welshbairn Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Got a £100 Amazon voucher for my birthday this week from my parents. They had intended it to go towards the new graphics card for my PC I had talked about getting but I bought it the other week. While looking for inspiration I realised something that I had been tempted by many times before - a telescope! Looking at getting this one - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CYHSZ90 From the reviews I've found (not just the Amazon ones) it seems to be a solid telescope and good value for money. Anyone used this particular one before? I'm a bit suspicious how much this telescope is claiming for the price, and I'd be wary of trusting the reviews. If I was buying one I'd get advice from a local astronomical society, such as http://www.aberdeenastro.org.uk/index.htm . Awful looking website but they'll know a lot more than me, which is pretty much nothing. But it might be that getting a basic telescope with a decent lens is a better starting point than getting a cheap lens with a motor etc. On the other hand it could be an excellent deal. Anyway bring on the winter and dark nights! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinkerbelle Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Once again though, a telescope being sold with all the fancy bits and pieces, apart from the one that you might use the most. A moon filter. I had a similar telescope but sadly where I live has too much light pollution for it to be effective. I think Paulo Sergio, in whatever guise he is now, is the one to ask for advice. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArmadaleKillie Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Got a £100 Amazon voucher for my birthday this week from my parents. They had intended it to go towards the new graphics card for my PC I had talked about getting but I bought it the other week. While looking for inspiration I realised something that I had been tempted by many times before - a telescope! Looking at getting this one - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CYHSZ90 From the reviews I've found (not just the Amazon ones) it seems to be a solid telescope and good value for money. Anyone used this particular one before? Sky-Watcher are a reasonable brand to use and the 130P & EQ3 mount is quite a popular starter scope. If you use google and search for them against stargazerslounge.com you can probably find some people on there discussing or reviewing them and those guys do tend to know a fair bit. As has been said however, the best thing to do when buying a telescope is to try and meet up with people who have it or have had it and they can talk you through it. They also may be able to identify a better option. Also, the biggest thing with astronomy is to know how to use the telescope, or more importantly the mount. So make sure you understand how to use it and how to get it pointed at the right targets etc. and this is something else that astronomy groups can help with. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shiltrum Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 It is truly vast I wonder how many universe's there are within the Galaxy we are part of. The distances are huge,indefinable and that is local (ha ha ha) to us there are ten's of thousands(Millions?) of Galaxies out there we may have to think of a different term to describe the distances involved when you go beyond the Galaxy we are part of. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~~~ Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 You're looking at anywhere between 100 billion and 200 billions galaxies in the universe 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweeperDee Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 And you get absolutely ignorant self centred cretins who believe we are a special one off creation by some sky fairy. A completely unimaginable, unfathomable amount of space out there; there's surely other forms of intelligent life out there. Just has to be. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 The entire multiverse was contained within that jobby that 8mile threw. God knows where we are now. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
throbber Posted June 28, 2015 Share Posted June 28, 2015 We are all children of the jobby Welshy. I must have missed this thread, why did you throw your own shite at someone? Coz thats pretty unacceptable 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williemillersmoustache Posted June 29, 2015 Share Posted June 29, 2015 http://distancetomars.com/ 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlyerTon Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 (edited) The last minute in June 2015, later today, will have 61 seconds not 60. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-33313347 Peter Whibberley, senior research scientist at the UK's National Physical Laboratory (NPL), said: "Because they depend on measurements of the Earth's rotation, which varies unpredictably, leap seconds occur at irregular intervals." Edited June 30, 2015 by FlyerTon 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boghead ranter Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Going to dust down my 4inch Tasco at some point this summer. Plenty time for an extra 5 knuckle shuffle then. Are these posts related? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tintax Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 After a more than nine-year, three-billion-mile journey to Pluto, NASA's New Horizon's probe is nearing the previously unseen world. July 14th will be the closest approach. Best picture to be taken so far by Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) aboard the probe. How awesome is this? And to think they are only going to get better in the coming weeks. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthernLights Posted July 13, 2015 Share Posted July 13, 2015 About 16 hours until New Horizons reaches closest approach to Pluto - http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/ 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweeperDee Posted July 14, 2015 Share Posted July 14, 2015 (edited) Pretty darn beautiful high resolution picture of Pluto. Can even make out a love heart shape on the surface. Edited July 14, 2015 by DonnieDarko 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted July 14, 2015 Share Posted July 14, 2015 I'm going to be very let down if they don't spot some massive alien artifacts today. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~~~ Posted July 14, 2015 Share Posted July 14, 2015 Now that is an amazing achievement 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthernLights Posted July 14, 2015 Share Posted July 14, 2015 Now counting down to New Horizons contacting home with an update. Just over 7 hours until that happens. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Kincardine Posted July 14, 2015 Share Posted July 14, 2015 Got a £100 Amazon voucher for my birthday this week from my parents. They had intended it to go towards the new graphics card for my PC I had talked about getting but I bought it the other week. While looking for inspiration I realised something that I had been tempted by many times before - a telescope! Looking at getting this one - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CYHSZ90 From the reviews I've found (not just the Amazon ones) it seems to be a solid telescope and good value for money. Anyone used this particular one before? I'm a bit suspicious how much this telescope is claiming for the price, and I'd be wary of trusting the reviews. If I was buying one I'd get advice from a local astronomical society, such as http://www.aberdeenastro.org.uk/index.htm . Awful looking website but they'll know a lot more than me, which is pretty much nothing. But it might be that getting a basic telescope with a decent lens is a better starting point than getting a cheap lens with a motor etc. On the other hand it could be an excellent deal. Anyway bring on the winter and dark nights! I may have posted this a while back......but I'd look at getting a decent pair of binoculars first. They are easier to use, have a wider field of view and don't show things upside down. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Kincardine Posted July 14, 2015 Share Posted July 14, 2015 Easier for getting up trees with as well. We ken the sort of heavenly bodies you're after 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshbairn Posted July 14, 2015 Share Posted July 14, 2015 Anyone know what New Horizons is planning to do next apart from sending back the Pluto data? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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