didn’t cost $24.99.
When using the extension kit above make certain that the extension tube is between the eyepiece and Barlow lens.
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I remember we had an extension tube for the telescope (white), however, I don’t think that we did install it, because then, it would have meant to try to find Saturn in the sky back again, which, is easier said than done.
So, I think, on another day, we tested the extension, and it didn’t work.
I’m glad to see (and/or read) that it finally works.
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I’m getting a new 20 mm piece through the mail a in few days which will help bring Jupiter and Saturn into better viewing. I am getting a smart phone adapter so that I can take videos or stills of what I am viewing.
I was going to get a 3.6 mm but the tech I spoke with said that such a small eyepiece would put the magnification at over 400 which is too much for the 1540 fl of my scope. So by next weekend I hope to have some really great shots of Jupiter and hopefully the moons orbiting it.
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Here are some very interesting images that I took with my LG7 ThinQ. I didn’t have an eyepiece adapter to properly fit the camera to the eyepiece.
Most of the images have what looks to be a planet and its moons. I was looking at Jupiter when I snapped these pictures.
Arrows pointing out the moons to the right.
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I was thinking about getting a telescope, but in this age when there are much better telescopes and probes I could ever put my hand on, and images from them are publicly available, I dont see a purpose in owning some small one.
BTW those moon images were pretty nice, felt almost like from some 60’s movie about space invaders. 
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You get a 50 mm to 70 mm telescope for around $65 plus a phone mount to take pictures of what you are viewing through your telescope.
It might be easier to get pictures from the internet, but trust me, looking through a telescope and seeing Jupiter and its Moons and Saturn and its rings for the first time with your own eye, makes those internet images seem a little less respectable.
So for around $100 you can view the night sky and take your own images and stand out from the crowd.
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I went back and using GIMP I tried using various filters to enhance the image.
In the image below, the large circular object in the upper hand corner must be Jupiter with the smaller circular objects being the moons orbiting Jupiter.
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Here is an app that lets you track stars with a guide scope. I might be able to turn it into a star transit system to monitor the transit status of star such as Tabby’s Star.
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What you can do with a 127 mm Mak/Cass, 20mm eyepiece and an extension tube + LG7 ThinQ Smartphone with Smartphone adapter.
The video is jumpy because I didn’t use the Slow Motion Controls but rather the Cable Controls instead, hence the clicking sound.
The video is backwards due to the optical and the way it makes an image appear.
Here are two images that I snipped from the video above that have been post processed and look better than the actual video.
I will try again on Weds when the skies will be clear and not as foggy as they were tonight.
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I didn’t get home from work fast enough to capture the Moon tonight, but tomorrow is a different night.
I took this image of the Big Dipper with my LG7 ThinQ. I had to edit slightly to show all of the stars.
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The Astronomer’s Throw
The Astronomers Throw is a 10 to 15’ in diameter rubber mat bottom with carpeted upper surface that when thrown and the telescope placed in the center, the throw should theoretically keep the dew and condensation from reaching the optical along with providing interesting designs and patterns.
Where do artists of Deviant Art fit in at?
Patterns and artwork that could be printed on the fiber of the Throw Rug. The most important design would be the 360 degree compass that is important to all astronomers that would be used to quickly align our telescopes too.I can even see some of the arcane designs being made into compasses using glow in the dark material to make the viewing of the stars a really mystical and enchanting event for all.
Le’ts rub that magic lamp…I love the feathers CCP…oh dear the door bell.
These rugs would be great for small telescope owners up to 8" who view the stars under the stars and not in a dome.
There would have to be plug holes in the Throw that would have to be removed so that the trip pod of the telescope would be able to fit down through the holes and come into contact with the ground for better leveling.
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