Wow! An attic observatory? Now that's going to be very sweet! I live in the suburbs and that would be an incredible advantage for star gazing, as trees and houses definitely block some of the sky and the huge comfort factor during the cold winters. Also, congratulations on your recent retirement! I've been retired for 17 and a half years, which seems surreal to me.
New Telescope, comet etc. pictures
- Thread starter DonH50
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I have serious setup at New Mexico.
But after corona pandemic, I had not been there for 4 years.
I need to set up remote operation, but it requires lot of work.
Yeah, it would be sweet, but it's not happening.
I know some folk who did that, but with building prices these days it's not in our budget. There's an outside actual small observatory (looks like one of the big ones in all the pictures, but only maybe 8' tall and perhaps 8' diameter)) at a house down the road from us; I need to knock on their door someday.Ah yes, budget. Funny how that can rear its ugly head from time to time.Yeah, it would be sweet, but it's not happening.
Is that a Mak-Cass design? Central obstruction looks to be around 28%.
Looks like a nice mobile scope/tripod setup with go-to and camera capabilities.
I don't know, sorry, and not sure they say on their website (no luck after a quick search). Seems like most of the reflectors today except for Celestron and Meade (SCT) are Maksutov-Cassegrain so likely so? Unistellar has low f-stop (f/4), however, and the eQuinox 2 I have claims to be better for deep space than planets, which points to a SCT (or some other) type.
All I really know is that it's a smart telescope, perfect for idiots like me. (I used to know a little bit, and planned to learn more, but never happened.)
UNISTELLAR | Official Website - Cutting-Edge Smart Telescopes
Discover the award-winning UNISTELLAR intelligent telescopes with revolutionary technologies. Capture breathtaking images of the universe.
www.unistellar.com
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
Don
This thread has fascinated me since your first post and like you I love looking up and seeing the greatness. You enlightened me as to digital telescopes
Ive done a lot of research and here is what I am thinking of buying.......
www.vaonis.com
You made a really good point as to saving $$$ on the eye piece
This thread has fascinated me since your first post and like you I love looking up and seeing the greatness. You enlightened me as to digital telescopes
Ive done a lot of research and here is what I am thinking of buying.......
The most innovative smart telescopes
Exploring the universe and capturing stunning images of nebulae and galaxies has never been easier with our award-winning smart telescopes.
www.vaonis.com
You made a really good point as to saving $$$ on the eye piece
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
That's like the SeeStar scope too. You might want to join Cloudy Nights amateur astronomy forum. Lots of great advice if you need it on all things astronomy. https://www.cloudynights.com/
I had my eye on a Vaonis for several years but went with Unistellar for its larger mirror and longer focal length, though they tend to go back and forth on features and such. Vaonis arguably made smart telescopes legitimate but Unistellar came along at the higher end with better performance. The new Vespera Pro has a larger (in pixel count, anyway) sensor than my Unistellar. Reviews favored the Unistellar but it is at a higher price point. The Unistellar did better in suburban settings which may be important to you. Both are French companies, interestingly, as is Trinnov.Don
This thread has fascinated me since your first post and like you I love looking up and seeing the greatness. You enlightened me as to digital telescopes
Ive done a lot of research and here is what I am thinking of buying.......
The most innovative smart telescopes
Exploring the universe and capturing stunning images of nebulae and galaxies has never been easier with our award-winning smart telescopes.
You made a really good point as to saving $$$ on the eye piece
I bought a Unistellar eQuinox2 from their "expert" line but they make a slightly smaller and lighter Odyssey model that is simpler in that it automatically collimates and focuses. Neither is a big deal, very easy to do on the eQuinox, and I like the greater image and light-gathering capability of the larger 'scope. But N.B. I have not tried a Vaonis in several years so my hands-on experience is very limited.
UNISTELLAR | Official Website - Cutting-Edge Smart Telescopes
Discover the award-winning UNISTELLAR intelligent telescopes with revolutionary technologies. Capture breathtaking images of the universe.
www.unistellar.com
Frankly, were I to buy today, I'd probably get the new Celestron Origin. I'm a little surprised it took Celestron so long to enter the smart telescope market, but that one ticks some big boxes for me, like a 6" mirror instead of 4.5" (Unistellar) or 2" (Vaonis), and has all the Celestron reputation and experience behind it. Celestron also has a wedge mount that allows you to capture directly overhead, something I wish I had living in the trees.
Celestron Origin Intelligent Home Observatory | Celestron
Celestron Origin stands at the forefront of a new era in amateur astronomy, blending stargazing and astrophotography into a single, user-friendly experience. This intelligent, all-in-one home observatory takes the complexity out of traditional telescopes, transforming your backyard into a...
www.celestron.com
Note these are mainly for deep space objects (DSOs), galaxies, stars, nebulae, etc. so may not be the best choice for looking at planets. Planets are cool, but there are nine (eight, whatever) of them, vs. millions (that you can see) of DSOs. I specifically wanted a telescope for deep space imaging.
Wrote it out then decided a bullet list made more sense, got more stuff than I thought. I posted my Amazon links.
- A red flashlight to save your night vision (less critical for a smart 'scope since you set it up and go inside to run it). This is a four pack (I put one in the vehicles just to have for campling and in case I take the 'scope) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D5LNV9F5?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1
- Perhaps isolators for the tripod though I rarely use mine. Celestron's are the ones everyone suggests, with these a close second, but Celestron's were back ordered when I got mine: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0140UAD20?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1
- A WiFi extender was a great addition for me since the built-in WiFi is pretty short range. I plug the extender into an outlet or extension cord near the telescope and then can work in my office or bedroom (where I have a computer set up). Otherwise I needed to stay closer to the 'scope (bedroom is on second floor, and I move the 'scope around the house to view between trees depending what I want to see): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07N1WW638?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1 -- they make faster ones, but the 'scope's WiFi is fairly slow
- I bought a Samsung S10 Ultra tablet with the keyboard case to make it easier to view (and show others) and operate, along with a USB-HDMI cable so I can plug the tablet into our TV for family viewing. This is the adapter cable I bought (it works, not all of them do): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BQBM4V5V?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1
- A solar filter if they make one so you can use it to observe solar flares and eclipses. Buy from the telescope company to fit your 'scope.
- A planisphere for off-scope looking at constellations or just to help see where things are in the night sky. Lots of times it's nice to just go out and look at constellations by eye or binoculars. This is a BIG planisphere, good for nights and old eyes: https://www.amazon.com/Guide-Stars-...753547193&sprefix=guide+to+the,aps,886&sr=8-1
- A guidebook is helpful to explain where and what to look for, though the Unistellar app does a good job with its recommendations IME (I would assume the Vaonis is similar but do not know). These are my main ones, though frankly the app is smart enough that I have not looked at the books much. Audubon and National Geographic guides are similar; I have both, but which to use is a matter of preference. Audubon's is like their bird guides, with text descriptions referencing a section of photographs in the middle. NG's is more general and I would say more "user friendly". I'd start with it.
--- Audubon Field Guide to the Night Sky: https://www.amazon.com/Field-Nation...x=field+guide+to+the+night+sky,aps,361&sr=8-1
--- National Geographic Backyard Guide to the Night Sky: https://www.amazon.com/National-Geo...x=field+guide+to+the+night+sky,aps,361&sr=8-2
I have a long out of print Norton's Sky Atlas that is geared more to enthusiasts though has some info on types of telescopes and such. I would not suggest it to a beginner; I am embarrassed to say I barely touch it anymore as it is above me now. I also got a gift of National Geographic's Stargazing Atlas: The Ultimate Guide to the Night Sky, a "coffee table" book that has a lot of interesting background on astronomy as well as objects to view.
There are a couple of programs/apps I use. The apps use GPS and phone camera to help orient and identify night objects so are nice to have for general and group viewing.
- I highly recommend Stellarium to quickly provide information about objects and to allow you to decide where and what to view. I use it to check magnitudes and double-check the 'scope went to the right place (it can sometimes be a little off). The PC version is free; the phone app is fairly inexpensive. It looks intimidating but was not hard to learn. https://stellarium.org/ and on the Play Store (or whatever Apple uses).
- I have tried and scrapped several other phone apps, but for now also have SkySafri Pro based on the recommendation of the astronomer on the cruise ship we wee recently on. He said (and I can confirm) there are a lot of apps; this happens to be the one he has used, and when I checked it was highly rated and I like the interface. I tried some others that were "free" but required additional $$$ for DSOs, had wonky interfaces, and such.
- A nice website for sky maps is https://skymaps.com/. They publish monthly sky maps showing constellations and such with a list of interesting objects for the month. Worth downloading and printing.
Whew! Lot to cover, hope it helps! I was interested many years (decades) ago but let it lapse along with several other hobbies. The smart 'scope has gotten me back into astronomy and I'm really loving it.
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
Now you really have me thinking Don. Glad I took the time. I always learn something from whatever you post. Thank you
NP, love to spend other people's money!
Note I am strictly an amateur, maybe even less since the smart telescope makes it easy to skip all the rigor I used to go through to find objects (not too hard manually, but selecting an object and having it just go there is great). Most telescopes these days have computer control; what sets the smart ones apart is their self-orientation and image processing capability. A larger conventional telescope is much cheaper, but you have to buy an imager or attachment to use your camera, plus deal with software to stack and process the images. Being in it just for fun these days a smart 'scope was the right choice for me.A larger mirror means more expense and weight, but greater light-gathering capability and such to see objects dimmer and/or farther away (and make closer objects clearer and brighter). My old telescope is an 8", but the imaging and processing capability of the 4.5" Unistellar more than makes up the difference. It's amazing to look and see almost nothing but "noise" then have an awesome galaxy or nebula appear as it processes.
Of all the accessories, my tablet is the one I use most, as the phone I find a pain to use for more than calls and texts (plus some games). I tend to set the tablet up near my computer and use Stellarium to decide which objects to view based on size and magnitude since the app does not always say. It is also easier to judge where in the sky objects are using Stellarium. I have not used it much on the phone, nor SkySafari -- I keep planning to play with SkySafari more. Whatever app you get, be sure it has a night mode that turns the screen red to help retain your night vision.
Steve Williams
Site Founder, Site Co-Owner, Administrator
One more thing (always one more thing): I broke down and subscribed to Google's cloud service as using Photos makes it very easy to upload the telescope pictures from my tablet or phone to the cloud, then download to my computer for viewing and backup. Between the telescope and our recent travel we blew through the free 15 GB and I signed up for a 100 GB plan for about $25/year. That may be my cheapest accessory!
Note you don't need anything but the telescope and a phone or tablet so you can start there. I do really like the tablet with its keyboard over using my phone, and the WiFi extender is almost a requirement for our house, but you can start without them and go from there. One of the NG guides is a good way to build excitement for the hobby.
Lots of stars out last night, first clear night in a while... There's a cluster in the middle, but sooo many stars!
Swimming Alligator cluster; you can sort of see it, eyes below, tail up top:
Swimming Alligator cluster; you can sort of see it, eyes below, tail up top:
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