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Posts Made By: Casey Whalen

July 31, 2006 05:36 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

The Orion Skyquest xt6 dob....question.

Posted By Casey Whalen
Hello, i'm a aspiring amateur astronomer and i'm currently in the process of buying my first telescope, the Orion Skyquest xt6 dobsonian. I was just wondering how difficult it is to find objects with this scope? I'm looking at purchasing the classic which isn't compatible with the Intelliscope Finder. I'm on a limited budget and would love to spend a little extra to have the option of adding the intelliscope finder but not sure it's something I can do. Is there a way to accurately find objects w/o the intelliscope? And if so how?

Thanks!

August 3, 2006 08:00 PM Forum: After Dark

How to find the ISS?

Posted By Casey Whalen
Hello, i'm fairly new to astronomy been reading up on it like mad and am going to be receiving my new Orion Skyquest xt6 (dob) in the mail today, i'm very excited! I'm just wondering if there is some resource on the internet that can show you the position of the space station at any given time? I have a 7 year old and he is pretty intersted in astronomy, so i'm trying to get him into this as well and I know a view of the ISS would set him on his way. I do have Starry Night Pro and it just dawned on me to do a search for ISS to find it (since space station brought up nothing). Any feedback would be appreciated!

August 4, 2006 03:22 AM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

Trouble lining up my finder scope...

Posted By Casey Whalen
Just got my orion skyquest xt6 classic and I have it tightened to the max but can't get it exactly aligned with my telescope. Anyone else ever have trouble with this? It's close, but i want perfect.

August 4, 2006 03:20 PM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

A 2" eyepiece?

Posted By Casey Whalen
After just receiving my Skyquest xt6 (dob), i'm pretty happy with it but i'd like to be able to get the most out of my new scope. I'm looking at adding to my eyepiece collection, my xt6 came with 2 eyepieces (both 1.25") 25mm and 10mm pieces. I'd realy like to be able to see some deep space objects..sounds like my xt6 is somewhat limited (to 6 mag stars at the most?) but what about messier objects. I guess my question is what eyepieces should I invest in? From what I understand a lower MM is good for planetary viewing and a higher MM is good for deep space. Can someone point me in the right direction here? Funny how after I get my scope I have a lot more questions than before I had it, hehe.

August 5, 2006 10:12 PM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

Measuring Degrees with a dobsonian?

Posted By Casey Whalen
Ok, so i'm starting to get into star charts. Looking to spot a few messier objects tonight, M103 (in Cassiopia) and M110 (and M32 since it's right next to M110, in Andromeda). I'm using starry night and the distance between M103 and it's closest star in cassiopia, Ruchbah which is a little over 1 degree away from it. How can I meassure the distance in degrees? Sounds like star hopping is favorable but is there a way? With my 7 degree finder scope and a good pair of 8x42 binocs maybe I won't having much trouble spotting it? And I should have no problem with my equipment right? (see below)

August 6, 2006 06:51 AM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

My first Messier object...

Posted By Casey Whalen
It's my second night out with my xt6 dobsonian (more info below) and I about 99% positive I was staring down the M110, looked exactly the same as in Starry Night only I couldn't seem to zoom in much with my 10mm eyepiece. I'm going to guess that this is possibly because I now live in a town with about 60,000+ ppl (it has grown like crazy in the past 10 years, being a small tourist town) but there is no city on the east end of town where i'm at the very edge of thanks to the mountains there. So possibly light polution is a factor and/or I need a barlow. I'm kinda hoping that i'll be able to see messier objects with my tele? Rather than just a blurred spot like I see in my binoculars (and even the same after I look at it with my 10 mm EP?). Can anyone clarify what might be the problem? Thanks in advance!

August 9, 2006 05:52 PM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

ARRR....eye patches for viewing?

Posted By Casey Whalen
This sounds silly but seems like a good idea. Using an eye patch so you don't have to squint one eye for long viewing sessions? Anyone use one. *goes to laugh in a corner*

August 12, 2006 11:32 PM Forum: Eyepieces

Cleaning eyepiece lens'?

Posted By Casey Whalen
I just received 2 used eye pieces (a barlow and a 32mm eyepiece). There is a bit of dust/dirt on the end of the eyepiece you look through (not the opposite end that goes into the telescope. Would I be ok to clean this off with a microfiber cloth I have for cleaning my lcd screen? Now that I think about it, I have used a cleaner for the lcd screen and that might mess up my EP I suppose. What the best way to clean EP?

Thanks.

August 13, 2006 09:49 PM Forum: Equipment Talk

How do I?

Posted By Casey Whalen
Had my Orion Skyqueset xt 6 (dob) since auguest 3rd and i'm already starting to see dust and stuff collect on the bottom mirror (at the end of the telescope). How often do I need to clean that? Is it much to worry about so soon?

November 11, 2006 01:23 AM Forum: Beginning Astronomy?

Is this a good star chart for Telrad?

Posted By Casey Whalen
Hello,

Looking at picking up my first star chart. I have a Sky Quest xt 6 (6" dob) and I have a telrad on the way, i've heard of about alot of the books/star charts that are out there but i'm a little wary of which to choose? Some thing that is pretty appealing is the Sky Spot Finder Charts

http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?t=&pid=4959&m=

Can anyone verify that this is a good place to start for a chart? They look easy to use and really durable. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I also notice taht Anacortes also sells a Aurora Astro Dim Fuzzy Finder which can be purchased for specific books (i.e. peterson's field guide, nightwatch, star hoppers guide to messier, etc.) Are these good to use with the mentioned books?

Thanks!

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