This time I’m featuring a guest post by friend, fellow astronomer, and AstroCamp regular, Tony Horton.
Twitter handle / website / blog address:
@mountainmadman / www.astromadness.co.uk
How, when and why did you get in to astronomy in the first place?:
I grew up in South Wales, and developed a love of the outdoors at an early age, and spent many nights out under the stars. There’s nothing like spending time in the mountains under a clear moonless sky to get you thinking!
In my mid-teens I spent many nights camping with friends, and, on one occasion, clearly remember seeing a large fireball through the branches of the trees: it was bright green and white, and looked like it had literally landed in the field behind us. It was also around the same time that Hale Bopp made its famous appearance in the night sky.
Fast-forward a few years and, whilst camping under the stars in the mountains of north Wales, I remember a friend from Liverpool saying he had never seen a shooting star. When he did, that very night, he was made up, shouting ‘I’ve seen one!’ and waking everyone in the camp.
Much later, I recalled these and other memories, and began considering astronomy seriously. I spent a couple of months researching on the internet, and, before I knew it, I had my very own scope.
It really is an awesome hobby. On clear nights I can observe from by back garden in Herefordshire. On nights that aren’t conducive to observing, there’s still much to do: I update my blog, make odds and ends of kit, carry out modifications, and more. I’ve made some great friends, met some fantastic people, and now find myself encouraging others. I’m well and truly hooked!
What’s your setup (what equipment do you have)?:
I’m a bit of a gear freak, and will save to get whatever I put my mind to. With astronomy, though, there’s always something to get. I’ve got my eye on a small refractor and a guide scope, but the current kit list consists of two scopes, and two mounts:
a SkyWatcher 150p reflector on an EQ 3-2 mount; and a SkyWatcher 300P Dobsonian which I refer to as the SBT (the Slightly Bigger Telescope). I’ve also got an iOptron Skytracker (a tracking mount for a DSLR camera), and a Celestron AVX equatorial GoTo mount for the 150P and DSLR camera. There’s also a selection of eyepieces, ranging from 6mm to 40mm, and a variety of filters.
Do you specialise in a particular area?:
I’m really still finding my feet in the hobby, and the first few years have been based purely on visual observing. Although I’m never going to get bored of that, I’ve begun to explore the dark art of astrophotography. Even if I do take up deep sky imaging more seriously, I don’t think I’ll ever forget the thrill of getting my eye to the eyepiece and picking out a new Deep Sky Object.
Most memorable ‘wow moment’?:
I’ve experienced many ‘wow moments’ over the years, but I’ve managed to cut it down to three:
Jupiter. It was only the second time out with the 150P. I noticed a particularly bright object, so thought I would check it out. I can remember it being truly jaw dropping! The more I looked, the more detail I could pick out in the equatorial belts, and I also saw some of the Galilean moons. I will never tire of Jupiter; it’s simply stunning. I’ve observed the planet many times since, and have been amazed by the detail on show. It took a further three years before I saw the Great Red Spot though!
The Orion Nebula. A firm favourite for all astronomers: bright, large, and very easy to find. To quote from my blog:
“My first impressions – I loved it. Outside on my own, and still caught myself talking out loud, ‘Oh wow, cool!’ The small stars were very visible surrounded by bluish hue in the middle of my FOV.”
With Orion rising earlier in the evening, it won’t be long before I train the SBT on it again. This year, though, I’ll try my hand at photographing it.
The Veil Nebula. A large area of nebulosity in the constellation of Cygnus, with many different catalogue numbers assigned to it. Far too big to fit in the field of view of even my 40mm eyepiece, I can only observe it in sections. It’s easily my favourite of all the targets. The best thing about it is that the more you observe it, the more you can distinguish. This is where the large mirror of the SBT comes into its own. I first observed this just over a year ago at the AstroCamp star party, and was dumbfounded by the sight.
When were you last out and what did you see?:
My last session was purely visual, and I started off with a favourite for this time of year: the Owl Cluster in Cassiopeia. Next up was the Double Cluster in Perseus, then M71 in Sagitta (much smaller than the previous two). The 12 inch mirror in the SBT brought out the detail in the small tight cluster, nestled amongst several brighter surrounding stars. Next up was M29, an open cluster in Cygnus also known as the Cooling Tower.
With the constellation of Lyra almost at zenith, I attached my UHC filter to the eyepiece and went off in search of the Ring Nebula, M57. It’s one of the few targets where the colour of the object comes through visually. Whereas many Deep Space Objects initially appear as grey smudges, the Ring Nebula is different, and always worth a look. I wanted to try finding the central star to the nebula, but it wasn’t to be.
The final target of the evening was Herschel’s Garnet Star in the constellation of Cepheus. It stands out clearly amongst its neighbours, and is relatively bright. It’s a beautiful orange colour, and at just under 6000 light years away, comparatively speaking, quite close!
Favourite bit of kit:
My kit is very important to me, and it’s hard to pick a favourite. I’ve always said that I would never sell my 150P. It was my first scope, and the single piece of kit that really got me hooked. Even though the 150P is less capable than the SBT, I have to remain loyal to it. It’s experiencing a new lease of life of late. It sits on the new AVX mount really well, and, with the DSLR camera used at prime focus, it’s given me some surprising results.
What does astronomy give to/do for you?:
Astronomy gives me an escape from day-to-day life, and helps me forget about trivial things. I can quite easily forget everything and slip into the state of mind where I lose myself in what I’m doing. It’s one of the most relaxing things I do. It doesn’t only help me forget, however, it also helps me remember. Over recent years I’ve lost relatives, close people, and came very close to losing a good friend. Astronomy and observing gives me thinking time. Time to remember, and time to appreciate everything I have.
I’ve also met some really good people and made many new friends since I started the hobby. Most of these have been through star parties like AstroCamp; held twice a year in the Brecon Beacons.
The hobby is going through somewhat of a surge of interest lately, and I find more and more people talking about it and wanting to find out about it. I just think it’s the friendliest hobby that I’ve come across.
A big thanks to Tony for taking the time to write this fantastic piece.
What’s up?
With the New Moon on Sunday the 30th, we’re set for a few dark nights (weather permitting, of course). There’s lots to see in the Eastern sky at the moment. The Pleiades and Hyades star clusters are ideally placed, and provide spectacular binocular views. To the left, in the constellations of Auriga and Gemini are the open clusters M35, 36, 37, and 38. The ’37’ cluster in Orion is also ideally placed.
One thing on my hit list at the moment is the Ruby star in Taurus (just below and to the right of the Crab nebula).
For telescope users, low in the south is the fantastic Sculptor galaxy, and in the West, Hercules is disappearing fast, so it may be your last opportunity to view the amazing M13 and M92 Globular clusters …
Clear skies!
Kevin Quinn is an amateur astronomer based in Cerne Abbas. He is the proud owner of a ten-inch reflector, a small refractor, a case of eyepieces, and a couple of pairs of binoculars. He tweets via @CerneAstro, and blogs (occasionally) via theastroguy.wordpress.com.
©Kevin Quinn
