Space Forum / Amateur Astronomy / July 2004

I am in the market for a C-11.  However, due to monetary restrictions, I
cannot afford an expensive mount like the Losmandy.  So, are there
alternatives and, if so, what are they?  My purpose is for visual and webcam
planetary use, no long exposure work at this time.   From what ...

Has anyone had the opportunity to use one of these? Looks like they are
going to give the Orion a run for their money you get a 6X30 finder and a 45
degree diagonal as well as a 25mm eyepiece for $479.00(cant remember where I
saw the price so if I am wrong I apologize). It will  be ...

I have a Meade telescope circa 1983.  It does not have a model number
on it.  It does say D=L02 F=1000 f/10 Schmidt Cassagrain.  Sadly a
while back I dropped it and broke the finder scope holder.   Now I
want to make another holder but I have trouble finding the correct

I currently have a thread going on over on the 'Cloudy Nights' Forums,
in the 'Eyepieces' category, under the title "Masuyama's, what do we
know about them?".  If you are interested in this design, and/or have
things to add regarding it's mysterious origin and history, please go

Quick question here: The probe that plummeted into Jupiter's atmosphere a
few years ago (was it Galileo?), what did we learn from that mission and did
it send back any pictures from under the clouds? Just curious.
Thanks,

I want to replace the focuser on my MK-67.  The one I have was previously
owned and I think the jerk semi-stripped it.  It BARELY willhold a Radian in
place.  Even then it slips.  Very annoying.
How do I find the right focuser?  When I look Anacortes, it's very confusing

Do not go with the SCT as it is really too bulky and time consuming
for casual use.
Beginner's setup:
Telescope: 6" Dob

I'm a newbie. I'm trying to find out the best day to see the Perseids.
The local observatory website (www.chabotspace.org) says Thursday
Night/Friday Morning (Aug 12/13), but a couple other sites say
Wednesday Night/Thursday Morning (Aug 11/12)

Last week, John Kocijanski and I met to have lunch and then compare our two
scopes.  He has just recently received a Coronado PST, and we compared it to my
UltraPortable Solar Observatory (Tak FS-60C with a Coronado SolarMax 40 filter
and BF10).  My experience with the PST had been ...

Are these totally identical? Any help is appreciated.

Could someone kindly direct me to a good, close-up sunspot image?  Something
that isn't overprocessed.
Thank you,
SS

Has anyone here given much thought to constructing a pair of binoculars from
a pair of spotting scopes?   Any links to successful or unsuccessful
projects?
I was looking at the Pentax 80mm ED spotting scope. This one was designed to

I can't find any specs on the eye relief of the Meade 24.8 super wide
eyepiece.  I've checked the Meade site and elsewhere.  Anyone got an figure
(or barring that, a guess)?

It was Carl Sagan who said --to paraphrase -- the surface of the earth
is the shore of the cosmic ocean, and recently we have wet our ankles.
Now that is true: going to the moon is just wetting our ankles. The real
test comes when we try to go to the stars, the nearest of which are ...