Celestron 8" F5 Newtonian's First Light Session

Alright, this is for sharing of your observation experience. Or, if you are arranging gatherings, star-gazing expeditions or just want some company to go observing together, you can shout it out here.
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weixing
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Celestron 8" F5 Newtonian's First Light Session

Post by weixing »

Hi,
Yesterday night at around 10pm, the sky starts to clear up a bit and I decided to go out for my 8" F5 Newtonian's First Light session!! :D

The setup on the trolley was very easy and pushing the trolley to the destination was almost effortless. :D :D The most tiring part was carrying my almost 30kg pelican case to the lift level.

My usual site at the Mosque was in bad condition. :( Insects flying around and the ground are very soft and wet. I think they just cut the grass and the long rain a few days before cause the ground to be very soft.

Anyway, after searching in the area, I decided to setup my scope at the basketball court near the swimming pool. The site was not dark, but at least the court lightings were off at around 11pm. I aim the scope at the Moon and Saturn. The Moon was very nice and sharp, but I notice that the Saturn look a bit blur at high magnification. I point the scope at the Sirius to perform a star test check and the star test confirm that the collimation was off. I struggle a bit to collimate the scope ( too long never practise :oops: ) and finally with the help of the Moonlight, I manage to get a very good collimation. The Saturn at high magnification looks a lot better and sharper after the collimation. :D

Later, Klutz and her friend join me at around 2.30am and after an hour of observing the Moon, Saturn (Saturn looks very cute and nice at low magnification as the cloud “fly” past it), M41 and M42 (I can see the A, B, C, D, E and F star in Trapezium), we call it a day and packed up.

Overall, the First Light session was a successful one and was quite happy with the scope performance. The sky was clear most of the time, but the bright Moon somehow cause the sky to look very bright. I think may be the high moisture in the atmosphere causing the sky to reflect the Moonlight. Although didn’t manage to observe much, but at least I can try up my setup.

The below are some issues to be sort out:
1) The scope focuser has too much “play”. This cause the collimation of the secondary to be quite inconsistence.
2) Come out with a standard collimation procedure that I can quickly collimate the scope even in darkness.

Have a nice day.
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Last edited by weixing on Sun Jan 07, 2007 4:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Yang Weixing
:mrgreen: "The universe is composed mainly of hydrogen and ignorance." :mrgreen:
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weixing
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Favourite scope: Vixen R200SS & Celestron 6" F5 Achro Refractor
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Post by weixing »

Below are two photo on my setup and me :oops: :oops:
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Yang Weixing
:mrgreen: "The universe is composed mainly of hydrogen and ignorance." :mrgreen:
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cataclysm
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Post by cataclysm »

M41 and M42 (I can see the A, B, C, D, E and F star in Trapezium),
Hi Weixing, that is an impressive setup.
Btw out of curiosity, I had not view through a newtonian, how is the optics as compare to an 8 inch cat?
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weixing
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Post by weixing »

Hi,
Btw out of curiosity, I had not view through a newtonian, how is the optics as compare to an 8 inch cat?
Generally, I think a Newtonian will have better optics than a CAT of same brand because they are easier to manufacture and less optical surface to go wrong. Also, Newtonian usually have a wider FoV than a CAT.

Have a nice day.
Yang Weixing
:mrgreen: "The universe is composed mainly of hydrogen and ignorance." :mrgreen:
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rlow
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Post by rlow »

Weixing, very nice setup indeed! Glad the trolley came in useful for you! :)
rlow
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ariefm71
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Post by ariefm71 »

Better upgrade that tripod :)
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acc
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Post by acc »

hmm is someone gradually getting aperture fever? :)
We do it in the dark...
Portaball 12.5"
Takahashi Mewlon 210
William Optics 110ED
...and all night long!
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weixing
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Post by weixing »

Hi,
Better upgrade that tripod
That's actually is a new Vixen tripod (but not sure which model :P )with the old EQ3-2 tripod base. I thought of getting the HAL-110WT, but it is very heavy and very expensive.

By the way, I'm not sure which model is this new Vixen tripod... the minimum height is shorter than from AL-130 specification, but higher than AL-90 and maximum height is same as AL-130. Anyway, this Vixen tripod is shorter than my previous tripod (AL-150) by 10cm and it is also lighter. I'm able to position the eyepiece in a very nice height when point at zenith with this tripod. Also, IMHO, this tripod is strong and stable enough for my current setup.
hmm is someone gradually getting aperture fever?
I think 8" is my maximum aperture as long as I'm interested in imaging. Actually, I'm waiting to see whether I can found a GSO 8" F4. :P I might get one if I verified that it can give decent planetary image at 200x - 250x and the price is right. I'm not worry about coma at low power as I already got a coma correcter and now waiting for the 2" adapter for my C8N focuser to test it.

Have a nice day.
Yang Weixing
:mrgreen: "The universe is composed mainly of hydrogen and ignorance." :mrgreen:
elton
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Post by elton »

how well does your MPCC work visually? Is the effect noticeable?
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Canopus Lim
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Post by Canopus Lim »

Looks like Weixing holds the Singastro Ironman title! The last contender carried 8inch f/4 newtonian and now you are carrying 8inch f/5 newtonian. :)
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