Mars opposition 2022!

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Bigzmey United States of America
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Mars opposition 2022!

#1

Post by Bigzmey »


Mars opposition is coming later this year. This is a big deal, because it happens only every other year, and between the oppositions Mars disk is too small to resolve much of the details.

Here is a nice article on this topic

https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/advi ... pposition/
Scopes: Stellarvue: SV102ED; Celestron: 9.25" EdgeHD, 8" SCT, 150ST, Onyx 80ED; iOptron: Hankmeister 6" Mak; SW: 7" Mak; Meade: 80ST.
Mounts: SW: SkyTee2, AzGTi; iOptron: AZMP; ES: Twilight I; Bresser: EXOS2; UA: MicroStar.
Binos: APM: 100-90 APO; Canon: IS 15x50; Orion: Binoviewer, LG II 15x70, WV 10x50, Nikon: AE 16x50, 10x50, 8x40.
EPs: Pentax: XWs & XFs; TeleVue: Delites, Panoptic & Plossls; ES: 68, 62; Vixen: SLVs; Baader: BCOs, Aspherics, Mark IV.
Diagonals: Baader: BBHS mirror, Zeiss Spec T2 prism, Clicklock dielectric; TeleVue: Evebrite dielectric; AltairAstro: 2" prism.
Filters: Lumicon: DeepSky, UHC, OIII, H-beta; Baader: Moon & SkyGlow, Contrast Booster, UHC-S, 6-color set; Astronomik: UHC.

Observing: DSOs: 3106 (Completed: Messier, Herschel 1, 2, 3. In progress: H2,500: 2180, S110: 77). Doubles: 2382, Comets: 34, Asteroids: 255
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#2

Post by Ylem »


:banana-blonde: :banana-dance:
Bring it on :)
Clear Skies,
-Jeff :telescopewink:


Member; ASTRA-NJ



Orion 80ED
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Coronado PST
A big box of Plossls
Little box of filters
:D



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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#3

Post by Bigzmey »


Ylem wrote: Tue Sep 20, 2022 11:34 pm :banana-blonde: :banana-dance:
Bring it on :)
I know right?! Been (impatiently) waiting since the fall of 2020. :D
Scopes: Stellarvue: SV102ED; Celestron: 9.25" EdgeHD, 8" SCT, 150ST, Onyx 80ED; iOptron: Hankmeister 6" Mak; SW: 7" Mak; Meade: 80ST.
Mounts: SW: SkyTee2, AzGTi; iOptron: AZMP; ES: Twilight I; Bresser: EXOS2; UA: MicroStar.
Binos: APM: 100-90 APO; Canon: IS 15x50; Orion: Binoviewer, LG II 15x70, WV 10x50, Nikon: AE 16x50, 10x50, 8x40.
EPs: Pentax: XWs & XFs; TeleVue: Delites, Panoptic & Plossls; ES: 68, 62; Vixen: SLVs; Baader: BCOs, Aspherics, Mark IV.
Diagonals: Baader: BBHS mirror, Zeiss Spec T2 prism, Clicklock dielectric; TeleVue: Evebrite dielectric; AltairAstro: 2" prism.
Filters: Lumicon: DeepSky, UHC, OIII, H-beta; Baader: Moon & SkyGlow, Contrast Booster, UHC-S, 6-color set; Astronomik: UHC.

Observing: DSOs: 3106 (Completed: Messier, Herschel 1, 2, 3. In progress: H2,500: 2180, S110: 77). Doubles: 2382, Comets: 34, Asteroids: 255
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#4

Post by davesellars »


I don't think I've ever had a decent view of Mars! A good year for planetary with Jupiter being closest to us and Mars should show this year a relatively good-sized disc at opposition. I think still going to need the big guns of the 12" and some good seeing but I'm looking forward to it.
SW Flextube 12" Dobsonian.
Starfield ED102 f/7; SW ED80; SW 120ST
EQ5 and AZ4 mounts
Eyepieces: TV Delos 17.3 & 10; Pentax XW 7 & 5; BCO 32,18,10; Fuyiyama Ortho 12.5; Vixen SLV 25.
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#5

Post by Unitron48 »


Looking forward to checking it out with my "new" SVX127D!!

Dave
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http://www.unitronhistory.com

"Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better." Albert Einstein
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#6

Post by helicon »


I had a great view of Mars in the Dob last time around (I guess 2020) at around 135x. The disk was very evident, the orange color, polar caps, and some markings at the center.
-Michael
Refractors: ES AR152 f/6.5 Achromat on Twilight II, Celestron 102mm XLT f/9.8 on Celestron Heavy Duty Alt Az mount, KOWA 90mm spotting scope
Binoculars: Celestron SkyMaster 15x70, Bushnell 10x50
Eyepieces: Various, GSO Superview, 9mm Plossl, Celestron 25mm Plossl
Camera: ZWO ASI 120
Naked Eye: Two Eyeballs
Latitude: 48.7229° N
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#7

Post by Bigzmey »


davesellars wrote: Wed Sep 21, 2022 9:09 am I don't think I've ever had a decent view of Mars! A good year for planetary with Jupiter being closest to us and Mars should show this year a relatively good-sized disc at opposition. I think still going to need the big guns of the 12" and some good seeing but I'm looking forward to it.
4" ED/APO is a great planetary scope. On an average night when seeing limits productive power to 200x or less it will deliver better views than larger reflector. Only if you have a night of excellent (sub second) seeing, when you can push power to 300x and above larger reflector will have an advantage due to higher resolution.
Scopes: Stellarvue: SV102ED; Celestron: 9.25" EdgeHD, 8" SCT, 150ST, Onyx 80ED; iOptron: Hankmeister 6" Mak; SW: 7" Mak; Meade: 80ST.
Mounts: SW: SkyTee2, AzGTi; iOptron: AZMP; ES: Twilight I; Bresser: EXOS2; UA: MicroStar.
Binos: APM: 100-90 APO; Canon: IS 15x50; Orion: Binoviewer, LG II 15x70, WV 10x50, Nikon: AE 16x50, 10x50, 8x40.
EPs: Pentax: XWs & XFs; TeleVue: Delites, Panoptic & Plossls; ES: 68, 62; Vixen: SLVs; Baader: BCOs, Aspherics, Mark IV.
Diagonals: Baader: BBHS mirror, Zeiss Spec T2 prism, Clicklock dielectric; TeleVue: Evebrite dielectric; AltairAstro: 2" prism.
Filters: Lumicon: DeepSky, UHC, OIII, H-beta; Baader: Moon & SkyGlow, Contrast Booster, UHC-S, 6-color set; Astronomik: UHC.

Observing: DSOs: 3106 (Completed: Messier, Herschel 1, 2, 3. In progress: H2,500: 2180, S110: 77). Doubles: 2382, Comets: 34, Asteroids: 255
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#8

Post by helicon »


helicon wrote: Wed Sep 21, 2022 2:36 pm I had a great view of Mars in the Dob last time around (I guess 2020) at around 135x. The disk was very evident, the orange color, polar caps, and some markings at the center.
Also the seeing was incredibly good. Most of the time through the Dob Mars is a boiling tiny disk.
-Michael
Refractors: ES AR152 f/6.5 Achromat on Twilight II, Celestron 102mm XLT f/9.8 on Celestron Heavy Duty Alt Az mount, KOWA 90mm spotting scope
Binoculars: Celestron SkyMaster 15x70, Bushnell 10x50
Eyepieces: Various, GSO Superview, 9mm Plossl, Celestron 25mm Plossl
Camera: ZWO ASI 120
Naked Eye: Two Eyeballs
Latitude: 48.7229° N
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#9

Post by Makuser »


Hi Andrey. Thanks for the heads up on the Mars opposition. I have never had a really good view of Mars either due to the small size or terrible skies here at the time. Thanks again Andrey and the best of wishes to all to enjoy a great view of the red planet this coming December.
Marshall
Sky-Watcher 90mm f/13.8 Maksutov-Cassegrain on motorized Multimount
Orion Astroview 120ST f/5 Refractor on EQ3 mount
Celestron Comet Catcher 140mm f/3.64 Schmidt-Newtonian on alt-az mount
Celestron Omni XLT150R f/5 Refractor on CG4 mount with dual axis drives.
Orion 180mm f/15 Maksutov-Cassegrain on CG5-GT Goto mount.
Orion XT12i 12" f/4.9 Dobsonian Intelliscope.
Kamakura 7x35 Binoculars and Celestron SkyMaster 15x70 Binoculars. ZWO ASI 120MC camera.
>)))))*>
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#10

Post by helicon »


Here's an interesting tidbit:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_Schiaparelli

Among Schiaparelli's contributions are his telescopic observations of Mars. In his initial observations, he named the "seas" and "continents" of Mars. During the planet's "great opposition" of 1877, he observed a dense network of linear structures on the surface of Mars, which he called canali in Italian, meaning "channels", but the term was mistranslated into English as "canals."
-Michael
Refractors: ES AR152 f/6.5 Achromat on Twilight II, Celestron 102mm XLT f/9.8 on Celestron Heavy Duty Alt Az mount, KOWA 90mm spotting scope
Binoculars: Celestron SkyMaster 15x70, Bushnell 10x50
Eyepieces: Various, GSO Superview, 9mm Plossl, Celestron 25mm Plossl
Camera: ZWO ASI 120
Naked Eye: Two Eyeballs
Latitude: 48.7229° N
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#11

Post by Baurice »


I think we should be realistic. Mars is a tough object, far tougher than Jupiter. I have seen features in a 60mm refractor but they were far from clear. My best visual session was in 2003 with my 127mm Mak, where I was using 300-ish magnification. As for photographing it, I'm far from mastering it. This year's opposition is averagely favourable. Not only can earthly weather ruin Mars viewing and photography but so can martian dust storms.

Honestly, this is about as good as I have got and it's not impressive:



By all means, have a go. I certainly will. Just don't expect too much.
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Re: Mars opposition 2022!

#12

Post by Bigzmey »


Agreed, because of lower contrast and smaller disk size (even at the opposition) Mars albedo features are harder to resolve.

So, it is a challenge to master your equipment and observing skills to resolve as many features as possible in a short window of the opposition (which could be made even shorter by Earth and Mars weather). This is what makes it exciting IMO.

Not to repeat myself, here are a few tricks I have learned about observing planets:

app.php/article/how-to-observe-the-moon-and-planets
Scopes: Stellarvue: SV102ED; Celestron: 9.25" EdgeHD, 8" SCT, 150ST, Onyx 80ED; iOptron: Hankmeister 6" Mak; SW: 7" Mak; Meade: 80ST.
Mounts: SW: SkyTee2, AzGTi; iOptron: AZMP; ES: Twilight I; Bresser: EXOS2; UA: MicroStar.
Binos: APM: 100-90 APO; Canon: IS 15x50; Orion: Binoviewer, LG II 15x70, WV 10x50, Nikon: AE 16x50, 10x50, 8x40.
EPs: Pentax: XWs & XFs; TeleVue: Delites, Panoptic & Plossls; ES: 68, 62; Vixen: SLVs; Baader: BCOs, Aspherics, Mark IV.
Diagonals: Baader: BBHS mirror, Zeiss Spec T2 prism, Clicklock dielectric; TeleVue: Evebrite dielectric; AltairAstro: 2" prism.
Filters: Lumicon: DeepSky, UHC, OIII, H-beta; Baader: Moon & SkyGlow, Contrast Booster, UHC-S, 6-color set; Astronomik: UHC.

Observing: DSOs: 3106 (Completed: Messier, Herschel 1, 2, 3. In progress: H2,500: 2180, S110: 77). Doubles: 2382, Comets: 34, Asteroids: 255
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