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Planetary Nebulae
After heavy rains, Dee and I encountered some flooding in Virginia Beach. We were on 20th Street heading toward the Ocean Front late one night and suddenly found the road flooded. It was more than a p
After heavy rains, Dee and I encountered some flooding in Virginia Beach. We were on 20th Street heading toward the Ocean Front late one night and suddenly found the road flooded. It was more than a p
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Roy Diffrient
· #54235
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Crap, It happened again...
Congratulations Mr. President! I forget who said promotions come fast in volunteer organizations. Good luck with it. Roy
Congratulations Mr. President! I forget who said promotions come fast in volunteer organizations. Good luck with it. Roy
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Roy Diffrient
· #54213
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EARLY TOMORROW Venus-Jupiter Conjunction
FYI – For those with a low eastern horizon and an alarm clock set to pre-dawn (say 5:30), Venus will be very near Jupiter tomorrow morning 4/30/22. Naked eye they may look like one bright UFO. Roy Dif
FYI – For those with a low eastern horizon and an alarm clock set to pre-dawn (say 5:30), Venus will be very near Jupiter tomorrow morning 4/30/22. Naked eye they may look like one bright UFO. Roy Dif
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Roy Diffrient
· #54158
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Solar spectroscope project
Cool, Mark! Great little project. What do you think of it for outreach? Too dim, too esoteric? Roy
Cool, Mark! Great little project. What do you think of it for outreach? Too dim, too esoteric? Roy
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #54036
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Wallops Launch, Sat. 2/19 12:40 PM
ISS resupply via an Antares rocket scheduled this Saturday Feb. 19 12:40 noon. Also to be a “NASA Social Event” on Facebook, etc. and broadcast on NASA TV. https://www.nasa.gov/connect/social/index.ht
ISS resupply via an Antares rocket scheduled this Saturday Feb. 19 12:40 noon. Also to be a “NASA Social Event” on Facebook, etc. and broadcast on NASA TV. https://www.nasa.gov/connect/social/index.ht
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53947
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Monday Night
Pretty darned good for an iPhone. Look at all the baby craters! Roy
Pretty darned good for an iPhone. Look at all the baby craters! Roy
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Roy Diffrient
· #53933
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Take A Look At Stu's Latest
WOW! WoooHooo! Stu, I lost track of you, and I shouldn’t have – Ian is right, great images!! Roy
WOW! WoooHooo! Stu, I lost track of you, and I shouldn’t have – Ian is right, great images!! Roy
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53915
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JWST Momentum Management – The Plot Thickens
Lots going on up there. https://jwst-docs.stsci.edu/jwst-observatory-hardware/jwst-momentum-management Roy
Lots going on up there. https://jwst-docs.stsci.edu/jwst-observatory-hardware/jwst-momentum-management Roy
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Roy Diffrient
· #53876
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Webb Alignment Star
Thanks Ian. Maybe someday I’ll understand how it can orbit an empty point in space. Roy
Thanks Ian. Maybe someday I’ll understand how it can orbit an empty point in space. Roy
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53871
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Webb Alignment Star
HD 84406 – that’s the first star Webb will point to for alignment. And we can see it too – it’s surprisingly bright, mag 6.9. It’s a yellow-orange star in Ursa Major. It’s easily visible this time of
HD 84406 – that’s the first star Webb will point to for alignment. And we can see it too – it’s surprisingly bright, mag 6.9. It’s a yellow-orange star in Ursa Major. It’s easily visible this time of
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53863
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FYI – No more StellarCat soon
I haven’t looked at all alternatives, and the short answer, as usual, is “it depends”. Depends in part on what you want the system to do, what scope it’s to be on, who is to install it, and several ot
I haven’t looked at all alternatives, and the short answer, as usual, is “it depends”. Depends in part on what you want the system to do, what scope it’s to be on, who is to install it, and several ot
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53845
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FYI – No more StellarCat soon
If I were buying one I would certainly be thinking about it – do I stick with a system that’s on its way out, or do I go for a brand new system that’s unknown? Or choose some other system entirely? Gl
If I were buying one I would certainly be thinking about it – do I stick with a system that’s on its way out, or do I go for a brand new system that’s unknown? Or choose some other system entirely? Gl
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53842
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FYI – No more StellarCat soon
Really good news for present owners of ServoCat systems. But what do you do if you have a ServoCat equipped scope on order? Roy
Really good news for present owners of ServoCat systems. But what do you do if you have a ServoCat equipped scope on order? Roy
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Roy Diffrient
· #53839
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FYI – No more StellarCat soon
I’ve received a mailing list notice that Gary Myers, head of StellarCat, is retiring, and so production of ServoCat GOTO systems will be ending soon. But Wildcard Innovations, the Australian company t
I’ve received a mailing list notice that Gary Myers, head of StellarCat, is retiring, and so production of ServoCat GOTO systems will be ending soon. But Wildcard Innovations, the Australian company t
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Roy Diffrient
· #53830
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Want to see a space rock?
Thankfully not here. Roy
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Roy Diffrient
· #53797
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Want to see a space rock?
I’ll probably be observing snowflakes. Roy
I’ll probably be observing snowflakes. Roy
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53796
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Want to see a space rock?
Asteroid 1994 PC1 is about to zip past us: https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/see-a-large-stony-asteroid-race-across-the-sky/ Roy
Asteroid 1994 PC1 is about to zip past us: https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/see-a-large-stony-asteroid-race-across-the-sky/ Roy
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53793
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Slow telescope focal ratios
Mark said “Fast cars..............fast scopes.” …. Fast women??? “Oh no, not so fast Rapid Roy!” says Dee, “Just drink your Geritol and act your age.” $#%¥ Roy
Mark said “Fast cars..............fast scopes.” …. Fast women??? “Oh no, not so fast Rapid Roy!” says Dee, “Just drink your Geritol and act your age.” $#%¥ Roy
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53787
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Slow telescope focal ratios
Gee, thanks Chuck. Roy
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Roy Diffrient
· #53784
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Slow telescope focal ratios
No hope for my 28” f/3.63 even with a FeatherTouch focuser: 0.001”. Roy
No hope for my 28” f/3.63 even with a FeatherTouch focuser: 0.001”. Roy
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By
Roy Diffrient
· #53782
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