comet ISON

[chillardbee]

Re: comet ISCON

Nice pictures Sky...but why do you always take them in the middle of a snowstorm?

When I first got into astrophotography, I was taken pictures of constellations and if you didn't know what you were looking at it just looked like a black picture with white dots, My mom use to bug me about that too. lol. She'd say she could do the same thing with black paper, white paint, and a tooth brush to spray it on with.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Re: comet ISCON

I had no idea there were so many other "astronomers" on this site. I myself have a "10 inch". I've tried to use that as a pickup line at the bar but it never seemed to work...
I'm going to go out tomorrow morning about 4:30 with my binocs to check out Ison and Lovejoy.

 

[DGBAMA]

Re: comet ISCON

Love the pics and comments; so many varried interests here. However, the LAST thing I need is ANOTHER hobby; so I will be content to just look at the pictures and try not to get too interested.

 

[winston-smoker]

Re: comet ISCON

Unfortunately, given where I live, you can't really see too much in the night sky ... too much "light pollution." But I've been interested in astronomy since I was a child; in fact, there very first thing I remember wanting to be when I grow up was an astronomer. After that, then I wanted to be an archaeologist ... but I've retained lifelong interests in both. I did, in fact, take an astronomy course to fulfill, in part, the core curriculum requirements in natural science at university.

 

[Southern Planter]

Re: comet ISCON

I can duct tape my brownie to a tripod, but I'm having a devil of a time finding 120 film.

 

[DGBAMA]

Re: comet ISCON

I can duct tape my brownie to a tripod, but I'm having a devil of a time finding 120 film.

First pics I ever took were with a "brownie" probably still have it in a box somewhere.

 

[Southern Planter]

Re: comet ISCON

I remember waiting for Halleys comet to return back in 89 and what a disappointment is was. Just a small little smudge in the sunset. The Earth was on the wrong side of its orbit for a good view and the northen hemisphere was tilted the wrong way.

My best friend had a nice home brew 8" refractor, and I had a cabin in the mountains with a clear black sky. He left the telescope in my front yard then went home. (About forty miles away.) later, about two AM I spotted it. It was gorgeous. I promptly woke him up with a phone call. He said it can't be, it's still too far away for an eight incher. I insisted I found it. At 02:15 he drove the forty miles. "Look" I said, as giddy as a kid. "Congradulations" he said. "You've just discovered the Great Nebula of Orion."

Sky, have you ever fooled with a "light bucket"? A dopsonian I think it was called. Fun and cheap.

 

[skychaser]

Re: comet ISCON

My best friend had a nice home brew 8" refractor, and I had a cabin in the mountains with a clear black sky. He left the telescope in my front yard then went home. (About forty miles away.) later, about two AM I spotted it. It was gorgeous. I promptly woke him up with a phone call. He said it can't be, it's still too far away for an eight incher. I insisted I found it. At 02:15 he drove the forty miles. "Look" I said, as giddy as a kid. "Congradulations" he said. "You've just discovered the Great Nebula of Orion."

Sky, have you ever fooled with a "light bucket"? A dopsonian I think it was called. Fun and cheap.

LMAO That's too funny. The Orion Nebula is always a great find!

Nearly all my telescopes are Dobsonian designs. Except for the C8 and a small refactor I use as a guide scope. Instead of a solid tube like Dobson's original design, mine use a truss system to support the upper cage where the secondary mirror, focuser and eyepiece are located. I met John Dobson a dozen years ago when he was 86 at a star party in the Cascade Mountains. He was still teaching people how to build cheap telescopes and doing his sidewalk astronomy. He is still going at age 98. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dobson_(amateur_astronomer)

If you want to see the ultimate "light bucket" check this out. It's the worlds largest portable Dobsonian telescope, The Hercules, which has a 41.2 inch primary mirror. It was designed and built by my friend and mentor, Dan Bakkan. http://wonderfuluniverse.com/telescope_page1.htm He lives a couple miles from me and taught me nearly everything I know about mirror making and optics. The grinding and polishing of the mirror, and building of the telescope was a multi-year project that involved a lot of peoples help along the way. I felt very fortunate to be a part of it.

Here's a pict of of the top of my 17 inch Dobsonian telescope silhouetted by the northern lights at the Table Mt. Star Party in the Cascade Mountains near Ellensberg Wa.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Re: comet ISCON

I just got back in from comet hunting. Lovejoy is definetly bigger and brighter than ISON, although both of them are still little tailess snowballs.

 

[Mad Oshea]

Re: comet ISCON

Iscon will out shine Lovejoy when it is closer.

 

[deluxestogie]

Re: comet ISCON

I've been considering "correcting" the name in the thread title to "ISON," since this comet has been oddly dubbed by the lay media using the acronym of its place of discovery (the International Scientific Optical Network) in Russia. But I'm not an astronomer. Perhaps "ISCON" is also a valid label.

Bob

 

[Southern Planter]

Re: comet ISCON

Kewl links Sky. I'm now sold on Dobson's Cosmology. I never did buy into the big bang, or as I like to call it, The Horrendous Space Kablooie.

I got to watch that comet clobber Jupiter live with a 16" dobsonian.

I noticed motors on that monster, has he figured out how to computerize them to mock an equatorial mount?

 

[skychaser]

Re: comet ISCON

I've been considering "correcting" the name in the thread title to "ISON," since this comet has been oddly dubbed by the lay media using the acronym of its place of discovery (the International Scientific Optical Network) in Russia. But I'm not an astronomer. Perhaps "ISCON" is also a valid label.

Bob

Please do. It should be ISON. That C in there is buggin' the hell out of me. lol

Kewl links Sky. I'm now sold on Dobson's Cosmology. I never did buy into the big bang, or as I like to call it, The Horrendous Space Kablooie.

I got to watch that comet clobber Jupiter live with a 16" dobsonian.

I noticed motors on that monster, has he figured out how to computerize them to mock an equatorial mount?

Yup, he sure did. It tracks dead on. Dan is a freekin' genius. He's a math and physics major, and he knows a wee bit about astronomy and computers and..... He's one of the brightest people I have ever met. He owns a company that makes crystals and slices them into micro thin layers for infrared detectors. I'll bet he and John Lee would have enjoyed chatting. I know I would have enjoyed listening.

 

[chillardbee]

The c is bugging too, but, we could say that the C in there stands for comet. So, it would go like "International Scientific 'COMET!!!!!' Optical Network

 

[chillardbee]

Re: comet ISCON

And just like magic, we are back to ISON, Thanks for that.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

muCh bettCer BoCb! ThanCks

 

[Mad Oshea]

Maybe comet ICE.

 

[skychaser]

Space Weather News for Nov. 16, 2013
http://spaceweather.com

COMET ISON UPDATE: Comet ISON is now ten times brighter than it was on Nov. 13-14 when an unexpected outburst propelled the sundiver into the realm of naked-eye visibility. Observers around the world confirm seeing the comet as a faint smudge low in the eastern sky before sunrise. Backyard telescopes reveal a riot of gaseous streamers trailing behind the comet's brightening (and possibly fragmenting) core. With almost two weeks to go before ISON plunges into the sun's atmosphere, it is already one of the most beautiful and active comets in years. Current images and observing tips may be found at http://spaceweather.com.

 

[Mad Oshea]

Great stuff!

 

[Jitterbugdude]

If any of you are serious about seeing this comet then you'll need to get this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Com...949?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item33874d5795