Observing planets: optimising your views
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- Getting consistently good views of planets and other targets in the night sky can seem a bit hit and miss to the new telescope user. In this video we look at a couple of the most basic variables that can affect the resolution and detail seen in planetary observation. We also explain how and when to address the target to optimise image quality with any telescope.
Presented by Robert J Dalby FRAS
for The Astronomy and Nature Centre
Produced by DB Video Services for Astronomy and Nature TV 
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All the videos by this chap are really superb. He explains everything really clearly. Cheers mate!
Nice observatory in the background. I wish my garden was situated in such an open place.
agreed
I saw the rings of Saturn a couple nights ago aiming my telescope through a window. I couldn't see any divisions in the rings, shadows, or surface detail but I preferred that over cold weather at 2am.
I heartily agree with your principle. Perhaps I should have said in the video; it's better to observe the night sky through a dirty window and a fly screen, than not at all! But just remember not to blame the scope for poor views. KR RJD
That little gold colored model he had on the table is cool
Ukraine2011 How is it called? ✌🤔
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orrery
It's always a joy to go onto youtube and find out that you've uploaded a video!
I learned more about telescopes today than ever. Good video. thanks!!
At the age of 50, my interest for this hobby has rocketed....I'm so excited about getting my NexStar slt130 in action. Your presentations are wonderful..... So helpful and are inspiring me further. I've been looking for one of those orrery's (orreries?) for years... They look so amazing. Thanks!
Nice! Hope by now you've gotten your telescope and had good viewing. I'm ordering one this week as a Christmas present to my siblings and myself.
Here’s a very useful tip: The maximum magnification your telescope can handle before the image goes blurry is the aperture of the telescope doubled. To make sure that you don’t go over that limit, you divide the telescope’s focal length by the eyepiece. For example, if you had a 70mm telescope, and a 10mm eyepiece, you get 7x magnification. If it’s a 5mm eyepiece, then you get 14x magnification so on and so fourth.
This is the most instructive video on the subject, I have seen to date. Very clear, especially the warning about the primal time of the year to observe celestial objects. Many thanks for sharing.
New to this business and tons to learn. NO ONE has taught me more and with greater wit and evident enthusiasm than this presenter. THANK YOU (and yes, I’m not too proud to admit I was one of those guys who ought to have had his intelligence insulted when told to take BOTH dust caps off the end of his newt!!)
You make the most excellent videos for tyro astronomers. Thank you.
Thank you. I'll be getting a new scope in a few months and I'm really interested in taking up astronomy.
I really found the video helpful. Thank you for posting!
your videos are by far the best !
Very nice video. This is a good breakdown of some of the basics for new observers. Well done! Scott
I just learn so so much from every video here!
This is best video I've seen to date!
Marvellous video, very concise and practical logical presentation but also I can feel your enthusiasm, thats what makes it great. ps I would loved to have seen more of that gorgeous looking BIG refractor!
Thank you, Sir! Great videos indeed, please keep up the good work.
this is great. I'm glad I stumbled up your channel. cheers!
I often practice window astronomy! I draw the line at around minus -25 F or so. Not uncommon for us to have minus -50 and much colder windshields! Record, minus -70 F! That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it! Thanks for the video!
Great tips for observation thank you for making this video
That was brilliant!
Very nice and clean explanation. Thank you
I just got a small scope and i used it last night in our utility room, which is grouind floor, rear of the house and i had the heating off so it was a 3C difference from outside. I got some really good views of stars in Ursa Major.
I wish i had a telescope
any suggestions maybe?
Pass Sha you can get Celestron travelscope 70 or 76/700 reflector telescope
Gary McKinnon how much money?
Pass Sha they both are below $70
I was trying to do nighttime astronomy, and oh man I regretted it after 30 min, I live in Canada and it is currently -30, and it's been like this for about 2 weeks now, hopefully it'll be over soon!
The Mars video is fantastic. I learned from this a great deal. My wife gave me a Celestron 80 lcm for Christmas an I have been battling to see anything worthwhile. I'm finding advice like yours excellent. Thank you very much.
Hi there, thanks for that information,I understand what you mean now !
Wow! That orrery is absolutely gorgeous. Probably costs a fortune as well.
You defiantly have the best astronomy chanel on you tube. Congratulations!
Your time and efforts are greatly appreciated - thank you.
Wszystko co jest tutaj powiedziane to absolutnie prawda. 😉😁
Super ten refraktor, który jest pokazany na początku!😉😄
Pozdrawiam serdecznie!😄🤚👍🏻👍🏻.
the always excellent astronomy and nature tv.
Excellent tips! Thank you so much :)
Great video
I keep wondering what us back yard astronomers can contribute to the world of astronomy
Jim Connoy Jim, look up AAVSO, members regularly contribute to the field of astronomy! I'm sure there are others as well
Absolutely correct Jim, ground based telescopes contribute and provide a lot of data astronomers and scientists need. They don't just depend on the high tech orbital telescopes and satellites to gather data, a lot of the data is provided by amateur astronomers. Also as you know already, some significant discoveries were made by amateur astronomers using 8" to 14" telescopes :)
Many discovers have been made by back yard astronomers like us! There is 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000+ stars in the sky. Nasa can NEVER find them all
Many new comets are discovered by amateur astronomers. Variable star magnitude brigtness tracking by AAVSO too.
+ Alice By no means only NASA. On the contrary :)
excellent presentation! some of which i have been aware for some time.the big one is out of my reach i have a 6inch f5 refractor on a dobsonian mount built by me, i have also some projects on the pipeline. what i would like to ask you is not about the 8 inch big boy but for the small reflector,mostly about the alt-azimuth mount,i like it very much could you please tell me if it is home made or commercial,if it is commercial could you tell me the maker and the model? thank you and keep up the good work.
Very interesting perspective of view to begin a healthy way of seeing heavenly bodies.
May the force be with you and show more.
verry thanks for this posts.. i learn alot from it.
Very informative video, you guys are great! thx from Germany :D
Great tips. I don't even own a telescope YET but am slowly doing my research and hope to join the club this summer. Please do more great videos! :-)
Makes me want my old astronomy OMC back....wish I would not have sold it few years back. This video makes me want to go back to Leiden Univ. observ. where I was a member years ago.
Excellent Video! Makes me want to buy a telescope :)
Yours is definitely bigger than mine! I'm talking about the refractor, of course! Cheers from Brittany!
Thank you verry much for the videos, i learn allot of it .
Excellent video, Very helpful, love your videos, you have really helped me on my Astro journey! Dublin Ireland, Love the scope at the start! was that a refractor ? 😍
Your videos are great and I'm sure that will help a lot of people that are starting with their astronomy hobby, or maybe thinking about it and hesitating to do the first step.
You have your own little observatory! Wow, that sure is a handsome Tele, bet that set up put you back a few beans. I just ordered my first one a 500.00 refractor with go to cap. I think I'm already ready for an upgrade! Lol Nice stuff OIC you have a company. Is there any free software downloads for stacking photos?
its really helpful video , thank you so much
Wow! That second ‘scope, was that made by Rob Miller from Astro Systems in Luton, many years ago? I have a 6” f6 by him and that alt-az pier, though I usually use it on a Vixen equatorial. Marvellous little ‘scope with superb mirrors by David Hinds. Performs like an 8” SCT. Nice to see one.
Hi there, and well spotted. It is indeed a Rob Miller/Astro Systems creation. It's as much about what they left out as what they put in that made them great scopes. There's an attitude of economy and minimalism in the design, and it's done with a near perfect touch. Get it wrong and the instrument is stark, utilitarian - and lumpen to use. Get it right, as they did, and the result is a simple and beautiful instrument that is a lasting pleasure to use. KR RJD A&NTV
Astronomy and Nature TV I remember asking Rob why there were no easy collimating adjustments. His reply said all you need to know about his engineering philosophy. If you build in adjustment, it will go out of adjustment. And he’d built optics for satellites where there wasn’t an option to go and adjust them, and had to be made right. So he made his telescopes the same way. Superb lesson I’ve tried to apply to my electronics designs ever since.
Hi I enjoyed the video a lot. Thanks. Are there on line tables or programs that will tell you when is the best time to see the planets in terms of orbit? If I wanted to create such a web page if it doesn’t exist can you describe a reference the astronomy facts I would need?
notice the swirl at the top that never goes away, lots of planets have those at the polar ends including earth, my school science book was from late 60's or 70's & a clear photo of the earth an at the north pole looks like a big hole. Admiral Byrd talked about finding them an entering. are planets hollow, honey comb?
As always, good information.
ty for this video.
I don't see but two or three nights per year where the seeing is really great. Of course I don't observe every night, even if that were possible.
Thank you. Very useful
Very good video! Thnx alot!
Would it be possible to use a telescope through an open window, if there is no difference in temperature?
I wouldn't need to do that, because i have a large garden, but it would be nice to know this.
+StarTrek123456 When I visited Guatemala I noticed that a lot of homes in the rural areas didn't really have glass windows, just the window opening. Guatemala is considered tropical so I understand the reason for it. I would imagine that in a place like that, pointing your telescope out of the window wouldn't make a difference but in colder climates the mixing of hot and cold air at the open window would definitely cause the turbulence he mentioned and make focusing your telescope a pain in the rear.
hey... did u ever try and look over the ocean? how far can u see ships with your telescope? and how far can u see at all over the ocean on a bright day? what is the limit that our atmosphere permits us to see when looking across, not up through it?
I got the Celestron Firstscope not long ago, but I found it hard to align the spotting scope with the telescope. That made it hard to observe planets. Not giving up though.
thanks so much!
Can anyone recommend a 6x26 or 6x30 finderscope with a curved bracket?
dude thats one big fine looking telescope
Thank you very helpful
Can you tell something about the beast you were looking through at beginning?
Thank you that was useful. Indoor astronomy ;-)
dual pane windows give 2 images also.. so your scope always loooks out of focus... i did the winter new scope inside thing. for 3 weeks not knowing learning.. why my scope 12 inch dob would not focus at all sharp.. dual pane windows. soooo be aware of that. dont stop enjoyin the sky form inside if it works for u . but know that the windows do take away form bein outside.
I'm new with telescope...my problem I I can see the star from my finder but cannot see it from my eye pieces...any advice??
Which stellarium software do you use? the one i have just shows planets as a white dot, just the same as all the stars. Great video by the way, I have watched pretty much all your vids and many of them have ended in me buying new gadgets for my scope. great advice!
what type of telescope is the first one???
Hi there, the large instrument at the start of the video is a TMB 8" (200mm) refractor. KR A&NTV
+Astronomy and Nature TV thank you ;)
@@RocketPlanet I had a D&G 8" f/12 refractor. When the atmospher cooperated gave killer planetary views.
So cool dude I live in atlanta not many good place for a telescope I love astronomy
0:27 This video gave me telescope envy.
No finder-scope or setting-circles ?? /G
great review.
Whats the name and model of the telescope in the begening when the gentleman starts to talk ?
Hi and thanks for your query. The telescope is an 8" refractor by TMB and the mount is made by Astro Engineering, England (they only ever made two like this). Kind regards A&NTV
Astronomy and Nature TV thanks so much for your reply .cheers .
Astronomy and Nature TV do you know how much it cost?
+Antreas Cy Well - everything has it's price I suppose, and you could buy a pretty good car and a few tankfuls of fuel for the cost of that scope and mount. I've compared the views from both - and each has its strengths (the car is very good for close-ups of the Earth for example) but the tiny mileage costs on the scope are out of this world. And who'd buy a car after it had done a trillion-billion miles? Kind Regards RJD
true
Hello Robert
I am new to astronomy but i learned a lot from your presentations. I started astrophotography a few months ago and i would like to ask your oppinion in maximizing my telescopes. My budget was low when i bought the telescope so i bought an Astromaster 130eq. I arrived to a point where i have to buy a good eyepiece (6mm) and a barlow. The question is what is the maximum magnification that i can have for this telescope?. I would buy a 6 mm eyepiece and a 3x barlow. It is too much?
Nice vid, thank you
Where does he get all those wonderful toys?
Which type of telescope will you recommend for Astro Photography?
Depends what kind of astrophotography.
+Sreeji Nair I would recommend a refractor with a low f-ratio because it is a lot more forgiving if you don't have really good tracking. A newtonian type telescope is also really good because of it's size, but that increases the weight which can be a problem if you don't buy a pretty expensive mount. I would stay away from Schmidt Cassegrains or "SCT" type scopes because although they may provide really good views, the (normally) high f-ratio makes it really hard to photograph with.
Do you have a german equatorial mount? If not, do you have one in mind that you want to get?
Hi - No it's your choice, there's no imperative either way. You have a great GOTO mount there so why bother with the setting circles? The point we are labouring to make is that setting circles much under 200mm (8 inches) in diameter are of very limited utility. Clear skies A&NTV
Love the instructional vids. Keep up the good work. Has anyone ever told you that you sound like Michael Caine?
What did you say the name of that planetary motion device was?
Thanks!
thank you. So if i point it at minimum 35 degrees and higher, should be ok? Or if i go too manny degrees higher, is also bad choise?
@mikegordonbrasov161: The higher the better.
I want a new telescope sooooooo bad but I don't have any money ;(
so do i that's why im saving up.
TheGalacticWolf Playz took me 6 months to save up for mine,.....just keep on saving and stay determined, you’ll get it 👍🏻
Srry for ur loss... jk im sure if u save up u will get it!😀
Finally got my first a 70mm for 15$ USD on craigslist used.. So happy I got at least that to finally look through
I want a telescope
Thank u👍🏼
That's really useful thank you! I'm a newcomer to astronomy and may i ask can anyone help me in wondering if i should invest in new scopes? I have a 10mm, and a 20mm scope. Would it be worth getting a different scope for closer more accurate results? If so which scope would you recommend? Above 20 or below 10? Thanks a lot!
Sir, i must very respectfully disagree with your comments stating that you will never do any worthwhile astronomy from inside your home. I have been viewing the southern skies out my roof window for 2 years now, and have had amazing views of planets, a couple of Galaxies and multiple nebulae, not to mention lots of Star Clusters! I achieve this by isolating ones room from rest of house about 1 hour before viewing, i get the temperature inside said room as close to ambient outside temps as possible. It really can be done and done very well indeed if one uses ones initiative to mitigate atmospheric turbulence etc. To find targets, i use phone apps, Stellarium etc. I own a 114/500 skywatcher newt. reflector, a skywatcher 130/900 newt. reflector, and a 200/1200 skywatcher dob mounted on a skywatcher EQ5 Mount. I am in no way stating that indoors can compete with outside astronomy, because obviously i know that is nonsensical. But i am stating that one can have amazing views, and do very worthwhile astronomy, from inside ones home, provided one does what one can to mitigate said issues.
Sincerely,
Wes. Liverpool, UK. ( Bortle 8 ).
I wonder what size this white refractor is. Looks beautiful. It must be incredible when looking at the moon and planets. Probably wouldn't even need high power eyepiece. I have a 4 inch f/15 refractor I enjoy I usually use often 12.5 f/6 dob. Could the aperture be an 10 or maybe an 8? Just wondering.
Hi and thanks for watching. The telescope is an 8" (200mm) TMB - and you are quite correct, short focal length high-power eyepieces are not essential with this instrument. A&NCTV
Astronomy and Nature TV
i remember when thomas beck was alive and built your telescopes' lens
you are very lucky to have an 8" apo..i doubt he made more than 10 of them
and they where 5.000$ in 1999 just for lens
i think he made a #1 12" apo thats at some rich guys house in florida
clear skies
dave zdrojewski
boston ny usa
Where can I get an Orrery like the one in this video?
Just out of curiousity, has anyone of you seen something with a Telescope beside a Planet?
I've seen Messier 32(Andromeda Galaxy)
yes, the moons are sometimes besides the planets...
Yes. Deep Sky Objects lightyears away can be seen with telescopes.
+Soleez1991 Absolutely, many things. Unless you're observing under a very dark sky, most deep-space objects (DSOs) are tough to see with typical amateur telescopes, especially galaxies (except for the very closest ones), so even finding and observing them at all is a worthwhile challenge. That said, there are a good number of absolutely spectacular DSOs that are quite easy to find and observe in detail, even under a fair amount of light pollution.
Open clusters are, next to Solar System planets and the Moon, are easiest type, and especially once you get them framed properly with the right eyepiece, are real beauties to behold. Check out the Pleiades (M45), the Double Cluster (NGC 869 and 884), the Wild Duck Cluster (M11), the Butterfly Cluster (M6), and the Ptolemy Cluster (M7), to name some of the more famous ones. You might have to wait for some of these at the moment unless you observe very early in the morning, but for now you can catch the Beehive or Praesepe Cluster (M44) shortly after sunset, and there are of course many more to see.
Globular clusters are a bit harder to find and observe, and require a decent-sized telescope to resolve (at least 5-6 inches, thereabout), but keep observing them and eventually your eyes will adapt and reveal a very unique and stunning (yet subdued) sight and experience that photographs, no matter how brilliant and detailed, completely fail to capture. There are many of these, too, and some of the more famous are M13, M22, and if you're fortunate enough to be able to see it (since it is so far to the south), the "mother" of them all, Omega Centauri (NGC 5139).
Then there are various types of nebulae, which are typically composed of glowing gases. They look like clouds, except of course that they are many light-years away and are enormous by human standards. One of the largest and brightest (and perhaps the most impressive of all as a combination of the two traits) is the Orion Nebula (M42). A couple of other large and bright ones would be the Lagoon Nebula (M8) and the Trifid Nebula (M20). A completely different kind of nebula is the planetary nebula, which is the remnant of a dead star of a class similar to that of the Sun. A couple of famous ones are the Ring Nebula (M57), which is fairly tiny but bright enough to be seen in even small amateur telescopes, and the Dumbbell Nebula (M27). By the way, there are narrowband filters that can help greatly with the contrast and visibility of nebulae--they're not cheap but they're worth their cost.
Among galaxies, the only really easy ones under some light pollution would be the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) and the Triangulum Galaxy (M33). Other galaxies really need a dark sky, although there are some that can be glimpsed, barely, under suburban skies.
And finally, we can also observe the Sun, although we have to be very careful about it. This should be common sense, but do NOT simply point your telescope at the Sun and look through it! Doing so could very well cause severe eye damage, including permanent blindness, almost instantaneously. You need a special solar filter in order to observe the Sun in white light in your regular telescope, and this will let you see sunspots in detail, along with granulation, faculae, and maybe some other features; this is also a great way to view the rare transits of Mercury and Venus. In addition, there are specialized solar telescopes that observe in very narrow wavelengths (hydrogen-alpha being the most common), which allows you to observe additional features, such as flares.
I've personally done all of these things (and the Solar System planets and the Moon, of course) with a single telescope (plus a small hydrogen-alpha telescope). One more thing is that individual stars themselves can be interesting targets. Some are actually doubles that are a challenge to separate, such as Antares and Sirius, and some doubles are just pretty to look at because of the color contrast, such as Albireo. Another type of star some amateur astronomers enjoy observing is carbon stars, which are exceptionally colorful, deep-red stars, some being described as a "drop of blood in the sky." Check out La Superba (Y CVn), Hind's Crimson Star (R Leporis), V Aquilae, and T Lyrae (a personal favorite, despite it being so dim). I'm sure I haven't covered everything.
Somewhat late in seeing this comment.
As my flat gives me a fair view of Brisbane Airport, using my Sky-Watcher Heritage 130p, I sometimes view passenger jet aircraft on approach or departure.
With my telescope, keeping an aircraft in view, using a 2x Barlow and a Sky-Watcher 15mm Kellner eyepiece, it's doable.
Hi Robert, where did you get the Orrery? I would love to get one like that.
I want a little telescope like that one!.
Why are you using refractors and not reflectors?
Astronomy and Nature TV I currently have a 20-60x60 Coated Optics Bushnell telescope. It is very small, very simple and old. It just has two wheels, one for the focus and the other for zooming. It doesn't zoom in a whole lot to be honest, at its max zoom it allows me to see craters on the moon more in-depth, but still small. I am starting to think it wasn't even made for looking at things in the night sky. No electronic features on it. I tried looking at Mars last night and it barely did anything to change its size, let alone allow me to see ANY features. Do you know of any not too expensive telescopes that will zoom in enough to allow me to see the rings of Saturn, and noticeable features(the poles, different surface colors) of Mars and Jupiter? I really want something that will allow me to see the planets quite clearly without something super-huge and super-expensive, and I would appreciate any advice.
Whats your budget?
Where did you get that planetarium device?
very useful info, thanks for sharing it.
thats a HUGE telescope
What’s the name of the item you are using that has the planets on gears? I want one and can’t find what they are called. Thanks
Ryan Zaleski ferguson orrery bro
“Size of my instrument”. Giggle
Size does matter people
well done
What eyepieces should i use for my celestron nexstar 130slt to get the best magnification. I already have a 9mm and 25mm eyepiece but i wouldnt mind buyung another eyepiece or barlow.
What is your telescopes focal length?it is capable of somewhere around 280 times magnification
+Sotiris Krol the focal length is 650mm, i recently bought a 2x barlow lens ,but i still have to try it out.