A bit of an Astronomer

[ttooley]

Had to check back in and it is nice to see the activity.
Jim, you are right. I have been meaning to catch one of the star parties in VA. I registered for pne hosted by the Chapel Hill club in southern VA a few years avo but with the forecast being all rain I decided to stay put. I should have more time next year next if we are able to retire then as planned!

Ralph, an easy way to start with the hobby is just with a pair of binoculars and the SkySafari app on your phone to help you figure out what you are looking at! You could also subscribe to Sky and Telescopes weekly newsletter at https://skyandtelescope.org/newsletter
to get a sense what might be interesting in the sky and related news.

I thought that I would share that I recently picked up an observing tent to use both in my front yard and when camping to block out light and allow me to keep my mount set up for consecutive nights without having to do much re-setup work. Used it at Myrtle Beach just before the virus shutdown and it worked as I had hoped!. Will try to add Here a pic or 2 with my travel scope/mount when I figure out why I don't have permission to do so!

Have fun and stay safe!
Tim


Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[ScopesNC]

Ralph, an easy way to start with the hobby is just with a pair of binoculars and the SkySafari app on your phone to help you figure out what you are looking at! You could also subscribe to Sky and Telescopes weekly newsletter at https://skyandtelescope.org/newsletter
to get a sense what might be interesting in the sky and related news.

I thought that I would share that I recently picked up an observing tent to use both in my front yard and when camping to block out light and allow me to keep my mount set up for consecutive nights without having to do much re-setup work. Used it at Myrtle Beach just before the virus shutdown and it worked as I had hoped!. Will try to add Here a pic or 2 with my travel scope/mount when I figure out why I don't have permission to do so!

Have fun and stay safe!
Tim


Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

Tim

That is a good tip for starters with the binoculars and SkySafari. I actually use SkySafari to control my mount.
I see SC is going to open back up the state parks in a few days, along with a few other things. So maybe you can enjoy the great out doors there again soon.