First Look through a Scope

[Josh]

Last night was a pretty clear night in Melbourne. My girlfriend and I had moved house a little while ago and my telescope was still packed away in its box. Her kids had been eyeing it and asking about it so I unpacked it last night, took them out to the front yard and showed them the skies. After I'd rebuilt the telescope and had a good look around at Jupiter and the moon for myself, I called them over to have a their first look through a telescope.

Watching their little faces change from excitement as they put their eyes to the eyepiece to absulote awe and amazement as they saw our moon with its craters and then Jupiter with its bands and moons was better than seeing them for myself.

Just thought I'd share :)

[jouster]

I'm looking forward to the experience with my son, who's too young - 23 months - at the moment.

I love observing, but you can never recapture the first excitement. Oddly, I came close recently when I was rooting around in the basement. I found my old 3" newt, a cheap but adequate scope that first showed so much stuff. I took the cap off to see how the mirror looked and got a big whiff of "telescope paint smell." That brought back a lot of cold nights trying to keep Saturn in the FOV at too-high mags.....ah!

Good times....

[glasspusher]

I just love showing people and especially children the moon for their first view through a scope. I like to set the magnification so the moon just fills the FOV. Then listen to the "WOWs" and "Oh My God". One night, a girl I know came by with her kids and asked if they could look through one of my scopes. So I grabed my 8" dob and took it out in the front yard to show them a few things. Soon the moon came up and washed out the sky so I put in the moon filter and trained it on the moon for them. They loved it. After a while the girl, in her fortys, said "It keeps moving." I then explained that its not the moon moving, its the earth rotating. That she was moving. After that, every time she looked in the EP she would lose her balance and start to fall over.

[Casus_belli]

1st nights viewing through a telescope for me was only a couple of months ago. Had an excellent nights star gazing and after seeing various binaries, star clusters, some good shooting stars and a faint aurora, dawn made me unwillingly pack up my scope. The eastern part of the skies had been masked by houses but near my front door I spotted Venus low on horizon. Well I had to have a look. A little disappointing but then I remembered that Saturn was nearby too.

Thats once sight I'll never forget, seeing saturn with your own eyes is completely different to photos. I burst out laughing and did a little dance of joy and only then did I spot my neighbour giving me a very strange look. He had a look at saturn too and later told me that he'd been late for work but considered it worth it.

He and his daughter 5 have been out with me a couple of early evenings mostly moon watching

[dirty_g]

Only thing I have imparted is to my 9 year old brother is how to recognise the summer triangle. He now runs about showing everybody the summer triangle. You can't escape a lesson in astronomy at night now days without the damned summer triangle cropping up! heh heh

[Peter Wilson]

...You can't escape a lesson in astronomy at night now days without the damned summer triangle cropping up!
Try mentioning the dammed summer crop circles ;)

[Kaptain K]

Wait 'til he finds out about the "Winter 'G'"! :dance:

[Charlie in Dayton]

I will probably never hear the end of this...but 'winter "G" '? Can't say I'm familiar with that name. Whatizzit?

[Kaptain K]

I will probably never hear the end of this...but 'winter "G" '? Can't say I'm familiar with that name. Whatizzit?
Essentially, all of the bright stars of the winter sky!

[Dave Mitsky]

I will probably never hear the end of this...but 'winter "G" '? Can't say I'm familiar with that name. Whatizzit?

I've never heard of this asterism being referred to as the Winter G before, but rather as the Heavenly G (http://www.seds.org/Maps/Const/asterism.html), which consists of nine bright winter stars: Aldebaran, Capella, Castor, Pollux, Procyon, Sirius, Rigel, Bellatrix, and Betelgeuse.

Omitting Betelgeuse leaves one with the Winter Hexagon (http://homepage.mac.com/kvmagruder/bcp/aster/constellations/win6.htm).

Dave Mitsky