Goto/Push-To:
The first time you take the scope out and you set everything up (as you've read in the manual many times before going out - hopefully!) and go to do the alignment procedure. The first few times you mess up with one of the steps and have to start all over, sometimes resetting the whole scope. Then finally, you (supposedly) get it aligned and select one of the famous objects. The scope whirs or you push it to where you need to go, then you look in the eyepiece and...... nothing but stars. You scratch your head and wonder why it's not working? Did my scope miss? Is the object not visible in my scope from my location?Often times your first night out you end up seeing.... nothing! A big fat zero. You might be lucky and have a planet up that's easy to spot and just use the hand controller to put it there without using the computer. Other times you're stuck with just a view of a few stars that look just like the stars you see with your eyes.
Then you finally get it aligned successfully (for real and absolute positive, but maybe not on your first night out) and you slew to some of the big name objects and actually see them! Result! Then you do the tour of the best objects and many you can't see. Did your goto miss? Can you not see it? Often it's just a case of the wrong eyepiece used. M57 looks like a slightly fuzzy star if your magnification is too low. Some get washed out in light polution. Maybe the transparency is horrid. But you're new and you have no clue.
Time and experience heal both the alignment woes and the object selection/eyepiece selection woes. But often their is a rough start, especially if you didn't find Cloudy Nights (or a similar forum) before purchasing and trying the scope out.
My personal goto problem was the Orion XT12i. Besides being a monster to haul in and out, when I first got it the computer was in equatorial mode (for some awful reason). A call to Orion support finally fixed it so I could have some success on my 3rd night out. The first 2 were total busts as I was unprepared for manually moving/aiming the scope.
Some people never get their goto right. Sometimes the scope itself is defective. Sometimes it's a PEBTAO (Problem Exists Between Telescope and Operator). Either way it's frustrating.
But usually after the first few tries it becomes easier and after several uses it becomes second nature. Once the Goto scope is aligned, you can view objects quickly and easily. Generally the kinks are worked out with goto much sooner than you can learn the manual method (starhopping). And the ability to track objects automatically once you've found them is very valuable (and almost priceless with children who want to view as well).
Manual
You did it... you got the bigger scope that you have to manually point so you could get more aperture to pull things in. You'll definitely be able to see more, better things more-better than those that chose a similarly priced GOTO scope.So you go out and your setup is pretty easy and straightforward. If it's a dobsonian, you just plop it down. If it's an EQ scope, it's a bit tougher, but for your first night getting the axis pointed roughly north is close enough.
Update 12/2022
I wrote an app to help teach the skill of star hopping!
Now what? If you're lucky, one of the big planets (Jupiter and Saturn really) are up and you know about where they are in the sky. They're pretty easy to find being bright. You align it in your finder scope and put an eyepiece in.... and.... all you see are stars! Wait, this was supposed to be easier than the GOTO option at least for something like the planets. You scratch your head and pan around a bit and hopefully find the planet. Looking back in the finder, you realize it wasn't aligned properly! You spend some time getting the finder and scope to agree with each other and now you're in business. The planet looks great and a big smile of satisfaction sets in.
So now you want to see something else. Where do you start? Starhopping is not too hard, but the first few times it is tricky getting oriented and then moving the scope in the correct direction. If you're using paper charts, you have to twist them around until the match the sky at that time of night. And then if you look through the finder and it's not a RACI (Right Angle, Correct Image), you're confused as the star patterns don't match the chart. If you haven't read that the finder or even the scope changes how the stars are flipped/mirrored it can be very confusing. And if using paper charts you have to do the mental gymnastics to try and get the two to match. Plus depending on the chart there may be more or less stars visible, so you have to try and filter out the ones that don't match. Finding some of the objects that aren't right near a bright(ish) star make your head hurt quickly!
Electronic charts (like Sky Safari) can help a lot if you know how to set them up. You can flip the view to match what you see (either for finder or for through the scope) and you can also change how many stars are visible to better match up. This helps a lot as the view you see with your eye matches what is on your chart and your mind only has to deal with trying to figure out where to go next to get to the object you are looking for.
Still, many of the first nights are spent searching rather than viewing. My first night with the dob I spent 1.5 hrs searching and about 20 mins viewing. And of course the most frustrating thing is not finding what you are looking for. You seem soooooo close, and don't want to give up, yet after 40 mins you're done for.
Second best is reading a lot before going out. Know how your scope works, how the views will look and what you might expect from each bit of your equipment.
If using a manual telescope, get out with binoculars first. Even 7x35s or 10x50s will let you learn star patterns and match them to charts and see some of the brighter faint fuzzies while using the forgiving wide field of view of the binocs. Even cheap ones will have a much larger field of view (FOV) versus the telescope and will be similar to the view through the finder scope on the telescope.
Give yourself time your first night. Get out before the sun sets to get everything set up while you can see. Try out the alignment of goto scopes (even indoors just to learn how the software works). Get your finder aligned. All these things can be done before it gets dark. Then take your time and understand each step.
Books like Turn Left at Orion, Nightwatch and The Backyard Astronomer's Guide can really help explain many of the nuances of using a telescope and finding/viewing objects in the night sky.
And it only gets better and much much easier as you go on!
I wrote an app to help teach the skill of star hopping!
Now what? If you're lucky, one of the big planets (Jupiter and Saturn really) are up and you know about where they are in the sky. They're pretty easy to find being bright. You align it in your finder scope and put an eyepiece in.... and.... all you see are stars! Wait, this was supposed to be easier than the GOTO option at least for something like the planets. You scratch your head and pan around a bit and hopefully find the planet. Looking back in the finder, you realize it wasn't aligned properly! You spend some time getting the finder and scope to agree with each other and now you're in business. The planet looks great and a big smile of satisfaction sets in.
So now you want to see something else. Where do you start? Starhopping is not too hard, but the first few times it is tricky getting oriented and then moving the scope in the correct direction. If you're using paper charts, you have to twist them around until the match the sky at that time of night. And then if you look through the finder and it's not a RACI (Right Angle, Correct Image), you're confused as the star patterns don't match the chart. If you haven't read that the finder or even the scope changes how the stars are flipped/mirrored it can be very confusing. And if using paper charts you have to do the mental gymnastics to try and get the two to match. Plus depending on the chart there may be more or less stars visible, so you have to try and filter out the ones that don't match. Finding some of the objects that aren't right near a bright(ish) star make your head hurt quickly!
Electronic charts (like Sky Safari) can help a lot if you know how to set them up. You can flip the view to match what you see (either for finder or for through the scope) and you can also change how many stars are visible to better match up. This helps a lot as the view you see with your eye matches what is on your chart and your mind only has to deal with trying to figure out where to go next to get to the object you are looking for.
Still, many of the first nights are spent searching rather than viewing. My first night with the dob I spent 1.5 hrs searching and about 20 mins viewing. And of course the most frustrating thing is not finding what you are looking for. You seem soooooo close, and don't want to give up, yet after 40 mins you're done for.
Solutions?
The absolute best thing to do is try and find someone experienced to help show you want to do. Nothing beats it.Second best is reading a lot before going out. Know how your scope works, how the views will look and what you might expect from each bit of your equipment.
If using a manual telescope, get out with binoculars first. Even 7x35s or 10x50s will let you learn star patterns and match them to charts and see some of the brighter faint fuzzies while using the forgiving wide field of view of the binocs. Even cheap ones will have a much larger field of view (FOV) versus the telescope and will be similar to the view through the finder scope on the telescope.
Give yourself time your first night. Get out before the sun sets to get everything set up while you can see. Try out the alignment of goto scopes (even indoors just to learn how the software works). Get your finder aligned. All these things can be done before it gets dark. Then take your time and understand each step.
Books like Turn Left at Orion, Nightwatch and The Backyard Astronomer's Guide can really help explain many of the nuances of using a telescope and finding/viewing objects in the night sky.
Rewards!
After it is all said and done, most people get to see the objects that wow them.... and the first few sights through a telescope never leave you. My wife and I will never forget our first view of Saturn through our cheap Meade 4.5" reflector. Even the views today through my 18" dob cannot replace that first tiny view of the ringed planet.And it only gets better and much much easier as you go on!
No comments:
Post a Comment