Backyard Observatory

Super moon

2011-03-19T12:27:00.002-04:00

tonight will be a Super Perigee Moon! so check it out! they say it's the biggest full Moon in 18 years. pretty cool.

hopefully its clear tonight! :-D

NASA article

CS!

new images

2011-02-15T14:49:00.001-05:00

new images of the sun posted from February 15, 2011

My Astro photos

active sun

2010-02-09T11:01:00.003-05:00

The sun has been pretty active the past week. AR 11045 has gotten pretty big. Now there are two more AR coming out from the eastern limb. AR 11046 and 11047. and before that another one just went out of sight on the western limb. AR 11046 and 11047 are both smaller. But AR 11045 is pretty big. i would go out and take some pictures but we still have alot of snow on the ground.

Clear skies!

P.S. because of the snow on the ground i haven't been able to use the new Telrad finder. Hopefully i'll be able to take out the telescope soon!!

New..

2010-01-30T21:59:00.001-05:00

New piece of Equipment! what could it be!!! check it out in my equipment blog!

Clear skies!

perigee Moon

2010-01-28T11:03:00.003-05:00

Perigee Moon this Friday. It's the biggest full Moon of 2010. it will be 14% wider and 30% brighter than normal full Moons.

here is a photo i took of last years Perigee Moon. first one is a normal full moon the second is the
Perigee Moon.

Normal

Perigee

click on image to enlarge

CS!

Last night i didn't get to go out and image Mars. :-(

Mars

2010-01-27T10:59:00.002-05:00

Its Mars tonight people!!! Tonight Mars will look the biggest from 2008 to 2014. The Red Planet is only 99 million km away tonight. So get the telescope out tonight! Look east after sunset the bright orange star is Mars!

If it stays clear i will be going out!! I'll post any pictures i take!

sunspot images

2010-01-16T15:36:00.001-05:00

sunspot images up in my astro-photo blog from yesterday.

CLEAR SKIES!

sunspot

2010-01-13T10:27:00.003-05:00

big sunspot has emerged. AR 11040 has grown very fast. it is 10 times wider than the earth .

I'm probably going to go out tomorrow and image it. hopefully it gets bigger.

Mars images and last night.

2010-01-10T16:07:00.002-05:00

Just posted some of my mars images from last night. warning they aren't that good. this was my first time imaging mars! they are in my astro-photo blog

Last night was nice and cold very cold. I went out at 12:00a.m and set everything up. I aligned the telescope was pretty easy and went to mars. I images for awhile and took a look at the seven sisters (M45) and the Orion nebula. they both looked nice. for around here it seemed like there were alot of stars. it was very pretty!

The telescope worked great. The only thing i had a problem with was my dumb little finder scope. Its a little 8x21mm peace of crap. I want to get a new one like the GSO Multi-Target Red Dot Finder. I had that one for my old telescope and loved it, but sold it with the Orion 90mm. I'm just not sure how i would put it on the Meade etx-125. I'm not really comfortable making holes in the tube.

The Mount was great. I used something i never used before with this mount ( Meade lxd55) the park the telescope. I know this is goofy, but when i was packing the stuff away i saw the park the scope option so i pushed enter and it put it self back to the home position. I thought that was cool i always did it and its hard when its dark to get it to the right spot. The align worked good. tracking was good!

It was a nice night. very cold, but still was nice to get out under the stars again!

I hope you all have Clear Skies!

Mars tonight

2010-01-09T22:50:00.001-05:00

I will be going out tonight around 12:00 a.m. to get images of Mars and to view some cool stuff! :-)
hopefully it will stay clear!!

I will post pictures sometime tomorrow!

tonight!

2010-01-05T16:17:00.004-05:00

Tonight i'm planning on going out around 12:30a.m to view Mars and to take some images. Hopefully it will be in the clear! Probably will look at the seven sisters (M45) and the Orion Nebula (M42) and whatever else i can see here in the light polluted skies.

I will post any pictures i get good or bad. This is my first time imaging mars. First time looking at Mars with the meade etx-125, so not sure whats going to happen! hopefully it will look nice!

Clear skies!

Update 1/6:

Last night I went out and it was completely cloudy, even though the weather channel and Clear sky chart said it was going to be clear! I will go out later this week to get some images (hopefully)

New year!

2010-01-04T22:42:00.003-05:00

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and a great new year! wow its already 2010!
One thing I want to do more this year is take out my telescope and observe. Last year i didn't get out too much, so i'm hoping this year will be different. I really want to get some images of mars hopefully within the next few weeks. I will post any pictures i get!

Is there anything you guys/gals want to do this year ( astronomy wise) that you didn't get to do last year? post them if you like! and did anyone get some astronomy related presents of Christmas?

I didn't get any new equipment this year. I'm pretty happy with what I have right now! :-) Just need to use it!

Clear Skies and happy new year!

Sunspot and Numbers!

2009-12-18T11:01:00.003-05:00

Hi, Yesterday I posted on my blog that I took some images of sunspot 1035. Well I was wrong. A nice person on CN ( Cloudynights) informed me that they don't give individual sunspots numbers. They give the local activity area numbers, and they are called AR ( Active Regions). And these numbers are assigned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( NOAA). So Yesterday what i observed and imaged was AR 11035 or NOAA 11035 and not sunspot 1035! yes it still was a sunspot but it wasn't sunspot 1035 it was AR 11035.

OK?!

CS!

Correction AR 11035

2009-12-17T13:53:00.001-05:00

Got some images of the sunspot today. posted them in my astro photos blog.

CS!

Astronomy and Cold

2009-12-08T14:03:00.003-05:00

Its been getting colder and colder! and i haven't been out observing for awhile, but i want to so badly get some images of Mars! so hopefully the next time its clear i will be going out and battling the cold!

I will post my results, hopefully they will be good! I haven't tried taking image of Mars, so this will be my first attempt!! we'll see how it goes, i guess!

Clear skies everyone!!!

GEMINID METEOR SHOWER

2009-12-05T11:14:00.007-05:00

GEMINID METEOR SHOWER will peak Dec. 13th and 14th. some are saying this could be the best year yet. They are predicting about 140+ meteors per hour. Get away from the city lights and go out around midnight to see the show! Oh and it will be a new moon on those nights, so that will be great!

click image to enlarge

CS!

LEONID METEOR SHOWER

2009-11-16T09:57:00.005-05:00

don't forget about the LEONID METEOR SHOWER tonight and tomorrow night. Thats the early morning of the 17th and the early morning of the 18th. Those will be the best dates to see the meteors. Look Northeast, East to the Leo constellation. The best time to go out is 4am thats when Leo will be high enough in the sky.

In North America they are reporting about 20-30mph (meteors per hour). Asia however will get the best show of about 300 or so meteors per hour.

So get out to a nice dark location and get ready for some action!!!!

hope all of you will have clear skies!

click image to enlarge

12,000

2009-11-16T09:54:00.003-05:00

Hey! The blog just got 12,000 unique hits! thanks everyone who has stopped by and read my ramble! I really appreciate it!

CS!

John D.

Bright Object ( Aliens up there?)

2009-11-08T18:30:00.003-05:00

I was Outside playing lazer tag with my little brothers tonight. While playing we saw a very bright object going across the sky, it was around 6:18pm. We all thought it was a big plane until it started to fade away. I went inside and checked the Satellite tracker to see if any bright satellites were flying over. Well sure enough the ISS (International space station) was flying over. It was incredible how bright it was. I really thought it was a plane until it started to fade away. It was brighter than Jupiter.

Really cool!

CS!

Night Reports

2009-11-08T18:29:00.002-05:00

I deleted the "night report" blog because i wasn't really posting any reports. I will just write them here if i do write any.

CS!

Pictures Moon & Jupiter

2009-11-04T10:09:00.001-05:00

Got some images last night of The moon and Jupiter. The Jupiter pictures weren't to good. Posted them in my photo section.

sunspot 1029

2009-10-29T09:40:00.002-04:00

sunspot 1029 is just about to go off the edge of the sun. The last day to see it is 10/29/09 . hey look at that! Sunspot 1029 is leaving us on 10/29! This has been the most active sunspot this year!

CS!

Sunspot

2009-10-27T09:56:00.005-04:00

big sunspot out right now. its almost near the eastern edge so you only have about a day or two left to catch it. To bad its cloudy here. This has been the most active sunspot of the year so far. And i can't view it!!!!

Photo credit: SOHO/MDI

Monday Moon!

2009-10-23T17:42:00.002-04:00

Monday evening October 26th the Moon and Jupiter will be side my side! So Monday look to the south around 6:30pm.

click image to enlarge

CS!

Jupiter images

2009-10-22T11:41:00.000-04:00

Just got some new Jupiter images from last night 10/21/09. posted in the photo section

Moon mission

2009-10-17T11:33:00.000-04:00

Well, everyone was wondering why there wasn't a plume after LCROSS smashed into the moon. Well The LCROSS team has just come out and said there was indeed a plume, and they have some pictures of it

When the Centaur hit the moon it caused a plume about 4 miles wide. Here is a picture the LCROSS spacecraft took 15 seconds after Centaur hit the moon. you can see a plume.

The had Nine cameras and spectrometers on LCROSS captured every second of the Centaur's impact.

The LCROSS teams hasn't yet determined if there is any water on the moon. It could take weeks going through all the data before knowing.
The LCROSS team is calling this "a smashing success."

This whole thing is quite fascinating. Well done LCROSS Science team!!

Here is more information from NASA

moon mission

2009-10-08T11:40:00.000-04:00

This is a animated video of what it will look like.
video

CS!

moon mission update

2009-10-07T09:27:00.000-04:00

On October 9th 7:30am (est) You will be able to watch the LCROSS lunar impact on NASA.tv LIVE.
I can't wait, it looks like its going to be cloudy here. Glad NASA will be broadcasting it!

CS!

moon mission

2009-10-05T19:12:00.003-04:00

Friday October 9th around 7:30am (EST) LCROSS will crash into the moons southern pole. why? to analyze the presence of any water and hydrocarbons. And you might be able to view it with your telescope.

Where exactly will this happen? Its going to collide in the Cabeus crater in the southern pole. it will be hard to locate, so you might want to try finding it now, before it happens. When it happens there will be a cloud coming from Cabeus, thats how you will know you found it. The mission scientist say the cloud of debris could be 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) over the rim of Cabeus. that's pretty high! Here are some images of the crash site here to help you locate the site.

Another satellite (LRO) will be orbiting the moon at low altitude about 31 miles examining the crash. For about a year.

so get your telescope ready!

location of the moon Oct. 9th 7:30 Virginia.

the impact site (image from NASA)

Taking a break.

2009-09-23T19:50:00.002-04:00

You might have noticed i haven't posted much. I'm taking a break from Observing. I don't think i will be posting much if anything on the blog.

I will return!

CS!

The sun is having some activity. two sunspots have popped up.

Photo credit: SOHO/MDI

hubble telescope images.

2009-09-10T19:54:00.002-04:00

Nasa has released some really awesome images from their Hubble telescope and wow they are stunning.

you can view these images here

number 3 looks soo cool!

Big bright moon.

2009-09-05T10:36:00.003-04:00

wow was the moon bright last night. i did get a chance to take some images. images

Jupiter impact

2009-07-29T19:54:00.002-04:00

Some more news on Jupiter's impact. The impact site is not just growing larger, but it also seems to be developing two lobes.

spaceweather.com has had continues updates about this. to read more go to spaceweather.com

and to find when you will be able to view the impact--> "The cloud is located near Jupiter's System II longitude 210°. For the predicted times when it will cross the planet's central meridian, add 2 hours and 6 minutes to Sky and Telescope's predicted transit times for Jupiter's Great Red Spot." quoted from Spaceweather.com

New toy!

2009-07-29T19:53:00.000-04:00

find out what! my equipment !!

Jupiter 7/24/09

2009-07-25T16:37:00.001-04:00

have some new photo of jupiter from last night in my photo section.

didn't get the impact site. maybe some other time.

NASA confirms something hit jupiter.

2009-07-21T11:22:00.003-04:00

NASA has confirmed something hit jupiter. the hit is located at the south polar region of the planet. exactly 15 years ago Jupiter was impacted by a comet Shoemaker-Levy 9.

for more about this NASA

Image credit: NASA/JPL/Infrared Telescope Facility

IMPACT ON JUPITER

2009-07-20T21:24:00.002-04:00

Some amateur astronomers have notices a black area on jupiters clouds. it was discovered On July 19th. It looks pretty cool. if you have a telescope and its clear check it out. its on the top of the planet.

here is a link to the picture from spaceweather

as soon as it clears i will see if i can get some images.

CS!

Sunspot

2009-07-06T13:19:00.000-04:00

my first sunspot pictures are in my photo section.

CS!

Happy 4th

2009-07-04T12:12:00.003-04:00

Happy Independence day Everyone. Be safe out there and have a great day! Enjoy some fireworks!

CS!

Sunspot for the 4th of July. A rapid sunspot has emerged. Its located on the southern hemisphere Sunspot 1024.

click image to enlarge

Back to blogosphere/ Moon mission.

2009-07-01T21:38:00.002-04:00

Well hello young ones. Haven't posted in awhile. Been all over and busy.

If you haven't heard about the lunar mission then pay attention.

On June 18th LCROSS & LRO aboard an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida took off to the moon.
Both spacecraft are on missions of lunar discovery, but they have two completely different missions. LCROSS will destroy itself in a collision with the Moon at about 7:30 a.m. on Oct. 9, 2009, creating a debris plume that will be analyzed for the presence of water and hydrocarbons. However, LRO will orbit the Moon at a low altitude of about 31 miles for at least a year. The spacecraft's seven scientific instruments will hunt for water, map the Moon's surface in 3D, assess the radiation environment for future explorers, and much more.

And the really cool thing is. Is that amateur astronomers may be able to observe the destruction of LCROSS with a small telescope.

Here is a link to Nasa.gov about this

CS!

Saturn-focal reducer.

2009-04-25T23:09:00.002-04:00

saturn images just posted to the image section of the blog. My best images of saturn to date! i'm very happy.

Also a review of my brand new focal reducer will be coming soon to the equipment section. its a good piece of equipment.

CS!

allposters.com

2009-04-21T09:51:00.002-04:00

If you are interested in getting some astronomy posters. Allposters.com has some really nice posters at great prices. I just got a few for a very good price and got 22% off. They have sales all the time and their prices are good.

Check them out. They ship fast. good company! Allposters.com

CS!

ISS

2009-04-14T22:07:00.002-04:00

The ISS has gotten so big you can see it in front of a full moon with a small telescope of course. You can also see it in front of the SUN. With the right equipment ( a solar filter) you will be able to see the ISS go pass the sun. When it fly's pass the sun.

You can check when and where the ISS is and when it will be flying over you, with this very easy tool. Just put in your zip to find out. Satellite tracker .

check out this Video Raymond Dubois took.

now you have a reason to big the solar filter back out!

Homemade crosshair eyepiece

2009-04-01T16:03:00.003-04:00

I made a crosshair eyepiece today. you can check it out here. I tell how you can make it and what you need! with pictures!!!

CS!

Update 3/5/09

A small Review is now up on the eyepiece.

pictures

2009-03-29T22:23:00.001-04:00

got some picture for tonight 3/19/09. You can see them in the photo section. Thanks for looking!

Update

2009-03-22T20:49:00.001-04:00

well today i bought a DC adapter for my mount. i will be back outside within the next week with some new pictures to share with you guys!

CS!

ISS

2009-03-22T12:08:00.002-04:00

The International Space Station got new solar panels up and running on the 20th of march. The astronauts added more than 8000 sq. feet of solar panels. This is the largest addition of solar panels added to the ISS.

here is a link to a video of the ISS taken by Dirk Ewers.

Venus

2009-03-17T13:21:00.002-04:00

Venus is looking pretty cool right now. If you have a chance and its clear you should check it out with your telescope. Venus looks like a rainbow. This is because Venus is very low in the sky so the Earth's atmosphere acts like a prism which makes Venus resemble a Rainbow.

Look at the western part of the sky to check the very bright Venus out. and check it out sooner then later Venus will disappearing into the glare of the spring sun.

CS!

Two satellites have collided

2009-02-12T10:56:00.002-05:00

This is quite remarkable. Two satellites orbiting the earth have collided! On February 10th Iridium 33 crashed into Kosmos 2251. Both satellites were destroyed completely, Leaving more than 300 fragments floating around in space. NASA is saying the International Space Station is in no immediate danger.

Saturn

2009-02-09T10:30:00.001-05:00

some Saturn images for last night in "my photo" section of the blog. First time with the etx-125.

A nice Conjunction

2009-01-30T12:31:00.003-05:00

There is a nice Conjunction right now. The moon and Venus are getting really close. At sunset look Southwest to see this conjunction. I got a picture last night with my webcam.

Here is a picture from starry night of what it will look like tonight.

click on image to enlarge

Here is a image i took last night of the Conjunction. i used my webcam to take it.

click on image to enlarge

Meade

2009-01-28T22:02:00.002-05:00

For everything Meade, go to meade4m . Its a nice place you can see images people have taken with Meade telescope. Meade Media News on all Meade products. Great place to find out more about Meade products. They also have a Meade Store. Free to join! or you can just look around!

Meade4M

Staying Warm!

2009-01-27T21:58:00.002-05:00

Here is a little tip for staying a little Warmer then just your normal winter clothes while observing. I have not used this personally, but have heard they work really well and work the whole night. Hand Warmers/body Warmers . This is a link to amazon but you can't get them cheaper at other places. It says it will work up to 18 hours. you can use them for more then just your hands. You can also get some on ebay for a better price.

They will keep you warm!

Clear Skies and Stay Warm!

Venus

2009-01-19T20:36:00.002-05:00

I got some images of Venus tonight. You can see them in the photo section.

Meteorites

2009-01-16T21:14:00.003-05:00

For those Meteorite Collecting People here is a great place to buy them. At great prices and a great owner InnerPlanetary Products is the way to go. The owner is a great and close friend of mine. A great person to deal with and is 100% trustworthy. All Meteorites are 100% Genuine and Authentic. You are getting the real thing. With weekly specials, and some occasional give-aways its the place to buy your Meteorites.

InnerPlanetary Products

Starting in Astronomy

2009-01-16T20:29:00.005-05:00

Hi, I thought i would give some links and some tips on starting into the great hobby of astronomy. This is a great hobby that is all year long with new things to see each night, and each time it will blow you away. And is for all ages! Young and old!

Before you Get a telescope you need to do some research alot of reading. and you need to get familiar with the night sky. Buy a book on Astronomy. Like "The Night Sky Observer's Guide" and "Turn Left at Orion" . Also you should get a Star chart. Star chart are very helpful. You can download one off the internet or buy one. Here is one from Amazon.

There are also many Computer programs to help you navigate your away across the night sky. Some are free and some cost some money. One really nice Program is called Stellarium it is a Free star program. It shows you the night sky in real time. Just put in your information and it will show whats in the sky at that time and in the future. so if you have a laptop you can use that to see whats up and where it is. it is a very useful program. Another great program is "Starry night" There are many different Starry night programs they have basic programs and more advanced. You can read more about that Here. I have the Basic Starry night Program that came with my Orion telescope. Each night i'm out i use it.

You might want to get some Binoculars before you get a telescope to get use to the night sky. use your star charts to help guide you across the sky. You will want to get a pair that you can hold, so you don't have to get a tripod. Like a 10x40. You can see all different brands here. Orion, Celestron, and Meade have some really nice Binoculars, That are perfect for just starting out.

Before you buy a telescope. You need to know what kind of objects you will be wanting to look at. Planetary object, DSO ( Deep sky objects) or the moon. Many different objects out there and many different telescope out there. Here is a great place that gives you reviews of all different kinds of Equipment. Another good place to get reviews is cloudy nights. I started out with a small Mak. It was a Orion 90mm Mak-cass with a table top mount. It had some great views. It was great for Planetary use and for some brighter DSO. I did do alot of research before i chose this telescope.

One thing i didn't do was join a astronomy club. You should join a local one or a online one. A very good online astronomy community is Cloudynight . This place is jammed packed with information. Very Useful, join to Ask questions. It free to join and you will be glad you did. You can check your local area for a astronomy club, there are many out there.

And for choosing a good telescopes for just starting out i will send you to Tom Trusock. He wrote the most helpful article every written. I will give you all three parts. He will tell you about the different telescope and what they are good for. It is very helpful. It covers alot of what i have said here but goes in, in much more detail.

Here is Part One, Part Two, Part three. all written by Tom Trusock.

Remember keep looking up have a great time under the stars.

I also have some great links to some really nice Astronomy Programs in my Software section of the blog. Those are all programs i use. From Navigating the night sky to capturing the sky. I hope you have enjoyed reading this, and hope you join the great Hobby of Astronomy!

Clear Skies!

another perigee Moon

2009-01-10T20:10:00.001-05:00

tonight another perigee Moon. 14% wider and 30% brighter than a normal Moon. To cloudy to see anything tonight.

CS!

perigee Moon

2008-12-13T11:27:00.003-05:00

Ok, so you want to know more about the perigee Moon?! well I found you some info from science.nasa.gov. they also compare two photos of a full moon. enjoy the read!

hope you find this helpful!

CS!

Moon at Perigee

2008-12-12T22:52:00.006-05:00

Tonight the moon is 14% wider and 30% brighter, they call this a Perigee moon. And it sure is bright! i got out there with my etx-125 held my digital camera to the eyepiece and took some images! some turned out really nice!

another image I found that looks good. if you look at the right side bottom i caught a star!! i don't think i have ever gotten a star in a lunar image.

More photos in the photo section.

Saturn

2008-12-10T10:06:00.003-05:00

Are Saturn's rings Disappearing? well from the earths view they are, but they are still there.

Whats happening?

The is called a "ring plane crossing." As Saturn goes around the sun, it periodically turns its rings edge-on to Earth about every 14 to 15 years, Because the rings are so thin, they can actually disappear when viewed through a small telescope.

Astronomers said this will give you a chance to see more of the surrounding area and maybe even more of the planet. Moons that aren't normally visible will be now. Don't abandon this planet like Galileo did in 1612.

Many eyes will be turned to Saturn now that the rings will be temporally gone. This is the best time to view the great planet!

Image taken by Efrain Morales Rivera

Huge Prom

2008-12-06T13:01:00.004-05:00

If you have a solar telescope now is the time to use it! There is a monster Prom on the eastern edge of the sun. They are not sure how long this is stay around so if you have a solar scope get on out there. They are saying When this filament collapses and hits the sun's surface, it could produce a rare type of explosion called a "Hyder flare". This is pretty exciting!

click on image to enlarge
Credit of image to The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory

ISS sidekick

2008-12-05T14:53:00.004-05:00

The Toolbag still orbiting the earth. Putting on a nice show for astronomers! I have not seen it because it has been cloudy. Check out the satellite tracker to see when it will be passing over you! It will be flying over my area tomorrow late evening. Probably wont be dark enough to see it.

If its clear and its going to be flying over your area get out there and check it out! You will be able to see it with your naked eye! No telescope needed. Its pretty bright!

CS!

satelite tracker

2008-12-03T10:03:00.002-05:00

This is a nice site to see where and when satellites will be flying over. Its really easy just put in your zip-code for the US and Canada. and it will show you what satellite is flying over and when. how high what direction to look everything you need to know! check it out its free!

satellite tracker

Moon, Jupiter and Venus! Photos!

2008-12-02T19:00:00.004-05:00

Last night I really wanted to see the Conjunction of the moon, Jupiter and Venus, but it was cloudy and by the time it cleared they were below the horizon. However tonight it was clear and I got some images! they are not as close as last night, but still pretty cool. I took these images with a Panasonic 35mm digital camera.

little closer.

click on image to enlarge

Moon, Jupiter and Venus!

2008-11-29T18:11:00.004-05:00

Well the Moon, Jupiter and Venus will be lined up very nicely for the next few days! It will be a great sight. If clear skies check it out. on December 1st all three will be very close together.

Here are some images I grabbed from starry night.

Nov. 29th

click to enlarge

Nov. 30th

click to enlarge

Dec. 1st

click to enlarge

Endeavour & ISS

2008-11-29T18:00:00.003-05:00

Endeavour & ISS (International Space Station) are separating and they will be next to each other for awhile. If you have clear skies check it out! You can put you zip-code into This and it will tell you what satellites are going to be going over your sky and when. Its really nice. Astonmers say Endeavour will look as bright as Jupiter, and the ISS will be as bright as Venus. The Endeavour separated from the ISS yesterday Nov. 28th and will be landing Nov. 30th if its clear get out there and check it out it should look cool. Unfortunately its cloudy for me, but hopefully it will be clear for you!

Click to enlarge
Picture taken by Janusz Krysiak

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

2008-11-27T11:55:00.002-05:00

May you all have a blessed day! And some clear skies!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

getting headlines!

2008-11-23T10:06:00.004-05:00

The video from spaceweather.com i posted Friday about the fireball, well its getting headlines everywhere. and they have alot of video of it. Here is a picture taken from a police dashcam.

astronomers are saying this meteorite/meteoroid was no larger then a basketball.

fireball <---- from foxnews.

New software

2008-11-22T11:44:00.001-05:00

New software added to the Software page of my blog. Check it out, they are very helpful!!

CS!

SASKATCHEWAN FIREBALL

2008-11-21T12:55:00.001-05:00

check this out a fireball went over western Canada on Nov. 20th around 5:30 pm MST. spaceweather.com has a video of this. Its Huge!

VIDEO

solar images

2008-10-30T15:18:00.001-04:00

hey, got some solar images today. You can see them in my photos.

cs!!

solar filter

2008-10-29T19:51:00.002-04:00

My first solar filter came today! its a seymour thin film solar filter. It was cloudy today, i did get to use it in between the clouds and trees. the sun looked cool. But the trees were covering must of it.

Tomorrow it will be clear, i will be imaging and will post photos!

CS!

InnerPlanetary Products-GRAND OPENING!

2008-10-23T15:27:00.005-04:00

The GRAND OPENING of InnerPlanetary Products is Friday October 24th at 4pm EST!!! Great site and the Owner is a close Friend! Stop by you wont regret it!

Main product Meteorites All 100% genuine and they also sell astronomy equipment . Great Website! Great communication, and Geat costumer service!

InnerPlanetary Products

All three parts.

2008-10-20T13:52:00.005-04:00

Starting Off Right in Astronomy Pt. 1

Starting Off Right in Astronomy Pt. 2

Starting Off Right in Astronomy Pt. 3

By Tom Trusock

Starting Off Right in Astronomy: Part 3

2008-10-20T13:39:00.002-04:00

Part 3 is now available!! Its about the astronomy equipment. Telescopes, eyepieces, and finders! by Tom Trusock

"Picking your first telescope can seem pretty daunting - but in reality it shouldn't be. As I outlined in Part 1, you've got three basic choices - a refractor (uses lenses to gather light), a reflector (uses mirrors) or a cat (uses both). "

Starting Off Right in Astronomy: Part 3

MONSTER STORMS ON SATURN

2008-10-15T21:24:00.003-04:00

Images From NASA's Cassini spacecraft has revealed a few large storms on the Planet Saturn. The storms are hundred times stronger then the Biggest hurricane on earth. in the storm 300 mph winds swirl inside.

Read more about this at NASA.gov

Earth/Moon/Sun Positions and the Moon's Phase

2008-10-11T20:59:00.002-04:00

This is a pretty neat website. I just happened to stumble into it. I shows a little diagram of the earth, moon, and the sun, and on the side it shows the current moon phase. And it also shows the sun and Mercury. its pretty cool.

there is also a planetary data page. You can click on any planet and it will show you. such as Mass (kg), Diameter (km), Mean density (kg/m³), Escape velocity (m/sec) . tells alot of information about the object you chose.

check it out here.

Earth-asteroid encounters

2008-10-11T20:52:00.003-04:00

I found this site spaceweather.com and it has some pretty interesting things on it. One thing that I saw, that I thought I would share is this- October 2008 Earth-asteroid encounters. Each month they put out a new list of asteroid encounters.

"On October 11, 2008 there were 990 potentially hazardous asteroids"

Click on image to enlarge

CN Report: Starting Off Right in Astronomy Pt. 2

2008-10-08T19:54:00.002-04:00

Part 2. I hope you read part one on Starting Off Right in Astronomy by Tom Trusock. If not read that one first!

He gives some good links in Part 2. and some To free stuff! Another great read beginners read this article! and part one! Very, very helpful!

"Well, if it's free, how good can it be?

Amazingly, quite good as a matter of fact."

"
I would definitely recommend Crossen's Binocular Astronomy however. This is simply an awesome book, it not only tells you what to look for, but give you a nice set of charts in the back. This is one you'll probably want to consider for a small telescope as well."

CN Report: Starting Off Right in Astronomy Pt. 2

Part 3 coming soon....

Starting Off Right in Astronomy: Part 1

2008-10-08T19:46:00.002-04:00

This is a great read. This is written by Tom Trusock from Cloudy nights. He talks about a lot of stuff, such as binoculars, telescope and their use what you need for astronomy. its a great article. A must read.

"So ya wanna be an amateur astronomer? Great! It’s a wonderful hobby – full of rewarding and relaxing moments – it’s one that you can stick with through a lifetime."

Starting Off Right in Astronomy: Part 1 by Tom Trusock

new photos

2008-10-02T22:16:00.001-04:00

new photos of Jupiter from tonight. looks in "my photos"

2008-10-02T16:51:00.005-04:00

The Telescope: 400 Years and Counting!!!!

"Quick -- name the invention that has done most to redefine our place in the universe.

Hint: This invention was also the most seditious, blasphemous instrument of all time, shaking the very foundations of society........................

The answer, if you haven't already guessed it, is the telescope. It's hard to believe that this instrument, often sold as a cheesy toy in gift shops, is perhaps the single most important scientific instrument of all time."

here that of all time!

Happy 400th anniversary Telescopes!!!!!!

jupiter video

2008-09-30T22:47:00.001-04:00

This is from September 22, 2008

first picture of Jupiter with etx-125

2008-09-24T19:55:00.004-04:00

YAY! two night ago i went outside with my etx-125 and my lxd55 mount. Got a short video of Jupiter and got this! more info in my photos

click on photo to make bigger!

Orions new deal

2008-09-10T22:37:00.002-04:00

Hey, Orion telescopes is offering a new deal. If you buy a StarMax 90mm EQ Mak-Cass, StarMax 127mm EQ Mak-Cass, or SkyView Pro 150mm GoTo Mak-Cass you will get a FREE 6mm Edge-on Planetary Viewing Eyepiece! that's a $99.00 value yours FREE! that's a good deal!

a little info the the eyepiece...
wide 55-degree apparent (FOV) field of view
The eyepiece has long 20mm eye relief for comfortable viewing and it goes on to say "even with eyeglasses on" sounds like a nice eyepiece!

go to Orion telescopes to see this deal!

Orions new telescope

2008-08-15T23:58:00.003-04:00

Orion just came out with a new telescope. The first of its kind from orion. They (orion) have been teasing us for awhile with the emails and the little part of the picture, well tonight they showed it all! The new Orion SkyQuest XX12 IntelliScope Truss-Tube Dobsonian!! Focal length-1500mm, Focal ratio-4.9. The whole thing only weighs 83.0 lbs. The same as the old SkyQuest XT12 IntelliScope with Object Locator.

you can per-order your today! ONLY $1,299.95! not bad hope its good!

one thing it sure is different!

light pollution

2008-08-09T21:51:00.004-04:00

find how bad or good your LP in your area is. this is cool, and free.

dark sky finder

its pretty cool. and at the same time brings tears to your eyes!

Magnification Calculator

2008-07-26T08:05:00.000-04:00

Magnification Calculator
to calculate the of a telescope or eyepiece. just put in the info it asks for and it will give you the answer. its pretty cool!

eyepiece cart

2008-07-26T08:03:00.001-04:00

hey this is a eyepiece FOV chart (field of view) it pretty helpful. its nice to know whats the FOV of an eyepiece. nice chart can be found here

Filters

2008-07-22T21:01:00.004-04:00

Need help knowing what filter to use on what object? well here is a guide that will help you out a lot. it has tons of information in it. this is very helpful!

The use of filters

Jupiter

2008-07-12T00:26:00.002-04:00

Got some pictures of Jupiter. You can find them in my photo section!!! they are pretty good!

DarkAdapted

2008-07-11T11:25:00.003-04:00

This is cool. have you ever gone outside observing and the computer screen is killing your night vision? well here is the solution! DarkAdapted! you can turn you screen completely red, as dark as you want. or you can turn your screen green. you can play around with the controls to get it as dark or bright as you want AND ITS FREE. works on Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later and Windows 98 or later. its great and will help you keep your eyes adapted to the dark!

DarkAdapted

online sky charts

2008-07-08T22:27:00.002-04:00

Hey, this is a online star chart. It looks pretty cool. shows where NGC · Planets · Asterisms · Messier and SDSS. it is very helpful and is FREE! can't get any better then FREE! so check it out online star chart

Goggle earth!

2008-07-03T12:11:00.007-04:00

Hey, Goggle earth has a space section in there new google earth. This has been out for awhile but thought i would post it anyway. check it out here. Its pretty cool! its a free download so check it out!

video of the new Google earth sky feature-

2008-05-06T15:57:00.002-04:00

this is pretty cool. its a Virtual space tour
you can click on any planet and it will tell you information on it and some pictures. its very cool!

Jupiter's Rings Made in the Shade

2008-05-06T15:53:00.002-04:00

here is the information on this topic from space.com

enjoy!

astronomy software

2008-04-13T15:24:00.003-04:00

for mac people out there. astronomy software go to the bottom of the page and there are different software links for macs. some are very helpful!

Flight of the Lynx

2008-04-12T22:50:00.005-04:00

this is a Animated video of the XCOR. its a tourist-class vehicle that goes high above the earth. pretty cool!

enjoy the video

more info can be found here about the craft:http://www.xcor.com/

Barska Digi-Eyepiece

2008-04-12T22:34:00.004-04:00

A friend sent me a link to this eyepiece. looks really cool! I haven't heard anything about it. don't know if its any good but looks cool. Image Sensor is 0.3 megapixel CMOS. Supports Windows 98, 98SE, 2000, ME & XP ... well you can get this eyepiece for $49.99 at adorama.

Barska Digi-Eyepiece

Spacestation animation

2008-04-02T21:11:00.001-04:00

Pretty cool!

Spacestation animation