Orion XT-8 Question

[javsst]

Greetings!<br /><br />I have an Orion XT-8 along with the stock eyepieces and a shorty Barlow. Venus is quite bright and visible in the evening hours, however if I look at it with the XT-8 and either eyepiece (and/or barlow), it basically looks bright and shiny for lack of a better term.<br /><br />Should I be able to see any detail whatsoever, or due to the amount of reflected light, I won't see much more than a bright star through the telescope?<br /><br />Location is: Latitude: 40.4883. Longitude: -74.4477<br /><br />Thanks for any input!

 

[MeteorWayne]

Wow, you're close to me, I'm 40.667°N, 74.896°W <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />Venus is 72% lit right now, so it's only a bit out of round. Over the next few months, it will become larger and more crescent shaped.<br /><br />For really bright objects, it's sometimes better to look when the sky isn't completely dark, say 8 or 8:30 tonight. With the lower contrast, it's easier to see the shape.<br /><br />By mid July it will be 20% lit, and 3 times the size, so will be easier to distinguish the shape. Of course even though only 20% of the surface will be reflecting light, it will be 0.4 magnitude brighter! <img src="/images/icons/cool.gif" /><br /><br />Do you collimate your scope, and give it time to cool down? Any minor problems are amplified if it's a REALLY bright object, and venus is <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br /><br />Meteor (and sometimes telescope user) Wayne<br /><br /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>

 

[javsst]

How often do you collimate your scope? I've only done it once since I bought it last fall.<br /><br />Last time I was out with the scope it was around 40 degrees and I waited only about an hour to let the scope adjust, so perhaps I should put it out as soon as I get home from work... <br /><br />Last fall, Jupiter showed as a tan orb and I could see the pinpoints of three of it's moon's which to me, was amazing. <br /><br />Venus does appear to be a completely different animal when it comes to observation.<br /><br />Thanks for the input!

 

[javsst]

That's an excellent point. I do have the filter kit from Orion, and I've tried the blue and red filters, but that didn't help much. There's a polarizer, so I'll give that a shot.<br /><br />It's not as bad as trying to view a full moon, but it's still surprisingly bright. <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />Thanks!

 

[MeteorWayne]

Well, with a dob like that (the XT-8 is a dob, right?) You should probably collimate it more often. With mine, if I only observe from the house, I do a rough check before every use, and for sure after I bumped it going out the front door. If I transport it in the car, it gets collimated before the next use. Gravity, and bumps are a bad combination <img src="/images/icons/frown.gif" /><br /><br />If it's cool inside, I'd wait until the outside temperature is lower before putting it outside....no point in getting it warmer so it has to cool down later.<br /><br />Mine's in a room at 65 degrees, and it's warmer than that today! Hooray!<br /><br />And the sun and the planets and the moon and the stars are out!!!! <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />Sorry for that, It's been a long and wet week here, as you know <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /><br />I'll be going out later for meteor observing, so I'll miss Venus for nap time, but will get to see Jupiter in morning twilight. <br />MW <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>

 

[javsst]

MW - I know what you mean. Finally some warmer weather and no more rain for now! The Post Office where I have a PO box is working out of a mobile trailer. They were hit with 2.5 feet of flooding.....

 

[MeteorWayne]

Just glad neither of us lives in Bound Brook. <br /><br />Poor people; two largest floods in in a 125 years, 7 years apart.<br />What a nightmare <img src="/images/icons/frown.gif" /> <br /><br />By the way, we're a little off topic here, so should probably keep the weather talk in other threads <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /><br /><br />Edit: To yell at myself for letting the currents take us off topic <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>