Re: How do you aim a telescope






Star "hopping" is star "hoping"...but I like star hopping because it is a
wonderful mental excercise. It forces you to actually use your brain by
relating a star map to the sky and a telescope. It's too bad that astronomy
scares a lot of people away due to the mental excercise involved. I think
of it like fat people scared of physical exercise. They just get spooked at
the comittment required.



<wdoe...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

<snip> It must be a miracle that in all of my research into telescope
alignment, I came across pages that did not mention this. Not even so
much as a message to the effect

I was amazed as well. I believe the omission from most books by
authors comes from that their use assumed knowledge. The only really
clear explanation I found was in the back of my childhood Edmund Mag 5
Star Atlas, which can still be purchased online. Here's a web page I
wrote on the use of manual setting circles for an equatorial mount:

http://members.csolutions.net/fisherka/astronote/plan/mansetcir/ManSe...

See also

MacRobert, A.M. 2007. The Setting Circles on Your Telescope. Sky &
Telescope Online Article.
Url:http://www.skyandtelescope.com/howto/visualobserving/3304206.html?c=y...
accessed Oct. 2007

Regardless of whether you settle for star hopping, manual setting
circles or computer goto, it's fun to master all the techniques for
your chosen hobby. I tend to use all three. Star hopping is useful
for dark sky sites and rural-suburban transition skys to find well-
known Messier objects. Manual setting circles will get you to close
to an obscure planetary nebula in Eriandi that has few bright stars
from which to star hop from. Star hopping and manual setting circles
are next to useless under an urban light polluted sky, let's say if
you want to find an obscure mag 7 double star under a mag 3 or 4 urban
sky. Then, IMHO, goto is the best solution.

Learning manual setting circles also gave me a better appreciation of
how to use digital circles to good effect. With manual circles, you
find the nearest bright star, slip the disks to star's coordinates,
and then slew the nearby faint fuzzy target. Digital setting circles
best work by a similar procedure: goto to nearby bright star, then
sync your computer handbox, then goto the desired target.

Clear Skies - Canopus56

Star hopping and manual setting circles
are next to useless under an urban light polluted sky, let's say if
you want to find an obscure mag 7 double star under a mag 3 or 4 urban
sky. Then, IMHO, goto is the best solution.

I live in the middle of a city of over a million people, there is
plenty of light pollution. Directly overhead, the skies can be
greater than mag 4 but most of the sky is not. I seem to be able to
find my way around using an 8x50 finder. If I am looking for
something new, then it may take me several minutes to identify the
stars along the path, but that's part of the pleasure. Starhoppng can
be effective even when there is serious light pollution.

From my point of view it all depends on what it is about this hobby
one enjoys. For me, GOTO is not a viable option for the simple reason
that I enjoy starhopping, finding a target is half the fun. I use my
GOTO mounts for tracking and don't even bother aligning the computer,
I like the faster response of the GOTO drives.

If one is mostly or solely interested in observing a target and
doesn't view the journey there as part of the joy, then using setting
circles and GOTO can be less work once over the initial hump.

But Starhopping can be effective under most all circumstances, in my
view it's a question of whether it is worth it on a personal level.
It is to me.

Jon



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Relevant Pages

  • Re: How do you aim a telescope
    ... Star Atlas, which can still be purchased online. ... The Setting Circles on Your Telescope. ... for dark sky sites and rural-suburban transition skys to find well- ...  Then, IMHO, goto is the best solution. ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Re: How do you aim a telescope
    ... Star Atlas, which can still be purchased online. ... The Setting Circles on Your Telescope. ... for dark sky sites and rural-suburban transition skys to find well- ... Manual setting circles will get you to close ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Moon to Sweep Through the Pleiades (Forwarded)
    ... That evening, if the sky is clear, you can watch the waxing Moon ... And if you have a telescope, now is certainly the time to get it out. ... the edge approach a star until the star seems to hang right on the edge, ...
    (sci.space.news)
  • Re: How do you aim a telescope
    ... Star Atlas, which can still be purchased online. ... wrote on the use of manual setting circles for an equatorial mount: ... The Setting Circles on Your Telescope. ... for dark sky sites and rural-suburban transition skys to find well- ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Re: Newbie looking at buying a scope....
    ... just familiarize yourself with the night sky in general. ... in order to learn the constellations many people recommend an all ... paperback book called "Star Maps for Beginners" by I.M. Levitt and Roy ... The first and last parts of the book present general astronomy ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)