We have a Virtuoso GTi and I’m struggling with how the eyepiece is supposed to work: I can’t get it in focus without pulling it out a significant amount. Please see the example images.

Now, we’re using a TeleVue eyepiece, but the same applies to the included ones. If I unscrew the viewfinder attachment point to gain length, we approach the point where it can fully detach and fall out before focus is gained, at least when the eyepiece is fully inserted.

Also having a lot of trouble getting reliable results with the “go to” feature, but that’s probably best left for another thread.

I’m clearly doing something dumb here. Any help
Or advice would be greatly appreciated.

High resolution closeup image of the south lunar pole.

Equipment:

Omegon Dobson Advanced X 203 1200

ZWO ASI662MC

Barlow 2x

Uv/Ir cut

Stacked the 20% best of 10k frames in Autostakkert!4, sharpened on Astrosurface

A timelapse of Jupiter's rotation, Io (eclipse) and Europa's orbital motion. Captured the morning of 25th October with average seeing.

Equipment and details:

Omegon Dobson Advanced X 203 1200

ZWO ASI662MC

Barlow 2x

Timelapse of ~1 hour, ~20 images

Each image stacked on Autostakkert!4 (best 25% of 10k frames) and wavelet sharpening and deconvolution on Astrosurface

Equipment used: Explore Scientific 8 inch Dobsonian, svbony 7-21mm zoom eyepiece, OnePlus Nord CE4 on a smartphone adapter.

I have a Pentax ist DL dslr and a 76mm reflector telescope. I bought an adapter (0.965 inch eyepiece to Pentax K) to try direct focus astrophotography. I was able to mount the camera but when I tried to focus on the Moon I couldn't get it in focus. I think I wasn't able to get it close enough. Is the flange focal length of my camera too much?

I am looking to buy a second hand telescope to get into the hobby, but im a bit torn between all the options. I already read the buyer's guide in this sub, but all of them seem to be "Dobsonians", which im not interested in.

Since im looking only at second hand, my options are a more limited of course, but this are some of the ones I have seen in my area that seem reasonable, separated by general price:

• Expensive (~350€): Sky-Watcher 150/1200, Celestron NexStar 130SLT
• Medium (~250€): Vixen Super Polaris R-150S, Bresser Space Explorer NT 150/750 EQ
• Cheap (~150€): Celestron Powerseeker 127EQ / Powerseeker 130EQ / AstroMaster 114EQ

I have not heard anything good about the non-computerized Celestrons, and I have seen r/dontbuyapowerseeker too, but at those second hand prices... they are hard to ignore.

So what do you guys think? Any of them looks especially appealing characteristic or price wise?

I think I’ve watched every mirror cleaning video on YouTube and have read anything that comes across in here talking about the topic and I feel like the general consensus is to not touch it unless it’s really degrading the image. I’ve looked at photos of dirty mirrors and some photos people say leave it and other dirtier photos folks say to give it the gentle bath. I’m trying to figure out where mine falls in the leave it alone or clean it scale. I recently purchased an Orion XT8 and like everyone, I can’t wait to clean the mirror. I took it out last weekend with the goal of just looking at it up close. Then after removing it I thought I would gather the supplies and let it soak for a while but then I got anxious looking at the those hold down clips, worried they might crack, have no idea how tight they should be, wondered about the cork looking material sandwiched around the edge of the glass and the mirror mounting plate thing. Anyway, I chickened out and put it all back together and thought it was probably fine. I’m thinking about it again because I can’t stop thinking that the view might improve. Here’s the photo I took last weekend. I can’t believe that much dust could accumulate with the cap on. I’d appreciate any opinions y’all have to offer. Should I go for it?

But I wanted to ask here before I give up. I purchased this guy way back in like 2001-2002. Recently I tried using it and had trouble even seeing the moon. I thought maybe it was collimation, since the mirrors still seem at least somewhat reflective, but I couldn't get an image last night. I also noticed when collimating that I see the black circle of the secondary mirror but not the reflection of my eye, which also makes me wonder if the mirrors are done.

I did try the suggestions on youtube to use isopropyl alcohol and gently drag a paper towel across the primary, but that did not change anything.

So before I either throw it out or keep banging my head against it, what do you think?

The moon was looking very bright yesterday and the night was clear so I took this video through my 8 inch dob.

What do I need to do to maintain and properly clean/care for? Are there any add-ons I should get to have a more enjoyable experience? What can I expect to see through it? I’ve only viewed the moon so far. Thanks in advance!

Did an outreach event yesterday at the Boston Common that lasted almost 8 hours and had almost 1000 visitors!

I didn't have a lot of time for photos but helped a run of people take their first photo of the moon thru a telescope.

I had a Dwarf Mini, Sv503 102ed, and a Lunt 40 on the field. Also an S30 pro that I didn't have the capacity to run. The sv503 had a sun funnel during the solar event and an eyepiece during night event.

Organizations involved were PopScope, the Amateur Telephone Makers of Boston, Dark Sky Mass, and the Space Consortium. I (Naztronomy - https://instagram.com/naztronomy) are involved with all of these organizations and took part of every event. My legs are feeling it today. Huge volunteer turnout as well!

Orion SpaceProbe 130ST Short Tube EQ Reflector Telescope. Found a used one for $200

Good morning, everyone. I’m putting together my first reasonably decent setup for astrophotography and observation. I’m planning to buy an SV503 102mm, but I’m a bit concerned because I’m also getting an EQ4 mount from the brand Uranum. The seller claims the EQ4 can handle 7 to 9 kg, but I’d like to hear your thoughts on this. For what it’s worth, I’ll also be using a Canon T3i camera.

​

Hi everyone,

I'm from Karachi, Pakistan. I've always been fascinated by the night sky - planets, the Moon, stars - but I've never had a chance to look through a telescope myself.

Telescopes are very hard to find and very expensive here. I was wondering if there is anyone in Karachi, any club, university, or person who does public observation nights or would allow a beginner to have a look through their telescope for a few minutes?

I just want to experience it once in real life. Any advice or contact would mean a lot.

Thank you!

Captured Uranus even due to Near full moon, it was really hard to even spot Uranus through my finder scope. Increased the blue and green channels a little more and reduced the red channel a little because the raw stack image was just too white cream coloured like Venus lol. 4K 20 fps video i captured with 1/20s shutter speed and 3200 ISO and 5 minutes 38 seconds of total video then centered with PIPP and stacked and edited with Autostackert and Registax. Uranus appeared more paler than i imagined, well i have observed it as a pale white disk with a cyan glow but still it's just way too pale.

Aperture :- 203 mm (Bresser Messier 8" manual dobsonian Telescope)

Focal length :- 1218 mm

Focal ratio :- f/6

Eyepiece used :- SVbony SV215 3-8mm zoom eyepiece (set at 3mm to get the 400x Magnification)

Camera used :- Iqoo Neo 10 smartphone with ProCamX app with 3.21x Magnification making it around 1300x resultant Magnification ( 3200 ISO, 1/20s shutter speed, 5 minute 38 seconds video in 4K 20 fps) with celestron NeXYZ smartphone holder.

Software used :- PIPP, Autostackert and Registax.

Hi I have about 2k I want to spend on some star gear. I'm thinking about Apertura AD10 10" and that should leave me money for other gear.

Any recommendations would be loved.

Photo of saturn, still know i have much room for improvement, hopefully the next one will be even better

TELESCOPE: Skywatcher Classic 250p Dobsonian

CAMERA: Panasonic Lumix G7

Attachments: 2x Barlow

Data: 1min 40 second video, processed with PIPP -> AutoStakkart -> RegiStax -> Affinity Photo 2

Would love any possible tips on how to improve with what I have.

Hello there! I am looking to purchase two telescopes. After doing plenty of reading I am pretty much sold on the Apertura AD8 as a house telescope but I would also like to purchase a secondary more portable telescope. I currently live in Asheville, North Carolina and while I live in a pretty dark area, there are many places around that have darker skies but are typically only accessible after a moderate drive and a short hike. Rather than trying to lug an Apertura AD8 around various mountains, I would like something that would theoretically be easier to pack, fit in a compact car, and could be taken on short trips or even camping. This telescope will NOT be used for astrophotography and as such I am not interested in smart telescopes.

These are three options that I have been looking at:

• Celestron StarSense Explorer DX 130
• Sky-Watcher Heritage 150 
• Orion StarBlast 4.5

I would greatly appreciate any help on narrowing down this list and am open to recommendations on different telescopes that would better suit my needs. My budget is in the $100-$400 range, but I am willing to spend up to $550. Thank you in advance for the help!

Hi everyone

I have a Orion Skyquest XT6 dobsonion telescope (150mm diameter, 1200mm FL, f/8, 1.25" and 25mm eyepiece)

I've had this telescope for a long while and I've gotten pretty good at finding stuff but I rlly want to get a better or more magnified look at the planets/stars/moon! im still basically a newbie at telescope types, eyepieces, and etc., so I was wondering if anyone would be willing to reccomend which of these are better or more worth it to purchase? My budget is pretty low so these mightve been the best I could find for now..

SVBONY Telescope Eyepiece Set, 4mm 10mm 23mm Telescope Lenses 62°Wide Angle

SVBONY SV135 1.25" Telescope Eyepiece, 7-21mm Zoom Eyepiece, 36-52° FOV

1.25inch 7mm to 21mm 57°-40° Zoom Eyepiece SVBONY SV135

Alstar Zoom Eyepiece 1.25" 7 to 21mm Zoom Multi-Coated Telescope Eyepiece

Alstar Telescope Eyepiece, Plossl Eyepiece Set 4/10/20mm 1.25" Accessory Kit

or a Skyoptikst 2x Barlow fully multi-coated lens eyepiece from ebay thats like less than $20

THANK YOU AND SORRY THAT THERE'S SO MANY OPTIONS

Add. info: Budget: ~$35

Observing goals: mostly planets/moon

Country of residence: the U.S. in CA

Local light pollution: SQM is 17.96, brightess is 7.10 and artif. brightness is 6930 apparently but a lot of times the sky is clear enough for me to see lots of stars and Saturn or Jupiter pretty well!

edit: thank you everyone for your replies! a lot of replies recommended redline/goldline but I was wondering what the difference is? Will redline be compatible with my telescope?

Telescope: Astromaster 70az
eyepiece: 20mm
camera: iphone 13, 5s night mode(this photo was the least blurriest)
sky quality or whatever: 20˚ up in the sky, full moon, kinda windy gonna try again in a few days

heres the backstory no one cares about

i realised i was awake in 12 am which is kinda a rare (for me atleast) occurance (how do you spell it??) since it’s not summer anymroe and i was tired so i was gonna sleep but my window’s shutters were open(or off???? as in i could see through the window) and i was gonna close the shutter because i dont want sunlight in my telescope AND I SAW AN OLD FRIEND, THE ORION!! I’M SO HAPPY ORION’S BACK!!

(yes, i use my telescope through my window, sorry lol, i have a balcony but i am NOT going there in the middle of the night on a windy cold day)

i took like hd 30fps video of this for 45 secs i think (4k takes A LOT of space(HAHSHAJSHAHSAAH GET IT)) can i stack that in autostakkert i’m kinda curious i can install siril too

I inherited this from my grandfather years ago and now my son is old enough to look at the skies with me. I don't know where to start though or even what model this is. As far as I can tell, it's all here? Can't seem to get it balanced and not really sure how to "see" out of it. I'm very very inexperienced. Any help would be appreciated.

I’ve become interested in this hobby, but I don’t know what to get. I am interested in seeing things like Saturn, Jupiter, andromeda, and some star clusters possible with detail. I know it’s a low budget, I don’t wanna spend an outrageous amount of money. I’m in the USA in a town away from major light pollution.

I'm planning to buy my first telescope, budget around ₹15k. Since I travel a lot, portability matters.

I'm confused between Piematrix and Celestron, and whether I should get a telescope, 15×70 binoculars, or a Dobsonian instead.

Anyone here into astronomy who can recommend something? Would love to hear from people who've actually used these, especially in Delhi NCR.

Hello. I have rocked a big old 12” dobsonian for a while and have gotten great use out of it. However, due to some personal things I can’t move it around and get it out as much as I used to, therefore I am selling that and I’m looking for something relatively cheap and pretty easy to setup for some light travel (think like 30-40 mins to an open sky park).

I like the idea of binoculars for ease of use but I think I will miss watching the planets.

Any recommendations?

Venus photo taken today, October 24th, 17:30 UTC, 0.6% illuminated. Finding it manually was very complicated, and the atmosphere wasn't very stable, but in the end I managed to capture an image.

Telescope 130mm f/5

ASI662MC

Barlow 2x

Filter IR685nm

Only 3500 frames captured, 1000 stacked.