By James L. Chen Ten years ago, before owning my The Vixen SX2 with Star Book TEN, I had my Brandon 130-mm f/8 apochromatic refractor mounted on an early 1950s Unitron equatorial mount equipped with a mechanical Polarex clock drive. The mount was big, heavy and bulky, and the clock […]
Editor’s Note: One of my recent editor’s note discussed the future of amateur astronomy and asked for feedback. We received wonderful replies. Thank you, all. Among the most thoughtful, thorough and optimistic was George Stallings’, who has granted me permission to share it here. In the 20th century amateur astronomy grew […]
The CCD-Guide is a project of Astronomischer Arbeitskreis Salzkammergut (AAS) – Gahberg observatory (www.astronomie.at) in Austria. Every year since 1997, the CCD team of the observatory Gahberg publishes a new DVD which contains the best CCD and DSLR images of the AAS members. The total revenue from the sale of […]
Editor’s Note: We receive a number of emails after each issue, some with kudos for that issue and some with constructive criticism, all of which we very much enjoy reading. In was in this vein that we recently had an email exchange with Dr. Howard L Ritter, Jr. about his […]
Editor’s Note: Springer describes Building and Using Binoscopes thus: “Focusing on both homemade and commercial products, this book provides the reader with simple and straightforward information about the modelling and building of binoscopes. Binoscopes can be thought of as binoculars enlarged to the size of telescopes: essentially, a combination of […]
A perfect grab-and-go tripod option for steady viewing and imaging of the Great Solar Eclipse 2017, this versatile monopod features a fold-out mini tripod to provide both the mobility and the stability you need for on-the-go exploration with optical instruments like spotting scopes, cameras, and L-adapter equipped binoculars.
Gary Parkerson, editor of Astronomy Technology Today Magazine who at 62 years old, embarked on an amazing journey to cycle to 48 states of the USA, spreading awareness of the 2017 Total Eclipse of the Sun, through astronomy outreach with carefully selected lightweight telescope equipment including an Explore Scientific ED80 […]
Intrepid editor Gary Parkerson is back on the road with the Pedaling Astronomer Project, this time tackling the US east coast. He kicked off this leg of the ride during the last week of February at the Winter Star Party (WSP) in the Florida Keys. Capt. Ed Davidson, the Inn […]
Messier Objects Audio Book and Sketch/Reference Book We recently were made aware of JJ Evans’ Listen to The Stars audio book and companion sketch/reference book. Rarely do we learn of a resource that we find truly different that will uniquely enhance our viewing experiences – this combo audio and print […]
In this issue Editor Gary Parkerson discusses bringing friends to a star party; Dr. James R. Dire discusses how the Stellarvue SV70T is everything its advertised to be; Tony Bryan writes part one to his design and construction of a 28-inch f/3.6 Dob; Eric Gentry explains what solar eclipse glasses […]
In this packed issue Peter Rejto creates a practical automated multi-camera imaging system; Mark Zalove test drives the APM 152mm f/7.9 ED-APO; James L. Chen shows how the Nexstar Evolution 6 with SkyPortal is the ultimate grab-and-go scope; Jim Meadows demonstrates how the MallinCam SkyRaider NetBook kit offers an affordable […]
In this issue we continue our ongoing emphasis on solar observing in advance of the Great Solar Eclipse 2017! This includes our cover article by Austin Grant who demonstrates how the Lunt Solar Systems Calcium K module is an excellent choice for solar viewing and imaging. Also, Editor Gary Parkerson […]