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Posts Made By: Darren Drake

March 9, 2004 04:40 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Martian fossil??

Posted By Darren Drake
NASA isn't saying anything but it is quite interesting.
http://www.space.com/php/multimedia/imagedisplay/img_display.php?pic=hf_mars_rotini_040301_02.jpg&cap=Opportunity's%20Microscopic%20Imager%20found%20this%20intriguing%20object,%20lookingmore%20like%20Rotini%20pasta.%20Its%20odd%20shape%20has%20stirred%20up%20Mars%20researchers,both%20inside%20and%20outside%20of%20the%20NASA%20Mars%20Rover%20Exploration%20team.%20Whetheror%20not%20this%20object%20is%20related%20to%20biology%20has%20prompted%20a%20variety%20ofviews.

April 12, 2004 11:34 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Fewer Orion Superwides

Posted By Darren Drake
I noticed that the latest Orion catalogue has fewer superwides I believe. Am I mistaken here?

April 13, 2004 04:16 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Astrofest may move this year

Posted By Darren Drake
This is not an official announcement but word has it that there is a possibility that Astrofest may be moved this year to location 6 miles to the southwest of camp Shaw. The site is long but narrow with plenty of space and few obstructions and a little darker.

April 15, 2004 03:23 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

air condition the primary

Posted By Darren Drake
What do you all think of this idea? As described in the May S&T, the thermal boundary layer is one of the most destructive factors in the optical chain in a newtonian. It is a warm pocket of air just abouve the primary that just doesn't go away on nights with rapidly falling temps. To prevent this I'm going to try to put a jug of frozen water between the mirror and a house fan which could possibly cool the mirror to slightly BELOW the air temp and eliminate the boundary layer at least temporarily. Any one else ever tried this?

May 1, 2004 02:45 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

trouble getting interference lines in Lumicon dia

Posted By Darren Drake
Last night Dan Joyce and I were testing my 2 inch Lumicon diagonal for flatness using a reference flat and monochromatic light source. It is the enhanced aluminum version with 96 %reflectivity. We were surprised to find it nearly impossible to see the interference lines. Usually this is the case for dielectric coatings but this does not have those. Has anyone had a similar experience? We did just see the lines enough to determine that the mirror is good but it was very difficult.

May 10, 2004 12:25 AM Forum: Equipment Talk

Edmund eyepieces

Posted By Darren Drake
I just recently got the 28mm and 15mm Edmund eyepieces with the purchase of a scope here on astromart. They both are labeled as plossls. Someone recently told me these are NOT the RKE design that so many rave about. Is this true or are these the same as the RKEs with a different label? They do have the red rubber band grip around them.

May 13, 2004 03:18 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

New Edmund Plossls

Posted By Darren Drake
I recently received the 28mm and 15mm versions from Edmund after buying an astroscan here on astromart and am surprised to find that there is nothing out there about how they compare to other eyepieces including the RKE line. Does anyone out there have any experience with this line? I'll soon try them out and put my impressions on them here.

May 13, 2004 03:19 PM Forum: Eyepieces

New Edmund Plossls

Posted By Darren Drake
I recently received the 28mm and 15mm versions from Edmund after buying an astroscan here on astromart and am surprised to find that there is nothing out there about how they compare to other eyepieces including the RKE line. Does anyone out there have any experience with this line? I'll soon try them out and put my impressions on them here.

May 17, 2004 03:11 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

Dialectric VS Aluminum

Posted By Darren Drake
I know that there is only a few percent difference between reflectivity and that that is not really noticeable to the eye but is there a real difference in contrast between the two? I'm trying to have a better understanding as to whether the cost increase is really worth it.

June 7, 2004 01:42 AM Forum: Equipment Talk

The best focuser just got a little better

Posted By Darren Drake
The other night while attending the local astronomy club meeting I picked up the latest style Feathertouch focuser. Detlef and Brigitte Schmidt of Starlight Instruments have just started selling a new version of their classic focuser which now includes a locking ring in the 2 inch drawtube as well as the 1.25 inch adaptor. It is also baffeled in the inside to further reduce internal glare. The 1.25 inch adaptor has also been revised.

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