Stargazing @ Toa Payoh tonight -- 7 Nov 2011

[Gary]

Hi Friends,

IF the weather is clear tonight, I will be conducting a sidewalk astronomy session at open area outside Toa Payoh Public Library tonight from about 7.30 pm onwards.

Main targets will be Moon and Jupiter and the Seven Sisters star cluster.

Jupiter's Great Red Spot should be visible from about 10pm+ onwards.

A few more members may be joining me with their telescopes. Please check this thread regularly for the latest updates.

Clear Skies!

[Gary]

This monster should be making a grand appearance tonight if the weather is clear.

[Gary]

the event is on. we are setting up the monster refractor now.

[Gary]

Big thanks to all who came for the event! Nice seeing you guys again. What a huge success the event was! The queues did not end from 7.30 pm till almost midnight. What monsoon are we suppose to in again? lol

Special thanks to James for showcasing his brilliantly modified ISTAR scope publicly at Toa Payoh for the very first time. What a beautiful and heart-warming sight to see people of all ages queuing and observing through the massive scope. Later in the evening as Jupiter rises higher, some of them were literally on their knees! The most iconic image I saw was a small child sitting on a small stool, covering one eye with her hand and observing comfortably through the telescope like a pro. I hope her parents took a photo of that. Ultimate bragging rights for her in the future. "I looked through a 8-inch refractor when I was only 6". LOL.

Special thanks also to Clifford for helping out to man my scope and answering the barrage of questions from the public. If it is not for his help, I will not be able take breaks to take photos and videos of the event for the rest to enjoy in the future.

Lastly I would like to thank the members of the public who came and showed lots of graciousness not complaining about the long queues and patiently waiting of their turn to observe and thanking the scope volunteers afterwards. You guys and gals are the main reason why we enjoy conducting sidewalk astronomy so much! Only five more weeks to Dec 10!

[KKK26]

too bad..missed out as i didnt aware sidewalk

[andeelym]

Just curious, did that photo show the modification done? I guess its adding another lens into the 8" achro?

[Gary]

Just curious, did that photo show the modification done? I guess its adding another lens into the 8" achro?

Hi andeelym. No additional lens was added. It was cut into 2 for ease of transportation and storage. The interesting thing is most people (myself included) assume the collimation will be badly affected by doing this but James have proved otherwise with his design and approach to cut the OTA and assembling it back. The m45 stars were pinpoints and moons of jupiter perfectly resolved as round discs last night.

[andeelym]

Oh, I thought its adding a lens to make it a air-spaced doublet. Umm not sure if I am right saying that without studying much into it.

Well, I think as long as the tube remains straight, the collimation should remain... and James proved it. Frankly, its a very brave move. Maybe he can consider changing the whole tube into a light material.

[Gary]

Ya. That is the tricky part. Can a cut and assembled tube be ever as straight and as rigid as before it was cut? And how will that affect the collimation or alignment?

[Gary]

Oh. Sorry for missing your question. Ya. The photos show the scope after it was modified.