First Pictures from the James Waite Telescope Woweeeee

Here's the new home for Jim's pride and joy ......... gosh

 a revolving dome roof wow

inside looks so familiar ha ha

How good is this and just thrilling to receive the following first pictures taken through Jim's scope in its new home with master controller Peter. Here are the results after 3 hours and 32 minutes

                                     Well Done Peter and thank you so so much.

M51 known as the Whirlpool Galaxy, taken with 12 images of 300 seconds. This was also the first image from the Discovery Channel Telescope and the start of Jim's interest in the skies at night  ......

This is M64 taken with 16 images of 300 seconds. This is known as the Black Eye Galaxy, first discovered in April of 1779



This is M94, 14 images of 300 seconds 

M 100 10 images of 300 seconds
55 million light years from Earth in the Virgo cluster
WOW

Once again many thanks to Ann, Keith, Peter and Paul and happy viewing to all who link in to use it

Off to a new home

An email to the Leicester Space Center found a new home for Jim's telescopes so at last it is all going to get the use it deserves and about time too. Waiting for me to find the time and inclination is just not right for such quality precision instruments. And so it is with both sadness and delight that I say goodbye to Jim's Astronomy Stuff as it is dismantled and taken to its new home with a group of avid astronomers in Leicestershire

An empty shed on my terrace, but a new shed awaits the Jim Waite Telescope where it will get plenty of use by Peter, Paul and Keith as well as members of the Leicester Astronomical Society and the Rostiston Astronomy Group.

Enjoy

Gearing up

I see the moon ... with my phonecam....

Had another look at the microfocuser, I need a bit of practice. Not had much this year as I wanted to get ahead with the Wildrose refit but I am reading the manuals....!!!

There's a parfocal ring in there somewhere !!!!!

Anyway here's another cloudy sunset.....I think I will have to stick to these for the time being, and skies are rather beautiful

Come on Brian Cox

Thanks for the Wonders of the Universe programmes....but come on...its all very well showing us all the wonders in the night sky....BUT MOST OF US CANT SEE MUCH BECAUSE WE ARE URBAN ASTRONOMERS and street lighting has taken away our night sky stars.......... What about combining environmental and astronomical needs and switching orf urban lights peraps after 1 am or something.....WE HAVE LOST OUR STARSCAPES. So Dear Brian Cox.......hows about doing us all a big favour ... and .......GET US OUR NIGHT SKIES BACK.....PLEASE.... Just needed to get that said....
Anyway I am reporting that the telescope shed is now a sinch to open up on its wheels....I still have to do something about its roof cos it is really heavy. Got some ideas and its a job for next summer (lets hope we get one) .
More fab weather today....so hoping to try out the DSI again........still looking for the parfocal ring??????? hmmmmm ... got the picture....

A shed on wheels !!!!!!

Yesterday was a good day to open up the observatoryshed and afix wheels to all the sides.....this has made it so easy to manover thank goodness.....next thing is to put a rubber (or summat flexible) skirting round the base as it is now a couple of inches above the decking and it will be drafty !!!!!!! ha ha

Am considering where to put handles....and I remember the 2 Ronnies sketch....fork handles

four candles....forkandles ha ha....I think I will need fourhandles.......

And I must do sommat about the very heavy lid/roof , cos I can see me struggling with it in the not too distant future....and I dont want anything to stop my using the scope.....its just a brilliant piece of kit.....I have to learn how to focus it yet...2 pages of instuctions and a couple of bits that I know not what they are....or what they do..... a Parfocal ring ??????? harumph harumph .... I will need to find out........such a lot to learn...and now all the time in the world to play....yippedee do dah.....

And here it is, the observatory shed complete with wheels, rubber skirt and handles......

I have even put a hook for the spanner (needed to undoo the bolts that hold it all together )

After some discussion with the supplier, Telescope House, I think I might have to join a club !!!!!!

Anyway for the moment, the power pack can have a good charge and it can all waite till I have done some more studying of instructions...

The scope purrs into action

Well its going to take some time to get to grips with all this techno stuff, but am determined to crack it eventually....One thing I must do is to find a means of putting wheels on the shed so that I can open it up without bashing my fingers etc....!!!!!

Here it is purring into action........It sorts itself out with its GPS to find home & level & other stuff.....but thereafter I have to know what I am doing.......harrumph harrumph....ha!.....

Got the Deep Sky Imager attached last night and the programme loaded....., but I do need a few days in daylight first to really get to know the equipment........Nothing is ever as simple as it seems eh !!!!!!

Loads to learn....focusing......what to focus on.......etc.....

And the Deep Sky Imager.....

Well done Jim...... many hours of play ahead.....

In memory of James John Waite

Found the start of this on Jim's PC and so as I have now got the telescope up and running again it is fitting that this is continued.
On saturday 19th march, my very first solo efforts on the Meade LX200GPS were quit magical, excellent weather, clear blue skies, warm, no wind and the biggest moon for another 20 years.....a lot to learn and remember, however, the set up has been so well designed and ready to roll, once I had sorted out the power supply.....and all the attachments, it was a delight to operate. I wasnt able to find the imager so the best I could do to record the event was with an old webcam found hiding.........slideshow below.......
The deep sky imager was located on sunday, but a cloudy day so no go........looking forward to my next time.......thank you Jim for a fab setup.......

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