Messier Objects

Do you have a telescope? Or a pretty good pair of binoculars? (yes, upwards of 75 of these objects can be observed with a cheap pair of binoculars)

If so, then this is for you!

Most of you all have probably heard of the Messier Objects. If not here is a link explaining it.

If your telescope has a German Equatorial Mount, here is a website showing you coordinates and such.

Anyhow, I've compiled all the images for your viewing pleasure (especially for you all who don’t have optics that'll help you see them better). Be warned, it's about seven minutes long (110 images).

Enjoy! And who knows what you might see while looking up

A cheap pair of binoculars?

Here is my weapon of choice.



Let's call it more efficient.

After a while of having it though I'll say that I should have sprung the extra cash for the 12"

[edit on 10-11-2009 by DaMod]

I thought there were a few messy objects in the Universe, but now I know that some are even messier!

reply to post by DaMod


Nice. This is what I am using now and can't wait to upgrade.

I have a Celestron 6" dobsonian and wish I had popped the extra cash for a larger one. I wouldn't trade my dob mount for the world. I also have a good set of 10X50 binoculars. Some objects actually look better through binoculars than through a scope, IMHO. Take the Andromeda Galaxy for example, with the wider field of view afforded by binocs.

reply to post by zombiemann


I'm planning on getting a good pair of binoculars soon myself. It's a pain to lug my scope outside when ever I want to check something out. Besides, the light pollution where I live is intense, but about to move soon and it's gonna be better there.

Originally posted by Juston
reply to post by zombiemann

 

I'm planning on getting a good pair of binoculars soon myself. It's a pain to lug my scope outside when ever I want to check something out. Besides, the light pollution where I live is intense, but about to move soon and it's gonna be better there.

Well, imo Dobsonian scopes are the best for deep space viewing. My next task will be to build my own (it is actually just a smidge cheaper to do it this way as well.). The upside to this is you can design Dobsonians to fold up or break down to ease transportation.

Here is a link for this. Some of these are not home made but most are.

HomeBuilt Dobsonain Telescopes

Plus if I build my own, I can make it as large as I want (depending on the price of the mirror and the available sizes).

20" aperture anyone?

[edit on 12-11-2009 by DaMod]

reply to post by DaMod


Why stop there? Here is a good guide on building your own lenses as well. And a lot of other good info contained throughout this guys site.

Astronomy Boy - Homemade eyepieces

reply to post by DaMod


Really not trying to dog on you here so please don't take this personaly

Just to clarify for non telescope owners who might run across this thread while looking for info on what telescope to buy. All a dobsonian is, is a Newtonian reflector on a certain type of mount. It was originally designed by a man named John Dobson back in the 1960s. They are known for their ease of transport and set up. A telescope on a dobsonian mount can literally be set up and ready to go in under 5 minutes. And that is counting time to align finder scope. The truss tube telescope design may increase set up time slightly because its going to have be collimated every time it's set up. For a skilled astronomer this is negligible but to a novice it can be somewhat daunting.

It is also a matter of budget. If I had my druthers I would get a compound telescope. You can get a good apperature without sacrificing focal length/needing a ladder to look through the eye peice. I can't even imaging what the distance between the mirrors would be on a scope with a 20" primary. There comes a point where size for size's sake is just not a good thing.

I still stand by the fact that you can get some amazing views with a pair of binocs that you can't get with a telescope. Especially when you consider the fact that Messier's telescope was a 102mm (4 inch) without the benifit of modern day plossl eyepieces and glass coatings.

reply to post by zombiemann


Well yeah, I already knew that. I consider them to be different because of size alone. Generally Newtonian reflectors are smaller and set on a high tripod mount, whereas Dobsonians are hooked to a floor mount on a rotating platform and resemble a cannon.

By Compound telescope do you mean Schmidt Cassegrains?

Cassegrains are generally (by generally I mean always) a ton more expensive than reflectors. My uncle has a Meade Cassegrain 10" that cost him like 2200 bucks. I grew up using a much larger one (my mom's boyfriend had a freaking amazing scope). That one cost him like 5000 bucks. They are not as good for deep space viewing (imo. Although that 5k scope was spectacular), although they produce stunning clarity in planetary viewing. A decent dobsonian (or big newtonian if you prefer) only runs about $500-1000. Mine was $650.

Dobs are a much more inexpensive solution for someone who wants a really nice telescope without having to pay a fortune.



[edit on 13-11-2009 by DaMod]

reply to post by Juston


I don't know, I think I'm too picky about plossls to be making my own. I would nitpick too much.

Great reference anyway, I may actually try to make one or two just to see what happens.

Just to stay on topic, here is the first Messier object I go for every time I dig out the scope.

M81