Mar 27, 2010

The Telescope, the Telescope !

Setting up my scope. Yeah, I accidentally used the wrong aspect ratio when filming so I look like a skinny ass mofo bitch. Also, I realize the music is too freakin' loud. Shit happens. Below the video you have my impressions after the first use :) Enjoy.



So my Celestron (Astromaster 130EQ) is here and I got to take it out for some fun timez. I am a total novice, never worked with a telescope in my life so it was tricky getting used to it ...I actually had to search online info on how to use the mount :/ After I finally got the alignment right, first thing I pointed my scope at was, ofcourse, the moon. Using the 20mm EP it looked splendid, it gave a very sharp image of the craters and what I think it was some of the seas. Then I switched to the 10mm EP and I was amazed how much the image improved. I could even see individual rocks on the Moon's surface.

I turned the scope to Saturn and I was a bit disappointed that I could not see the rings. After a few minutes I managed to see two moons and realized I was actually looking at Jupiter and that's why I couldn't see "the rings", dur dur. I know, imma n00b. Since the sky wasn't perfectly clear (some clouds and a little fog) , the Planets were kinda shaky, especially Mars. Gonna wait for a clear sky night to see the full abilities of this scope when it comes to solar system exploration.

I switched to 20mm EP again and turned it deeper into space. I managed to find the Sigma Orionis and the Orion Nebula and even with this weather I could still distinguish many stars ... the thought that I am actually studying objects 1350 light years away gave me the chills :)

Overall I am still waiting for a night with a clearer sky to full test my scope but so far I am absolutely in love with it. I didn't use the Motor Drive yet because I wanted to move the scope around myself to get accustomed with it ... the motion cables work well and I can move it very smoothly. After I get more used to it I will try some astro-photography. I really don't remember being this excited! ! Thanks again Fred, I am so grateful to you for this wonderful gift <3

47 comments:

Anonymous said...

Buna ziua:

Fascinating little blog. Looking forward to reading more.
Beautiful video and the music volume is fine. Appropriate...lol

Ceau,
Obi

Unknown said...

Hello,

Grats on the telescope! There is a little free software that I like that may make your experience more enjoayble... It adjusts to your location to give you an accurate map of your sky. It is called "Carte Du Ciel", I know the title is in French but the software is in English. It works on any Win OS (XP,vista,Win7 32 or 64). Enjoy your telescope, and try to get away from light pollution for better sighting!

Jeremy Enecio said...

yay! that's exciting! you definitely deserve a gift like that. keep up the good work, can't wait for your next youtube vid.

all the best,
jeremy

Anonymous said...

Great new toy you have there!!! :D It will surely bring you much joy.

Am on the other side of the world, South Africa. Sometimes I take a drive out into the desert and have the darkest of skies with a zillion stars above. I should invest in a telescope too see more!

All the best.

BitsInTheWind010101 said...

I remember when I got a telescope last year I was pretty excited about it, especially when I able to see Saturn's rings. Don't worry, when you get the chance to observe Saturn you should see the rings pretty clearly. By the way, I came across a program a while back called KStars that might help you out with your new hobby. I found it pretty useful for getting to know the skies.

Cheers!

Zergu said...

Baftă la vizionat.

Eu am fost la observatorul astronomic unde am văzut Saturnul, Marte, Sirius, Luna.

Sunt puțin gelos :)

Unknown said...

Enjoy. It's a fun fun thing. A word from experience: Invest in a better tripod. The ones that come with them are real shaky... Or get a length of chain and suspend it from the back of the scope to the ground to dampen vibrations.

Jerry said...

Cool, have fun with the telescope. And keep up the good work. I hope YouTube doesn't block your videos, I enjoy them very much.

Anonymous said...

As a good Christian, I keep my telescope pointed at the greatness that God gave me, H. Rudy Ericson to ogle... I mean gaze upon. Why I can see you right now.


Hey. Open those drapes again. The ZOMG Police Cheif NDV Uncle demands that you open the drapes! I demand satisfaction!

Anonymous said...

I wish I could get a telescope like that but where I live it is practically perma-cloudy.
I even went to the local Science Museum one night (after buying tickets a month before) and instead of viewing Mars through their 65cm beast we looked at local buildings through their 5 cm telescopes.
The following day was, of course, beautifully clear.
The Planetarium show was good though.
Anyway happy viewings!

elmartino99 said...

cool gift. well done Fred. thanks for posting the vid. Up telescope!

noneone said...

Way cool! Did you see any NASA junk on the moon?
Check out the Pleaides and Orion's "sword".

MK said...

saw your video on YouTube, very interestng! :)

Todd the Toad said...

Very exciting. Reminds me when I got my first telescope as a kid (turned me into an atheist, haha).

Aaron said...

Your brain is awesome. Your taste in music doubly so.

Anonymous said...

Wait till you see the rings of Saturn for the first time... brought tears to my eyes!

La Tonya said...

Congratulations :D :D Have fun and I hope you get many more gifts. I will certainly contribute when able.

Anonymous said...

I need a telescope . I have an idea you should invite me over and we can have a star gazing party.

unclerobertblogs said...

That Looks Like a Lot of Work Having To Set Up That Telescope. I Think It Is Worth It To See Space In Great Detail.

Anonymous said...

criss you have to watch this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRuSCl30ByY&feature=related

fred

Unknown said...

THE DEATH OF ATH*ISM - SCIENTIFIC PROOF OF GOD


http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php?t=280780




Einstein puts the final nail in the coffin of atheism...


*************************************

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7vpw4AH8QQ

*************************************



atheists deny their own life element...




LIGHT OR DEATH, ATHEISTS?

********************************
***************************LIGHT*********
************************************

___________

Anonymous said...

Beautiful lady, eat some cookies. Too skinny. ;-) Video was fine and thanks for posting.

You might want to check out some galaxies (clear skies, sparks), incoming comets (not available on demand), UFOs (WTF?!), etc. Do check out Mars.

Maybe sand bags on the tripod legs would help to steady it from shaky? Despite the headache, you may have to RTFM or find a PDF scope manual online to understand all it offers. Awesome gift you have there. Enjoy!

M.Sivaganesharathnam said...

Hai my dearest Cristina,
Nice to meet you,
My name is Sivaganesharathnam (M.S.Rathnam) from Sri Lanka, Your work is very interesting and important, Very beauty full face cut and very charming face, I like it,your's blog also very nice I wish you all the best.
MY BLOG IS: msrathnam.blogspot.com
my email is: sivaganesharathnam@gmail.com
Dearest Cristina Could you do a big help to me, because I am also new member to the BLOG please improve my blog as your best ability, therefore please let me know your personal email address I will send my blog user name and password to you. I will believe you will do this help for me.
Thanks take care
Yours Truly
M.S.Rathnam
From: Sri Lanka

Anonymous said...

Hi Cristina, just in case you don't know it yet, here's how to connect your telescope to WWT: http://www.worldwidetelescope.org/help/supporthelp.aspx#how3

Enjoy!
Jeroen

Criteriamour said...

Whoa, I was about to ask "Are you a lesbian so I can date you?", but I'm a gay guy. It's 2 in the morning here.

str said...

Awesome, have fun with the new telescope. And yeah, you are one skinny ass mofo ;)

Anonymous said...

Have you started using any filters yet? While a little pricy a good solar filter is well worth it. Regrettably I didn't get mine in time to see the solar eclipse, but looking at the sun through a telescope is still unreal. You may also wanna pick up a lunar filter and a 2x barlow lens. Have fun with the scope.

Anonymous said...

You're hot - especially when you talk about the things you choose to talk about! I just found your videos and blog, and I enjoy both.

If you are interested in taking long exposures with your telescope, take a look at http://www.anderswallin.net/2009/01/first-autoguiding-test/

steve said...

Hi K-Rina! Way cool to have a telescope! This is the beginnings of a great adventure. Kudos to Fred for his generosity - K-Rina deserves these kinds of gifts. The astrophotography thing is very challenging, but don't give up. The history of my misadventures in astrophotography is on gory display at http://homepage.mac.com/stevepur/astrophotos.htm. You can find early photos thru the link at bottom right, taken with a telescope not that different from yours.

Kalamain said...

Don't forget that if you are working outside to use a red filtered torch so you don't lose your night vision and its generally better to spend a few mins outside allowing your eyes to get used to the dark before you bother looking through the scope.

Also. If you have a separate web cam...Try putting it up against the eyepiece for images straight to the laptop!

fulekkei said...

hey dere. the background on your blog is lovely. i think you are a kind and lovely person, im glad you have something to be excited about. :P

Anonymous said...

Please oh please k-rina tell me what you're astrological sign is! I'm guessing you're an Aquarian like me as they are known to be beautiful geniuses

M.Sivaganesharathnam said...

very nice, but in our country unable to get this facilities

SpaceHead said...

Wow, atheist AND a space head. Kudos!

Anonymous said...

whassup kat, long time no see. Hope everything is well

Anonymous said...

Hope the scope is working out for you. Best wishes from Texas...

razvan said...

Buna e foarte interesant ce zici tu dar cred ca inca nu vezi intreaga poza. Da, religia e bullshit dar adevarul e ca si stiinta e la fel. Nu esti cu nimic mai speciala decat un om care crede in religie pentru ca tu crezi in stiinta. A belief remains a belief until u see with your own eyes. Ceea ce vreau sa-ti spun e ca lumea asta e mult mai mult decat ceea ce vezi. Exista foarte multe dimensiuni pline cu tot felul de creaturi, universul e plin de viata dar creaturile cele mai multe sunt in stare spirituala.

Minciuna cea mai mare e ca noi suntem niste biete corpuri pe o planeta aparuta din intamplare, adevarul e ca suntem spirite infinite cu constiinta infinita si momentan suntem intr-un corp fizic. Tu zici ce zici din teorii, dar eu zic ca am vazut. Cauta pe net informatii despre astral traveling si out of the body experiences. Si inca o chestie, religia si stiinta sunt doar 2 parti aparent opuse dar sunt controlate de aceeasi forta. Daca ai mintea deschisa o sa vezi adevarul si nici macar nu tre sa ma crezi pe mine, poti incerca astral projection si o sa vezi cu ochii tai

Anonymous said...

Hey, i'm sorry, it wasn't meant to be a compliment i was just conducting a study. I didn't know you didn't "belieeeeve" in astrology

Mike Mossey said...

It will be fun to see what pictures you will capture with your new toy.

hotfrozen said...

You might think that watching you assemble a telescope might be boring, but I could watch you as you sit and watch paint dry, with interest.

But seriously, you do the world a service in your videos that encourage people to think.

Bob.

Anonymous said...

Lucky woman. Enjoy the skies!

mac said...

I could use your film work on my fat ass ;-)

Seriously, I followed you from youtube to here. Good site.

Unknown said...

If you ever find yourself in Arizona, send me an email - there are some wonderful places around here for stargazing. The wife got me a Celestron from x-mas this year, but I'm still looking for a good time to set it up and make good use of it (my company sent me to UK for the last 4 months, and I wasn't able to bring the scope along). :-)

Anonymous said...

I love to stroke while watching you.

Anonymous said...

What should really fascinate you is not the distance, but the fact that your actually peering into the past. The light you pick up in that telescope originated 1355 years ago. Thats what gives me the chills.

Santiago said...

Ah telescopes... simply beautiful :) Also a major keystone to putting us in perspective, how minute we are with respect to the rest of the universe. A simple lump of order in a random fluctuation of entropy, one that mirrors itself.

Kenneth Katona said...

Is the moon really Mars?What really happened to the moon around March 1st.2012?Can you see Sagittarius' Constellation?Thats where i'm from.I am a God from one of those planets here to claim Earth.Any questions?

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