Posts Made By: Paul Titus

Anyone here use remote webcams in their observatories to check scope conditions, sky conditions, etc?

Bob,

Since you're on a budget and if you don't plan any serious CCD or photographic imaging I'd suggest getting the LX-90 rather than the GPS200. Also, stick with the dual fork arms as the longevity of the single arm support is questionable since all the weight has to be born by one bearing.

Having tested both the Nextstar and the GPS200 I still prefer the Meade for design and ergonomics as well as accuracy in the field.

Might I ask why you're not considering a Dobsonian as a first scope? A good 10" would provide more light gathering capacity as well as fit a budget quite nicely. Plus you could then afford some nice extras like eyepieces, filters, and even digital setting circles.

Have you visited a local astronomy club yet? Before deciding on that first scope, go to a few star parties and do some viewing through several different telescopes.

The biggest piece of advice I can give is to make the first telescope you buy one you can easily setup and use without hassle and time constraints.

Clear Skies!

Ron,

I didn't see your previous post, but if your camcorder has a removable lens, it has what is called a 'C' mount bayonnet mount for lenses. There is an adapter made to mate up these style camcorders directly to the telescope via a T-mount adapter(check online for these or with a good local camera/video store as they can order them.) Then you can use an eyepiece adpater to allow imaging through the telescope with that setup.

If on the other hand you don't have a removable lens on your camcorder, the threads of the lens will vary depending on the make of camcorder, however these threads are not strong enough to hold your camcorder to the eyepiece, being made only to hold filters to the camcorder. In this case you have two main alternatives, buy or build a system that will hold your video-camera at the lens.

If you have an SCT, the best kit I've used is from Stratton Brackets. Jim Stratton has put together a really good kit that works like a charm. http://www.strattonbrackets.com There are other kits, but his is the best for the SCT style.

I don't know about for other style telescopes so you'll have to hunt around.

Hope this is helpful.

Clear Skies,

Paul T

Anthony,

Go to the Yahoo Group digital_astro and check out what others who have the 4500 and 995(same mounting style)use.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/digital_astro/

I know there is at least one off-the-shelf setup for these cameras.

Paul T

Some info I dug up on the internet gives you an idea of length limitations and communication requirements. Unfortunately you may find the cost of that length of scsi cabling to be very expensive, roughly $5/foot or more meaning at your distance it's $350 to 400. Thats based on a couple of searches with Belkin and other providers, however you may be able to find bulk cable and connectors cheaper than I did.

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/if/scsi/summary.htm

Here is one link to actual application for CCD setups.

http://www.astronomysite.com/mapug/31/msg32155.htm

Jerry,

You need to look for a diagonal which has a barlow built into it. I don't know that these are made any more, I got a used one with a short 80mm acromat I bought a few years back at a star party swap meet. This also came with a short style extension tube.

Mike,

Since your OTA is at least 15 years old you might want to factor in the cost of recoating your C-11 and secondary in the final equation. At this age it probably should be overhauled anyways for seals, etc. A new 11" may or may not be better figure than your current tube, so again that's a factor.

As far as GPS units, Meade's GPS system is superior to the Celestron version. I had the chance to test out both 8" versions at an event last year and found the Meade to be quicker and more precise at the whole procedure. If you're a strict Celestron supporter then that doesn't matter, but if you are serious about the useful effectiveness of GPS then you might consider a Meade 12" GPS with UHTC. The extra UHTC coatings on the Meade equipment has been found to increase contrast compared to their standard coatings.

As far as the difference between mounting styles. If you're happy with a GEM versus Fork then go with either the CI-700 or G-11. The G-11 is a better quality mount from the reviews I've read with the CI-700 showing the signs of cost-cutting to make it 'affordable'. If you're serious about imaging definitely spring for the G-11 and you won't go wrong. It's worth the extra bucks for a quality mount that has a long proven record.

If you do plan to hang a bunch of stuff off your scope the GEM is better as there's no swing thru problems like with fork mounts. But a fork mount GPS can be up and running in 10 minutes without you being tired from lifting all the weight onto a GEM and balancing the unit.

Hope that's helpful to you!

I guess the answer to your question might depend on what your definition of an 'average' night is for your area. Someone in Florida on the coast will get exceptional views of planets with either scope on an average night given good optics in both. Someone in the mid-atlantic may find the APO better because of seeing condition causing a larger scope to compress and show more atmospheric disturbance.

Refractors tend to perform better on planetary objects it's true, but at what cost? Can the expense justify 10% more contrast or detail? And what about the Mak-Newt vs APO debate? I've not had the opportunity to do a side by side comparison to see what the differences are other than price.

Dan,

Down here in the Carolinas we get lots of dew, so I built my own dew heater system using resistors for my 8" SCT. As a starting point I'd suggest 1 watt as I've found that to be sufficient for many nights. That's considering usage of a dew shield as well as the heater. If you are not using a DS then start at 1.5w. If the wattage is too high then you can and do risk damage to your equipment/viewing. When I built mine I did a lot of looking around on the web and other sources and determined that 3w is probably max necessary for my system.

Remember that the objective of any dew heater is to raise the equipment above ambient temperature only slightly. I've heard of people bragging about 30 watt heating systems and that's just way too much unless you like cool down time to return the optics to stability.

What method are you going to use for your heater? Heat cord/resistors/other?

PT

Yes!

A 13" scope which has a well made mirror can present a sizeable increase in brightness to objects because of the greater area. Since you mentioned a 13.1 you're probably looking at an f4.5 Coulter or similar scope.

This brings into consideration the other effect, which is a change in f-ratio which also increases the apparent field while decreasing the effective magnification of a given eyepiece. Most 10" scopes have a bit more f-ratio and thus have a narrower field of view than their larger brethren.

This gives the viewer a 'port-hole' effect whereby the experience under the skies goes from watching a picture on a wall to watching scenery roll by while in a stateroom on an ocean liner. This effect is awesome and enjoyable!