Help with target list?

[Buckethead 2.0]

In a nutshell, refractors used with a diagonal will yield an image that is reversed left-right from the normal view. Reflectors, such as my dobsonians will yield a reversed (left-right) plus a flipped up-down view. In otherwords, if I wanted to view my chart in the way it is presented in the eyepiece of my dobs, then I would merely turn the chart upside down. Below is a link to illustrate this:

https://www.astroasheville.org/wp-conte ... tation.pdf

But as with the movement of the stars during the evening, and directions in the sky, this is another facet that we eventually learn to compensate for through experience. I do not invert my charts, but look at them normally, and can adjust myself to the view through my scopes (either refractors or reflectors) easily. Its another one of those things that becomes second nature with experience. There are many facets to our learning curve as we transition from beginner to an experienced hand. It just takes time and desire to travel along that curve. But we never truly reach the end of the curve as there is always something new to learn.

Well I want to thank you so very much for all this info today, Alan. I have thoroughly enjoyed it all, and have saved bunches of links and charts to study. You have helped immensely!

[Buckethead 2.0]

I found a perfect example of what we are talking about Alan, on p.12 of Turn Left At Orion. I believe I have it understood now. The picture kind of reminds me of that Silly Putty we played with as kids, which could lift newspaper print. I did anyway, I spent hours and hours with SP, then stretched the comic's face into oblivion!

[kt4hx]

I found a perfect example of what we are talking about Alan, on p.12 of Turn Left At Orion. I believe I have it understood now. The picture kind of reminds me of that Silly Putty we played with as kids, which could lift newspaper print. I did anyway, I spent hours and hours with SP, then stretched the comic's face into oblivion!

Yeah I remember doing that as well - man was that a long time ago! The book you mentioned, TLO, is an excellent book and a solid learning tool.

Glad that at least most of what I said makes sense as I always wonder if it does! Once we get a handle on basic concepts and put them into play night after night they do become integrated into our thinking when out under the stars and when planning.

I have always been a devotee of printed sky atlases, and have several ranging from small and simple with a stellar limit of 6th magnitude all the way up to highly detailed and a stellar depth of 12th mag. I will sometimes sit and simply look through one, the Sky & Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas is very good for that. It presents a wider view giving one a nice perspective on each chart and because of its mag 7.6 stellar limit, it is not very cluttered. Anyway, I am pleased to see your keen interest in understanding how to find your way around the sky. Doing so will give you a solid foundation moving forward.

[Buckethead 2.0]

I found a perfect example of what we are talking about Alan, on p.12 of Turn Left At Orion. I believe I have it understood now. The picture kind of reminds me of that Silly Putty we played with as kids, which could lift newspaper print. I did anyway, I spent hours and hours with SP, then stretched the comic's face into oblivion!

Yeah I remember doing that as well - man was that a long time ago! The book you mentioned, TLO, is an excellent book and a solid learning tool.

Glad that at least most of what I said makes sense as I always wonder if it does! Once we get a handle on basic concepts and put them into play night after night they do become integrated into our thinking when out under the stars and when planning.

I have always been a devotee of printed sky atlases, and have several ranging from small and simple with a stellar limit of 6th magnitude all the way up to highly detailed and a stellar depth of 12th mag. I will sometimes sit and simply look through one, the Sky & Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas is very good for that. It presents a wider view giving one a nice perspective on each chart and because of its mag 7.6 stellar limit, it is not very cluttered. Anyway, I am pleased to see your keen interest in understanding how to find your way around the sky. Doing so will give you a solid foundation moving forward.

I have the S&T Pocket Sky Atlas as well. Chances are good that you might have been the one to recommend it to me back a few years ago, though I don't remember. In fact, I was reading the Introduction this morning with coffee. And I remembered what you said about the sphere inside a sphere concept, then the TLAO image really put the two together for me. I see things in very geometric fashion, and charts are obviously 2D. So the bulb finally lit, in other words. Thanks again, Alan.

[kt4hx]

I found a perfect example of what we are talking about Alan, on p.12 of Turn Left At Orion. I believe I have it understood now. The picture kind of reminds me of that Silly Putty we played with as kids, which could lift newspaper print. I did anyway, I spent hours and hours with SP, then stretched the comic's face into oblivion!

Yeah I remember doing that as well - man was that a long time ago! The book you mentioned, TLO, is an excellent book and a solid learning tool.

Glad that at least most of what I said makes sense as I always wonder if it does! Once we get a handle on basic concepts and put them into play night after night they do become integrated into our thinking when out under the stars and when planning.

I have always been a devotee of printed sky atlases, and have several ranging from small and simple with a stellar limit of 6th magnitude all the way up to highly detailed and a stellar depth of 12th mag. I will sometimes sit and simply look through one, the Sky & Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas is very good for that. It presents a wider view giving one a nice perspective on each chart and because of its mag 7.6 stellar limit, it is not very cluttered. Anyway, I am pleased to see your keen interest in understanding how to find your way around the sky. Doing so will give you a solid foundation moving forward.

I have the S&T Pocket Sky Atlas as well. Chances are good that you might have been the one to recommend it to me back a few years ago, though I don't remember. In fact, I was reading the Introduction this morning with coffee. And I remembered what you said about the sphere inside a sphere concept, then the TLAO image really put the two together for me. I see things in very geometric fashion, and charts are obviously 2D. So the bulb finally lit, in other words. Thanks again, Alan.

Excellent Eric and you are quite welcome. The PSA is an excellent atlas for binoculars and smaller scopes. It has more objects than one will likely see in either, but I favor atlases that plot deeper than I can see. The reasoning behind that is that I do not like finding/seeing things that are not plotted and thus I cannot identify in the moment. If I utilized a planetarium program on phone/tabelet/laptop in the field then that would not be a problem. But I am quite old school and only utilize a red light and atlas in the field by preference. But all that said, I still encounter things that are not plotted in my atlases at the dark site house with the 17.5" - it is simply going to happen sometimes. In those cases I make notes about what I saw and then check it on the laptop after the fact.

But in the end, there is no wrong or right way, only differing ways to achieve the end we desire. The key is to have fun along the way, because as I am fond of saying, the more fun we have the more we learn, and the more we learn the more fun we have.

[AbbN]

I use this site quite often - https://tonightssky.com/MainPage.php as well as this one at times - https://telescopius.com/

Abb

[Buckethead 2.0]

I use this site quite often - https://tonightssky.com/MainPage.php as well as this one at times - https://telescopius.com/

Abb

Thank you, Abb. Very kind of you to offer these links. I already had Tonightssky, but I did not have Telescopious. It's among my bookmarks now. Many thanks

[Buckethead 2.0]

Well hopefully tonight, if it is clear enough, I will see some of the Lyrids. If I do, I will report on what I can. I may also look for sone Messiers. I have started my first log, but am keeping it locally for the time being. Hopefully it stays clear enough for some scores tonight.