Here's some info pertaining to everyone's back yard (or up yard?) no matter what country you live in. These will henceforth be fact until the next theories come along that sound better, I guess. These data will rewrite many science books and possibly other books as well (or should). Space is even "spacier" now. Do these conclusions cramp your agenda?

More at:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

 

I'm confused -- according to GW, the universe is only 3,000 years old.

 

hehehe, they said china got a history of more than 5,000 years. it means that the other 2,000 years was spent in another dimension. perhaps stephen hawkings can explain that.

 

Wasn't GW talking about dog years? I guess that still doesn't add up but he's a president, not a math teacher.

 

So tell me -- are you an amateur astronomer? I only ask because the house I just bought has an observatory on the property, but the seller kept his telescope, so I may be in the market...

[IMG]local://upfiles/777/B736BD1DEA9347AF8534471BCEE59B1F.jpg[/IMG]

 

No, I'm just more interested in the nether uppers than your average neighbor. I'm not an astronomer, just a gazer. I like bright, colorful lights. It's a 60s thing, I think.

The telescope in your pic looks just like mine. Exactly. I have a Meade 14" LX200GPS Schmidt-Cassegrain with UHTC. It came with a very strong and therefore rather large "field" tripod.

The scope and tripod together weigh 160 lbs and is an awkward outfit to carry, even for two. It's like trying to carry a buffalo that has to pee. It won't fit in a car unless I disassemble it to a ridiculous degree. It's meant for a setup like your observatory. I'll have to build one if I want to use mine regularly. I put wheels under the tripod feet so I can at least roll it out into the driveway.

 

Thanks for the info -- very helpful. I may do something along that line after I tend to a few other issues with the new home. The previous owner aimed and viewed images from the unit through a PC. It all struck me as very slick.

 

I can connect a PC to mine also. It's done for the larger display. I use a laptop for the portability. It's easier to read the larger screen and easier to enter commands than on the handheld unit. Entire menus can be displayed on a PC screen where menu options have to scroll on the handheld unit. The number of keys is limited on the handheld unit and it doesn't have a pointing device like a mouse.

As for the actual control of the scope, it aligns itself automatically using a built-in GPS device and it has a built-in computerized controller. You can control it manually or just enter codes to point it at objects whose coordinates are saved in its data base. Meade updates these coordinates and other programming features. You can download them from their site.

If your local shopping mall has a Discovery Store you can get a close up look at the Meade scopes. You can't see any stars through the ceiling but you can look at the scopes. High-end camera stores usually carry them also. Meade has a dealer locator on their Web site.

The Meade scopes with the blue tubes are for serious gazers and astronomers, even though they come in a series of much smaller sizes. The 14" and their latest 16" are used by university researchers, serious amateurs, and even professionals. Also by people who bit off a little too much. It was the wrong choice for me and I should have bought a smaller one. But I told that story earlier.

http://meade.com/

 

i was looking at MARS closest approach to earth yesterday and today, but it's still hazy.

i feel i was looking at the moon. this is because my telescope low powered and mainly for peeping purpose only. it is still amazing to see. i can almost see the red hue and white polar ice.

oh well, it will again come this close after 60,000 years. by that time i'll get better telescope.