Observing onboard Superstar Virgo?

[ariefm71]

Hi all,

I'll be going for a 3 day 2 nights company trip this month on board superstar virgo. Is the platform steady enough for observing? thinking of taking my apo with me for widefield observing. Understand that ppl actually board the cruises to see solar eclipses, etc.

cheers,
Arief

[rcj]

Short exposures should be fine if you are intent on imaging. Not too sure about wide-field DSO imaging though, but it may not make sense as the ship is moving. good luck!

[ariefm71]

not imaging, just observing only...

[rcj]

low mag work should be ok then.. cheers!

[Tachyon]

Have not tried observing on board Virgo when I was last there, but I forsee 2 problems:

1. Engine vibrations - I can even feel them!

2. Waves - as the ship is in open seas, the waves can be choppy at times.

3. Curious kids!

Other than that, you may want to observe in the middle of the ship (top deck, near the pool), as the bow/stern are more affected by the movements (see if you can detect that while in the casino).

A bino would be advisable, but please try out with your scopes and let me know how it goes!

[kayheem]

I have been on a cruise before. It is really not conducive for observing for the following reasons:

1) The top deck is where the funnels come out. Expect lots of smoke/turbulence, unless you are near the front.

2) There are also lots of lights on the deck. I don't expect the crew to turn them off as there will be others on the deck who need the light to move around, go down the steps etc

If you want, just bring a pair of binos and observe lying down.

[Airconvent]

I'm thinking if its even practical...
No matter how stable the stablisers are, the ship bound to move a little and this translate into a lot of movement in the eyepiece, unless you are viewing wide view, in which case a bino would have been better....