开云体育

Could you (or anyone out there in BBAA Land, for that matter!)explain > the terms "Right Ascension and Declination" as if you were explaining > them to a 10-year-old? How do I find celestial objects this way? Another way to visualize Right Ascension and Declination is to imagine a sphere surrounding the earth at a distance, so that all of the sky is represented at a single distance on that sphere. Now imagine the latitude and longitude lines on the earth projected out to that sphere. The Earth's equator would form a circle around the center of the sphere, and since the Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees on its axis, that "celestial equator" is also tilted and so will appear at different elevations at different times of the year. The equator projected to the celestial sphere marks 0 degrees declination. We then mark off equal increments (degrees) of declination from that equator to the "poles" that are defined by the Earth's axis of rotation. Polaris, near the north celestial pole is (almost) at 90 degrees declination, but as we know, is not at the "top" of the sky known as the "Zenith" but is at an elevation equal to the observer's earthly latitude due to that tilt of the Earth. Orion's belt is very nearly at zero degrees declination. On Earth we start the lines of Longitude from an arbitrary point called the "prime meridian" selected because it goes through the Greenwich Observatory. In the sky we arbitrarily mark the zero-hour of Right Ascension at the "first point of Aries" which refers to the point where the "Ecliptic" (apparent path of the sun) crosses the celestial equator and known as the "Vernal Equinox," the day (March 21), that marks the start of spring and is one of the two dates of about equal day and night. (The other being the Autumnal equinox about 23 September) By the way, it is called "the first point of Aries" because that is the constellation that contained the Vernal Equinox at the time the system was conceived. Due to precession, it is no longer in that constellation. Look for zero hour R.A. along the Eastern edge of the great square of Pegasus. The Earth turns on its axis every 24 hours. It, therefore, takes 24 hours for the sky to make a complete revolution around an observer on Earth, advancing 15 degrees an hour. So we divide the sky into 24 segments of 15 degrees each and call the segments "hours." Extending the "clock analogy," we divide the hours into minutes and the minutes into seconds. As Kent already explained, you then use these coordinates in the sky to define an objects position exactly the way you define the location of a spot on the earth. Hope that helps. Ted

Another thought on useful atlases (and I'm surprised Kent hasn't brought this up yet). There is a CCD "Deep Space" atlas by John C. Vickers (The southern version is a collaboration between Vickers and Alexander Wassilieff) that I think is a marvelous tool. It comes as close as anything I've seen in mimicking what is seen in the eyepiece. Seeing a picture of that 12th magnitude spiral will help you pick out details that you would not have imagined possible. Its worth owning. The version I have is the early home-published affair, I think it has become much more sophisticated in follow-on versions. I can't say I know if or where its available, (Perhaps Kent can chime in?) But don't miss an opportunity to pick up this atlas if you get the chance.

If we can't observe at Chipokes or Northwest River Park next Firday. Has anyone consider going to Lands Ends?

>Just checked Accuweather Aw, what do they know? That's why we call them "weather-guessers!" G3 "Woody, Denice K" wrote: Just checked Accuweather and it's looking a little better - 8-11 MPH.... Denice -----Original Message----- From: Channel, Lawrence F. CWO2 [mailto:channelf@...] Sent: Monday, February 24, 2003 11:59 AM To: 'backbayastro@...' Subject: RE: [backbayastro] Re: First light I hope your wrong about the wind. I was planning to be out tonight. Larry -----Original Message----- From: Woody, Denice K [mailto:denice.k.woody@...] Sent: Monday, February 24, 2003 10:58 AM To: 'backbayastro@...' Subject: RE: [backbayastro] Re: First light I would have liked to be outside last night but the winds were too much. And it appears the same is predicted for this evening 20-25 mph winds.....sigh.... Denice Denice K. Woody VISTA Support Office Administrator Siemens Enterprise Networks 757-473-9871/Voice denice.k.woody@... -----Original Message----- From: Neill Alford [mailto:ulugbek1428@...] Sent: Monday, February 24, 2003 10:56 AM To: backbayastro@... Subject: Re: [backbayastro] Re: First light Joe, Congratulations on getting your new scope going. I'll look forward to seeing it. The views must knock your socks off, compared to your 60mm. Last night was a great night to try out the scope, since you could focus on something other than clouds! I was out last night too, and had a great time. Hope you enjoy many rewarding hours of exploration with your new scope. Neill Alford "richardcoop " wrote: That moon crossing Jupiter about 10-11 last night was Io. Watched it cross also. --- In backbayastro@..., Richard Dickson wrote: > Joe, > Congradulations on your new scope! I was observing Jupiter > last night as well and can assure you the poor view at 293X > was due to the seeing. It was poor 95% of the time. It was even > worse just after sunset than when you were observing. If you > were patient though, the few seconds here and there of OK seeing > made up for it. Did you catch the red spot? It was rotating > off just about as the moon's shadow entered. It seems redder > this year than I ever remember, but it's still far from "red". > Enjoy your scope. I've heard really great things about those > C9.25 tubes. > > Richard > > "joseph_piotrowski " wrote: > > > > All, > > Well I finally got to use my new scope tonight. Its a C 9.25 on a > > Losmandy GM-8. I decided not to go with the C11 GPS for two reasons, > > size/weight and I'd rather not have goto.This way I'm forced to learn > > the night sky. > > Had fun(even though it was cold and only in my front driveway with > > all the neighbors lights).Polar alignment was a snap.The GM-8 tracked > > like a dream.I had to leave to pick up my teenage daughter from a > > friends house and when I got back Jupiter was still center. > > Saw M42 and M43 right away. Wow.Can really see the nebula and the 4 > > stars of the trapezium well. > > Saturn's rings were so/so. Could see A and B rings, but doubt I was > > seeing Cassini. View seemed to come and go.Pretty steady at 180X but > > pretty shakey at 293X.I assume that's du! e to seeing conditions. > > Jupiter was great.Saw a moon transit shadow very clearly.Not sure > > which one it was. Need to look it up. > > I had gotten Bob's knobs and put them on before I even looked through > > the scope.(as usual I did too much at once) I think I did the > > collimation correctly but not sure.Initially my dew shield(home made) > > was getting in the way and made the out of focus star lopsided.Need > > to read up on it also. > > Sorry to blather on like this but you have to realize that I have > > been struggling with a 60mm refractor for 2 years.This is my first > > serious scope. > > Can't wait for my first nightwatch. > > Joe > > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > > backbayastro-unsubscribe@... > > > > > > > > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> > > -- > Richard Dickson > Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility > dickson@j... > (757)269-5082 To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> . _____ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! <http://rd.yahoo.com/finance/mailtagline/*http://taxes.yahoo.com/> Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, and more Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ADVERTISEMENT <http://rd.yahoo.com/M=246920.2960106.4328965.2848452/D=egroupweb/S=17050828 06:HM/A=1464858/R=0/*http://www.gotomypc.com/u/tr/yh/cpm/grp/300_Cquo_1/g22l p?Target=mm/g22lp.tmpl> <http://us.adserver.yahoo.com/l?M=246920.2960106.4328965.2848452/D=egroupmai l/S=:HM/A=1464858/rand=916891690> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> . To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. George Reynolds, Deputy Commander, Tidewater South Section Royal Rangers Visit my Web page: http://www.geocities.com/pathfinder027/spacex.html "Solar System Ambassador" for South Hampton Roads, Virginia Member, Back Bay Amateur Astronomers (BBAA) http://groups.hamptonroads.com/BBAA/ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now

>Just checked Accuweather Aw, what do they know? That's why we call them "weather-guessers!" G3 "Woody, Denice K" wrote: Just checked Accuweather and it's looking a little better - 8-11 MPH.... Denice -----Original Message----- From: Channel, Lawrence F. CWO2 [mailto:channelf@...] Sent: Monday, February 24, 2003 11:59 AM To: 'backbayastro@...' Subject: RE: [backbayastro] Re: First light I hope your wrong about the wind. I was planning to be out tonight. Larry -----Original Message----- From: Woody, Denice K [mailto:denice.k.woody@...] Sent: Monday, February 24, 2003 10:58 AM To: 'backbayastro@...' Subject: RE: [backbayastro] Re: First light I would have liked to be outside last night but the winds were too much. And it appears the same is predicted for this evening 20-25 mph winds.....sigh.... Denice Denice K. Woody VISTA Support Office Administrator Siemens Enterprise Networks 757-473-9871/Voice denice.k.woody@... -----Original Message----- From: Neill Alford [mailto:ulugbek1428@...] Sent: Monday, February 24, 2003 10:56 AM To: backbayastro@... Subject: Re: [backbayastro] Re: First light Joe, Congratulations on getting your new scope going. I'll look forward to seeing it. The views must knock your socks off, compared to your 60mm. Last night was a great night to try out the scope, since you could focus on something other than clouds! I was out last night too, and had a great time. Hope you enjoy many rewarding hours of exploration with your new scope. Neill Alford "richardcoop " wrote: That moon crossing Jupiter about 10-11 last night was Io. Watched it cross also. --- In backbayastro@..., Richard Dickson wrote: > Joe, > Congradulations on your new scope! I was observing Jupiter > last night as well and can assure you the poor view at 293X > was due to the seeing. It was poor 95% of the time. It was even > worse just after sunset than when you were observing. If you > were patient though, the few seconds here and there of OK seeing > made up for it. Did you catch the red spot? It was rotating > off just about as the moon's shadow entered. It seems redder > this year than I ever remember, but it's still far from "red". > Enjoy your scope. I've heard really great things about those > C9.25 tubes. > > Richard > > "joseph_piotrowski " wrote: > > > > All, > > Well I finally got to use my new scope tonight. Its a C 9.25 on a > > Losmandy GM-8. I decided not to go with the C11 GPS for two reasons, > > size/weight and I'd rather not have goto.This way I'm forced to learn > > the night sky. > > Had fun(even though it was cold and only in my front driveway with > > all the neighbors lights).Polar alignment was a snap.The GM-8 tracked > > like a dream.I had to leave to pick up my teenage daughter from a > > friends house and when I got back Jupiter was still center. > > Saw M42 and M43 right away. Wow.Can really see the nebula and the 4 > > stars of the trapezium well. > > Saturn's rings were so/so. Could see A and B rings, but doubt I was > > seeing Cassini. View seemed to come and go.Pretty steady at 180X but > > pretty shakey at 293X.I assume that's du! e to seeing conditions. > > Jupiter was great.Saw a moon transit shadow very clearly.Not sure > > which one it was. Need to look it up. > > I had gotten Bob's knobs and put them on before I even looked through > > the scope.(as usual I did too much at once) I think I did the > > collimation correctly but not sure.Initially my dew shield(home made) > > was getting in the way and made the out of focus star lopsided.Need > > to read up on it also. > > Sorry to blather on like this but you have to realize that I have > > been struggling with a 60mm refractor for 2 years.This is my first > > serious scope. > > Can't wait for my first nightwatch. > > Joe > > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > > backbayastro-unsubscribe@... > > > > > > > > Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> > > -- > Richard Dickson > Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility > dickson@j... > (757)269-5082 To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> . _____ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! <http://rd.yahoo.com/finance/mailtagline/*http://taxes.yahoo.com/> Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, and more Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ADVERTISEMENT <http://rd.yahoo.com/M=246920.2960106.4328965.2848452/D=egroupweb/S=17050828 06:HM/A=1464858/R=0/*http://www.gotomypc.com/u/tr/yh/cpm/grp/300_Cquo_1/g22l p?Target=mm/g22lp.tmpl> <http://us.adserver.yahoo.com/l?M=246920.2960106.4328965.2848452/D=egroupmai l/S=:HM/A=1464858/rand=916891690> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> . To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: backbayastro-unsubscribe@... Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. George Reynolds, Deputy Commander, Tidewater South Section Royal Rangers Visit my Web page: http://www.geocities.com/pathfinder027/spacex.html "Solar System Ambassador" for South Hampton Roads, Virginia Member, Back Bay Amateur Astronomers (BBAA) http://groups.hamptonroads.com/BBAA/ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now

All, Well I finally got to use my new scope tonight. Its a C 9.25 on a Losmandy GM-8. I decided not to go with the C11 GPS for two reasons, size/weight and I'd rather not have goto.This way I'm forced to learn the night sky. Had fun(even though it was cold and only in my front driveway with all the neighbors lights).Polar alignment was a snap.The GM-8 tracked like a dream.I had to leave to pick up my teenage daughter from a friends house and when I got back Jupiter was still center. Saw M42 and M43 right away. Wow.Can really see the nebula and the 4 stars of the trapezium well. Saturn's rings were so/so. Could see A and B rings, but doubt I was seeing Cassini. View seemed to come and go.Pretty steady at 180X but pretty shakey at 293X.I assume that's due to seeing conditions. Jupiter was great.Saw a moon transit shadow very clearly.Not sure which one it was. Need to look it up. I had gotten Bob's knobs and put them on before I even looked through the scope.(as usual I did too much at once) I think I did the collimation correctly but not sure.Initially my dew shield(home made) was getting in the way and made the out of focus star lopsided.Need to read up on it also. Sorry to blather on like this but you have to realize that I have been struggling with a 60mm refractor for 2 years.This is my first serious scope. Can't wait for my first nightwatch. Joe

All, Any plans at alternate sites for Feb 28th? Joe

Hey gang Went out to Chippokes and dropped off the application with Saturday night dates. It will take 3/4 weeks but Darnett said everything is OK and she will mail the permit. Also here is where the trouble started. She said they (Chippokes staff) have had no problems with us, our group or our plans. It is with the security guards that are hired at night. They are the ones that complained they never knew who was coming or when ect. ect. Since the park closes at sunset our activities should remain in the parking lot. Security said people were "down by the river" and in unauthorized places. They also inhabit the house by the parking lot. (The way I see it, we are a pain for them) But to bad, They have no say so on the rules or permits issued, they are hired by the park as security and do not work for the state (private contractor). We were the only activity ever allowed in at night and with no formal permit. So this paperwork will take care of that. After we have our permit they can not tell us to leave. That helps both parties. I still felt the staff is "on our side" and want us to enjoy the park. They will also let us know about any cost after they discuss it with regional reps.

Well, there are no less than six comets crudding up our skies, and I hope you take an opportunity this weekend to view at least two of them. If you're observing under a 5th magnitude sky or darker and have a 4" you should have no problems seeing the brightest, C/2001 RX14 (LINEAR). Located in UMa, it rides high in the sky after 9:00pm. It's quite bright (10.7 mag) and rather large, with a wide tail fanning westward. I tried to see it in my 10x40 finder but it was too close to a bright star to resolve it. Another fairly good comet, and one culminating even earlier at 8:00pm EST is C/2001 HT50 (LINEAR-NEAT). The comet has remained stable at magnitude 11.5 magnitude, only 1/10 magntidue brighter than when I first observed it on Jan 25, 2003. It's should be quite nice in a 8" or larger scope; and at 100x should appear large, and round. I detected a faint but fairly wide tail extending about 5' ENE. Oh, one other object I'd like to suggest viewing. It's often overlooked, but shouldn't be. Have you ever observed two galaxies in collision? Now's your chance. NGC 4038 in Corvus, nicknamed the Antennae, or Ring Tail lies some 60 million light years distance. You'll be hard pressed to see the Antennae, but the Ring Tail should be no problem. It has always reminded me of a shrimp, because of its curved shape. This "curved" portion is actually the collision galaxy, NGC 4039. N4038 shines brightly at 10.9 magnitude, but actually has a high surface brightness so is quite easy to see in small telescopes. Please remind me to show it to you ladies and gents in the 25" at ECSP. Wow! It's stunning. You might hear me say, "It's the best pair of collison galaxies I've ever seen". That's all for now, I'm going to bed. If one could observe in one's sleep I'd probably do so. Here's some positions for the objects mentioned. The comet positions are those for Saturday, March 1. C/2001 RX 14 RA 11h 39m 27.1s DEC +39 14' 06s UMa 10.7 magnitude Comet C/2001 HT50 RA 06 24m 45.5s DEC +03 51' 55s Monoceros Magnitude 11.5 Antennae/Ring Tail Galaxy NGC 4038/4039 12h 01m 52.8s DEC -18 51' 54s Corvus Magnitude 10.9 Kent Blackwell

Lelane Arneson sent me this, thought Id put it out here due to the short time frame: > Item Name Sale-Lot Number Current > Bid State Number of > Bidders Close Time > (*) Possible Extension. See Bidding Rules. > MODEL, SPACE TELESCOPE 31FBPI03032002 180 USD per lot VA 5 03/01 07:28 PM CST * > > > Item Description > > Bidding Details > > Bidding Rules > > Bid History > > Completed Trades > > > > ONE LOT CONSISTING OF MODEL, SPACE TELESCOPE SPACE TELESCOPE MOUNTED ON WOODEN BOARD HAS ONE BROKEN SOLARPANEL. 12" X 18" X18", DATE MFG: 19870101, (1 EA); EXHIBIT COMPOSITES THIS COMPOSITES EXHIBIT WAS ON LONG TERM LOAN TO THE VIRGINIA AIR AND SPACE CENTER. IT IS NOW EXCESS TO THE NEED OF THE TRAVELING EXHIBITS PROGRAM. (1 EA); -USED- *NON-US CITIZENS WILL NOT BE AUTHORIZED ON NASA LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER TO INSPECT OF PICKUP SURPLUS PERSONAL PROPERTY. (803301/2308,S016/2318,S015) MAKE: ECHELON TECH MODEL: 1/25 > If this auction is scheduled to close on or after March 2, 2003, new Terms & Conditions apply. The new terms and conditions require that all registered users must provide credit card information. Beginning March 2 when you log in, you will automatically be prompted to provide credit card information > > Special Inspection Information: > ONE DAY INSPECTIONWEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 26, 20039:00AM-2:30 PM > > Please contact the custodian for additional information about this item(s) and for inspection dates and times. > > Successful bidders are cautioned that they will be responsible for loading and removal of any and all property awarded to them from the exact place where the property is located, as indicated below > > > Property Location and Custodian Information: > NASA LANGLEY RESEARCH CENTER > MAIL STOP 381 > 4 SOUTH MARVIN STREET > HAMPTON,VA 23681-0001 > > Contact: LOLIA DEAL > phone:757-864-8307 ext: 0000000 > fax:757-864-3388 > > For additional inquiries about payment and pickup of this item(s), contact: > US General Services Administration > The Strawbridges Bldg. > 20 North 8th Street > Philadelphia, PA 19107-3191 > Phone: 215-446-5065 > FAX: 215-446-5117 > GSAAuctions.MidAtlantic@... >

Hey guys, I'm also a member of this association. This is great stuff. It combines both my profession and my hobby. I am forwarding this info to see if any of my fellow BBAA's would like to attend this with me. Let me know. Eric Egiles1@... Hampton Roads AITP (Assoc. of Information Technology Professionals) March Meeting Preview Prasun Desai, NASA Our March speaker will be Prasun N. Desai from the NASA Langley Research Center. Mr. Desai will speak on "The Mars Exploration Project." Over the coming decade, NASA plans to send a multitude of missions to the Red planet. The missions will consist of various types: Landers, Orbiters, Rovers, and maybe even Airplanes. The goal of these missions is to perform scientific investigations of Mars to help determine and understand it's geologic, climatic, and mineralogic history and identify where the conditions may have been favorable to the preservation of evidence of pre-botic or biotic processes. Simply stated, the motto of these missions is to "follow the water." This presentation will include an overview of past missions that have flown to Mars, current missions that are being developed, and future mission the are being planned and their goals. * Our Next Meeting is Tuesday, March 4th, 2003 Point Plaza Suites & Conference Hotel (formerly the Ramada Inn) at I- 64 & US 17, Newport News, Va. Social Hour - 5:30 PM, Dinner - 6:30 PM, Program - 7:30 PM Members - $16, Spouse/Significant Other - $19, Guests - $19, Students - $13 If you will be joining us for the speaker and not for dinner, we request a donation of $5. For Reservations: Call Digital Applications Inc., at 827-1250 no later than noon on the Friday preceding the meeting. Full Newsletter is at www.aitp-hr.com *

WOW! Another great BBAA newsletter! It's GREAT to see articles written by some of our new members. Way to Go Joe Piotrowski and Rick Bish! What a great article on Bob Hitt's African Safari and eclipse trip also! georgie :)

All, I accept full responsibilty for the bad weather of late.I had the audacity of offending the Gods of astronomy by getting a new scope.I think someone Ptol on me.There may be something to that geocentric model too.Please accept my humble apologies. Joe

It looks like the weekend is shaping up to be a cloudy one. Can you belive it? I mean we've had such a cloud-free winter season. Yea, right. Let's hope we have better luck next new moon, and better luck at the East Coast Star Party. If anyone isn't already on my ECSP email list but wishes to be please let me know. Thanks. Kent Blackwell

I enjoyed reading Joe Piotrowski's History Corner article in the current Back Bay Observer, and in particular his notes about Sir Williams Herschel. For those interested I'd like to draw attention to a wonderful CD containing music written by none other than Sir William. Yes, he was quite the musician. I purchased my copy from Planet Music, in the classical department. Father of Modern Astronomy Music By Sir William Herschel Newport Classics 85612 While on the subject of astronomical themes you might enjoy what I feel is one of the best performances of Holsts', The Planets, though Holsts' music really was written more on an astrological theme. It has recently been reissued on CD, from a 1972 performance by Zubin Mehta and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. I was so glad to see it reissued. London Records has issued it in one of their Double Decker series, so you get two CDs for the price of one. Paired with The Planets is a wonderful performance of Strauss's Also Sprach Zarathustra (theme from 2001). A 29 minute suite from Star Wars is also included, as well as a fine performance of Close Encounters of the Third Kind suite. I think Zuby Baby even surpasses John Williams performance of Close Encounters. The recorded sound is good, though still can't hold a candle to the audiophile sound on the original LP. I thought some of you might like something to do on a cloudy night. Music soothes the savage beast. Planets/Star Wars/Zarathustra Zubin Mehta London 289 452 910 2 (Planet Music had this in stock a few days ago) Kent Blackwell

I You'll have to add me to the list also of those offending the gods. Since I got my new scope in December I have been able to use it except at my house. Larry

Hey Dale, were you able to use the Barska 15 X 70's much before the flood hit Tidewater? I believe you were the one who got a good deal on them online (Jan. meeting). What have you seen in them? Are you happy with them? I've been kicking around getting a pair, but I'm not much of an "equipment person" though they might come in handy in getting my Lunar Cert. Rick Bish

Any word on if and where we getting together tonight?

I'm very surprised no one was interested in the Mars Exploration presentation. Only 1 person even responded. Thanks Kent! Well, if anyone would still like to go just for the presentation and not for dinner, they request a donation of $5. I've already made my reservation. Info: Speaker - Prasun N. Desai from the NASA Langley Research Center. Mr. Desai will speak on "The Mars Exploration Project." Tuesday, March 4th, 2003 Point Plaza Suites & Conference Hotel (formerly the Ramada Inn) at I- 64 & US 17, Newport News, Va. For Reservations: Call Digital Applications Inc., at 827-1250 no later than noon on the Friday February 28th. Eric Giles

Hi all, I wanted to make a quick note about the Barska 15X70's Rick Bish originally asked about. After seeing Rob's pair at a recent club meeting and hearing how much they cost (~$85 shipped if I remember), I couldn't resist and ordered a pair from Heartland America's web site. His may have had a different brand name than Barska, I don't remember, but come from the same far east (or Russian?) factory I'm pretty sure. I have long wanted to pick up a similar sized pair of Fuji's, but always seemed to have something better to do with the >$500 they cost. I used to have a pair of Celestron 20X80's (still do actually), but the focuser mechanism pretty much just disoved on me a few years ago and I never got them fixed. They were so heavy, you really had to have a tripod and I didn't use them much. My Barska's took about a week to show up at my door, which was sooner than Heartland said they would be there. Out of the box, they looked just fine, but were a bit out of colimation for my eyes. I had read a web site about lining its two scopes up and quickly had the problem fixed. I would rather have them out of line with a way to adjust than have them perfect with no way to adjust, so I was happy. My Celestron 20X80's also came out of alignment after years of use, but I don't know how to adjust them (very anoying). In the short time since aligning my Barska's, they have kept their alignment well. My impression so far using them has been very favorable. They have great light grasp, far above that of my Orion 10X50 Vista's. Their exit pupil is in the sweet spot for my eyes between 4 and 5 mm, and so the images are both bright and sharp. For my 42 year old eyes, greater than 5mm and I start to get astigmatic effects. Image sharpness accross the entire field is superior to my Orion Vista's. There is only a little degredation at the outer 5 deg or so of the field and it is not enough to notice unless you go looking for it. The field itself is quite wide. I do not know what it is, but would guess it's pushing 60 deg. The central sharpness is not high-end refractor sharp, but is still excellent and good enough for me to be able to make a clear oval out of Saturn. Overall, they are probably the best binoculars I have ever owned. Mind you I am not a bino connoisseur. However, I have generally been disapointed with most binoculars I have owned regarding their optical quality. That may have to do with my refusal, so far, to spend as much on them as I would a scope (or Nagler). I have been thrilled with the performance of my Barska 15X70's though. I would have been happy with them even had I paid between $300 and $400 ( don't tell Heartland!). Also, they are light enough I can hold them for short periods with good effect, especially if I brace my arms on something. A couple of last notes. Their coatings apear to be standard MgFl (not multicoated). With 70mm lenses, this is probably not too important and as I said the images are quite bright. I remember no ghosting or obvious false color either. The focus mechanism has Chinese style goo grease that turns to glue when it gets cold. I cleaned as much off as I could and relubed with some teflon grease and they are much better. Took about a minute. They come with caps, a soft case and the obligatory wiping cloth (throw it out, use kleenex or an old white T-shirt that has been through the wash a few hundred times). I don't much care for the eyelens cap. Notice I made the word "cap" singular. It is an oval shaped thing you have to push over both eyepieces at the same time. I'm a bit clumsy I admit, but I have a hard time with this for some reason. Lastly, if you order from Heartland America over their web site, expect to get junk e-mail from them for the rest of your life. In fairness, I could probably tell them to quit, but I like seeing all the other stuff they sell real cheap too. All in all, I would recommend these binos to most anybody, especially for the price. Richard market for a pair, the Orion 8x42, normally selling for $139, is on sale on the "Clearance" page on Orion's Web site for $111.20. made by Adlerblick, as are the top on the line Celestron's. Adlerblick (German for eagle-eye) is a little-known optical company, which is a division of Carton. They utilize BAK-4 glass which has a very high refractive index. I have a pair of 10x50 Adlerblicks and are optically superb. They are about the lightest 10x50's out there, but seem a bit fragile to me. I have had to collimate them twice in their lifetime. Isn't it amazing?...I have a pair of US-made Bausch & Lomb's, made in 1942 which have NEVER slipped out of collimation. They are simply dazzling, both optically and mechanically. I think the B&Ls knock the pants off any other glass I've seen. And they made it through a World War unscathed. I've always been an advocate that a high degree of polish on a lens is more important than fancy multi-coatings. The B&L are very heavily coated with a deep purple magnesizm fluoride, which predates multi-coatings by 40 years. The Germans actually invented lens coatings, but leave it to the good ole fellas at Bausch & Lomb to come up with a coating that didn't wear off. The German binoculars in the era after 1941 were coated, but only the inside surfaces because they were not "hard coated". If you cats out there really want a super pair of binoculars check out Pentax's image-stabilized models. The 10x30 are highly recommended, not very expensive and light as a feather. Because of their stabilization, I can see stars every bit as faint with the 10x30 as with the non-stabilized 10x50 Adlerblicks, despite the fact the 50mm objectives of the Adlerblicks gather 2.8x more light! To add to their strengths the Canon's are very good optically. Stars are pinpoints nearly to the edge of the field. Please don't get me started talking about binoculars. I love them. Kent Blackwell Check out these sites: http://www.carton.ca/binoculars1.html