Mythocentric Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 (edited) Certainly impressive so far Jeff. I think the scientists on the NH team are just as surprised as the rest of us. I suspect it's going to re-write quite a few text-books in the near future! Regards Bill Edited July 25, 2015 by Mythocentric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Physicsman Posted July 25, 2015 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted July 25, 2015 I know the KL2 project has been delayed, though - as I've mentioned in its thread - the Bunker is now kitted out for action. Lots of astronomy/imaging and, of course, the garden work. Haven't posted pics of the back garden for a while. It shouldn't affect KL2 any longer as the back garden is complete. There IS a bit of building work at the front, but the planting is brother's project.... Anyway, here's a couple of panoramas of the "back end" from today: Jeff 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegheny1600 Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 Anyone else fascinated by the discovery of a potential "Earth 2.0"? http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-kepler-mission-discovers-bigger-older-cousin-to-earth I thought there has been a fair bit of 'scientific/astronomical' TV on lately, a whole evening just the other day, discussing the Pluto flyby, "the sky at night" and the size of the universe followed by main news items about a new earth like planet. Perhaps you can tell, I'm VERY selective about what I watch on TV, the latest doings at Cornation Farm, Westenders, etc leave me quite cold! Anyway, I had a (crazy) thought - if "Earth 2.0" is 60% larger, does it's railway (iron road) systems use a larger gauge!!! Cheers, John. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegheny1600 Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 WOW! Jeff, your garden looks lovely! Cheers, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Physicsman Posted July 25, 2015 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted July 25, 2015 Anyone else fascinated by the discovery of a potential "Earth 2.0"? http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-kepler-mission-discovers-bigger-older-cousin-to-earth I thought there has been a fair bit of 'scientific/astronomical' TV on lately, a whole evening just the other day, discussing the Pluto flyby, "the sky at night" and the size of the universe followed by main news items about a new earth like planet. Perhaps you can tell, I'm VERY selective about what I watch on TV, the latest doings at Cornation Farm, Westenders, etc leave me quite cold! Anyway, I had a (crazy) thought - if "Earth 2.0" is 60% larger, does it's railway (iron road) systems use a larger gauge!!! Cheers, John. John, you sound like you have the same attitude as myself, Jock and Bill. It makes a change to find an evening with a decent selection of quality material, in amongst the dross! I recorded the Horizon "Size of the Universe" programme but haven't got round to watching it yet. Jeff 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emt_911 Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 Anyone else fascinated by the discovery of a potential "Earth 2.0"? http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-kepler-mission-discovers-bigger-older-cousin-to-earth I thought there has been a fair bit of 'scientific/astronomical' TV on lately, a whole evening just the other day, discussing the Pluto flyby, "the sky at night" and the size of the universe followed by main news items about a new earth like planet. Perhaps you can tell, I'm VERY selective about what I watch on TV, the latest doings at Cornation Farm, Westenders, etc leave me quite cold! Anyway, I had a (crazy) thought - if "Earth 2.0" is 60% larger, does it's railway (iron road) systems use a larger gauge!!! Cheers, John. I've got some of these to watch on catch up. One question though, what are these programmes Cornation Farm, Westenders etc? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegheny1600 Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 I've got some of these to watch on catch up. One question though, what are these programmes Cornation Farm, Westenders etc? Aha! You've caught me out, matey! It's my 'code' for Coronation St, Emmerdale Farm, Eastenders, etc. etc. I have seen them in the past, an old school friend used to watch regularly so if I was invited round for 'tea', I had to suffer them! I even watched that Aussie soap when Nathalie Imbruglia and another girl called "Jane" were in it! I guess that was some twenty odd years ago! Thankfully nowadays, even Mrs E. can't be doing with watching them so, Yippee - we've escaped! However, owt with Brian Cox or Dara O'Briain or the likes thereof, great. Cheers, John. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold PeterBB Posted July 25, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted July 25, 2015 I know the KL2 project has been delayed, though - as I've mentioned in its thread - the Bunker is now kitted out for action. Lots of astronomy/imaging and, of course, the garden work. Haven't posted pics of the back garden for a while. It shouldn't affect KL2 any longer as the back garden is complete. There IS a bit of building work at the front, but the planting is brother's project.... Anyway, here's a couple of panoramas of the "back end" from today: IMG_0405_0407stitchA.jpg IMG_0433_0436CylindricalAstitch.jpg Jeff Jeff, Looks brilliant, cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emt_911 Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 Aha! You've caught me out, matey! It's my 'code' for Coronation St, Emmerdale Farm, Eastenders, etc. etc. I have seen them in the past, an old school friend used to watch regularly so if I was invited round for 'tea', I had to suffer them! I even watched that Aussie soap when Nathalie Imbruglia and another girl called "Jane" were in it! I guess that was some twenty odd years ago! Thankfully nowadays, even Mrs E. can't be doing with watching them so, Yippee - we've escaped! However, owt with Brian Cox or Dara O'Briain or the likes thereof, great. Cheers, John. I honestly can't think of a single fiction programme that I watch now. They were on in the house when I was growing up but I've never had any interest in them. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mythocentric Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 (edited) The garden looks brilliant Jeff. A labour of love which well deserves praise! It's also nice to see you've perfected your mosaic techniques. I must confess I haven't turned the TV on for weeks though when I do indulge I admit to a sneaking admiration for Shaun the Sheep! My youngest grandaughter Lucy loves it and we always watch it when she's over for a visit! Not to mention the fact that I have to record them and send them to her when she's not! We went out with the 'scope earlier to give our Sara her first look at the moon! To my amazement she actually had tears in her eye's because, "it's really beautiful when you can see it properly like that!" She spent the rest of the night before bedtime planning more expeditions and pouring over the SkyX program on my laptop. I do believe we've got a budding astronomer (astronomiss?) in the making! Regards Bill Edited July 25, 2015 by Mythocentric 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60091 Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 I honestly can't think of a single fiction programme that I watch now. They were on in the house when I was growing up but I've never had any interest in them.I can probably count on one hand the number of programmes I make a point of watching these days... My only addiction are the self build /rebuild shows...Restoration Man, Homes by the Sea and endless repeats of Grand Designs. - and I almost forgot - Time Team (more endless repeats) and the occasional 1970s-80s music documentary on BBC4. Alan 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jock67B Posted July 25, 2015 Share Posted July 25, 2015 Morning Jeff, WOW is the only suitable comment on the garden, and it looks so established in such a short time. Congratulations to you both! Joanna happily indulges me in the viewing of science and engineering programmes, as well as my motorcycle racing and motor racing. We share certain 'likes' such as University Challenge (I sadly often score my performance!) and we particularly enjoy watching comedy that makes us laugh, such as 'Mock the Week' (That Dara again!) or 'QI' before we head up to bed! She likes older dramas and crime like Agatha Christie, but the beauty of Sky+ is that she can record them and watch during the times I am forced to rest, or when I'm attacking the list of 1000 chores! In case any of you missed it, AndyP has been quiet due to a change in his internet provider but should be back early next week! Keep stargazing on TV if weather doesn't permit, or there are always the NASA and ESA web sites and New Scientist for a fix. Kind regards, Jock. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jock67B Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 Anyone else fascinated by the discovery of a potential "Earth 2.0"? http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-kepler-mission-discovers-bigger-older-cousin-to-earth I thought there has been a fair bit of 'scientific/astronomical' TV on lately, a whole evening just the other day, discussing the Pluto flyby, "the sky at night" and the size of the universe followed by main news items about a new earth like planet. Perhaps you can tell, I'm VERY selective about what I watch on TV, the latest doings at Cornation Farm, Westenders, etc leave me quite cold! Anyway, I had a (crazy) thought - if "Earth 2.0" is 60% larger, does it's railway (iron road) systems use a larger gauge!!! Cheers, John. Morning all,John, I found the articles carried by several newspapers, about 'Kepler 452B' quite amusing. It is thought that humans might be able to live on it although this has to be conjecture based on some elements that are similar to Earth. The sun it orbits (Kepler452) is estimated to be 6 billion years old, 1.5 billion more than our own Sun, and the planet itself is around 60% larger in diameter than ours with double the gravitational pull and a 385 day year! It is thought to be the right distance from its sun to produce conditions suitable for life as we know it. Dubbed 'Earth 2.0' by those searching the universe for habitable planets, it is 1400 light years away. This is a bit of a problem for anyone considering a visit - even if you had a spacecraft able to travel at the remarkable speed of the 'New Horizons' one, it would take around 25.8 million years to get there! Shouldn't bother to pack your case just yet! Glad to see that Bill is getting young Sara interested in astronomy - I like nothing better than pointing out the simple figures in the night sky to Freddie, my great grandson, just like I did to his father many years ago! I do believe that you can't start them young enough. We are terribly lucky to have Jeff accept us on his thread, as he can advise on many aspects of astronomy and physics from his experience, and we can pass on what we have learned to the youngsters. I have a 'toy'/modelling kit in the loft which contains moulds of the main planets in the Solar System, and it allows you to make clay models which demonstrate the difference in size of each planet, apart from the Sun which would be too big! I used this to demonstrate the layout of the Solar system to our son when he touched on astronomy in his school science lessons many years ago, and now I'm saving it until Freddie is old enough to understand it. Sadly, the size of my property precludes any possibility of laying these models out at scale distances apart, and the neighbours might not like them laid down the centre of our street! Kind regards, Jock. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Physicsman Posted July 26, 2015 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted July 26, 2015 Morning Afternoon all! I can't say morning - the first 5 hours were taken up playing around with the mass of video and still images obtained last night. A great night of astronomy. Won't be another for a few days as I see the weather is going to be dire. Bill, glad to hear about the scope and your niece's interest. It's a wonderful hobby and once you've tried it it is easy to get hooked! Agree with the TV comments. I enjoy in-depth documentaries and - although I've got them on DVD - admit to watching sci-fi such as Trek, Stargate, Babylon 5 etc. Jock, you did my job for me - Andy is watching us on his phone while he waits for his internet to get sorted. As for "accepting" you lot on this thread - well, what a pleasure it is! So many like-minded people, or is it we're all insane or just grumpy (oldish) gits? Jeff 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mythocentric Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) At the moment Jeff you can definitely put me down as a definite Grumpy Old Git. I've just been over to Pencarne Junction and quite frankly I'm bloody annoyed because the thread has been highjacked by a bunch of 'comedians' led by our self-styled 'Sausage Man'. I know Andrew is a lot easier going than me but I hope he finds them as amusing as they seem to think they are themselves! Thanks Jock and Jeff! To be honest our Sara is not difficult to inspire because, like her mum, Amanda who was never a doll sort-of person, she's an explorer and loves to find out new things (and follow them up!). I'm delighted by the way she's taken such an interest in her world and the universe we live in. Your comment about space to explain the Solar System demonstrates how lucky I am to have a handy promenade nearby. One of her great loves is ancient life, especially dinosaur's (like most young ones) and one day last year I tried to show her the time-scales involved, so we took a walk along the prom starting at the end of the road marking each era and the relevant stages in the worlds evolution starting with the Pre-Cambrian (near the Yachting Office about a quarter-mile away!). We had a load of fun and it was fascinating to see it dawn on her just how long life has existed and the many forms it has taken. I think the biggest surprise came with the arrival of man (about ten steps of our journey) by which time we were in Heysham and I was completely knackered! She's really taken up with the scope and I can't wait to show her just what incredible sights are waiting for anyone who is willing to take the time to look! Just our luck that it's been cloudy and raining today! I know she'll be a bit disappointed when she goes home on Tuesday but we've arranged a little surprise for her. While she was unpacking her bags on Friday (having brought enough to equip an expedition as usual) me and mum stuck my spotting scope and a tripod into the car boot for her! Regards Bill P.S. The guy from Amazon has just turned with PSP X7 Ultimate. OK! I know I was going into Lancaster for it but I'm pleading old age and idleness, not to mention a reluctance to walk all the way out to PC World at Green Ayre and pay £70 for the privilige. Anyway I'm off to install it and play catch-up with Jeff. Have fun! Edited July 26, 2015 by Mythocentric 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Physicsman Posted July 26, 2015 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted July 26, 2015 Hi Bill. You aren't being a grumpy old git. Andy has just texted me - he is VERY pi55ed off about the resurgence of the sausages on his thread... My copy of PSP was also delivered on a Sunday, 2 weeks ago. It's been used a lot already. I've got some really good video, converted to JPEG from last night and a couple of mosaics....it's addictive. Let me know how you find the red LED alignment device. Works well but I'd definitely recommend a proper finderscope. Off to play with some RAW/TIF images! Jeff 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted July 26, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) Now when I were a nipper and we visited Cheddar caves and Wooky hole I seem to remember the guides impressing us with how long it took the Stalactites and Stalagmites to grow. Now this railway bridge cannot have been here that long (150 years or so) and I do not believe any builder would have stuck in a block with a lump like that. So is there a geologist or perhaps a physicist who can enlighten me ps the stone blocks are granite and may well be from Meldon Quarry just up the line. Don oh yes to estimate the size Edited July 26, 2015 by Donw 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mythocentric Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) Now when I were a nipper and we visited Cheddar caves and Wooky hole I seem to remember the guides impressing us with how long it took the Stalactites and Stalagmites to grow. Now this railway bridge cannot have been here that long (150 years or so) and I do not believe any builder would have stuck in a block with a lump like that. So is there a geologist or perhaps a physicist who can enlighten me GWBridge.jpg ps the stone blocks are granite and may well be from Meldon Quarry just up the line. Don oh yes to estimate the size Nature in action Don. My former home was not far from the Leeds & Liverpool Canal and some of the older bridges had budding stalacmites and stalagmites forming on the walls. They were also present in Houghton Quarry below the overhangs until a bunch of gobsh*tes from a national rock climbing association rented the quarry for their own use and removed them (by the simple expedient of smashing them up) together with all the vegetation to make it easier to reach the rock faces. Why I'll never know because the quarry had been a popular rock-climbing destination for many years previously without any problems. One thing I've puzzled over was the presence on some bridges of hard, dark green, glassy 'blobs' usually near or on the flagstones. I'm very impressed with Amazon Jeff because I ordered it on Saturday morning and it arrived within 24 hours. I'll be ordering the books you recommended in due course. Meanwhile I received a book from FLO called Making Every Photon Count by Steve Richards (Chanctonbury Observatory) which came highly recommended and from what I've read so far I suspect it will become my astro-imaging 'bible'. Although aimed mainly at beginners it doesn't look down at the reader and explains the whole process from the beginning to processing the final image in a clear, well-written form with ample illustrations. On the subject of imagefinders, I must admit that the LED gizmo is not my favourite object. It does work but I'm not impressed by the way that the red dot can blot out the object you're trying to find, even with the dot set to it's smallest size. Nor am I particularly impressed by the fact that looking through it from a slightly different angle every time can throw things off by quite a few degrees, so I'd be happy to hear your recommendations for a decent finderscope! Regards Bill Edited July 26, 2015 by Mythocentric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Physicsman Posted July 26, 2015 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) Bill, the reason I changed to a conventional finder was because it gives you the flexibility to hunt down objects using star charts, rather than simply relying on the GoTo. By the way, it's important to level the top of the tripod before attaching the arm/tube. I used a simple 6" spirit level - not the bubble thing that was with the telescope. I found that good levelling greatly improves the performance of the GoTo system. I bought my finder and mounting bracket from Telescope House. The finder has a wedge-shaped base which slots in and out of a dovetail bracket that you fix to the telescope tube. My unit was supposedly for Schmidt-Cass scopes, but I suspect it'll fit most tubes. Simply remove the LED finder put the dovetail base in its place. Then slot the finder into the base. Takes 2 minutes. This is what I bought (I have 3 of them now, one that was with the Edge scope (see pic) and 2 for the 5" and old 8" scope). Here's the reference numbers: 07200 Orion 9 x 50 finder and bracket 07215 Dovetail base for finder I think the whole lot cost about £65 (£53 finder/£12 base). Highly recommended! Jeff ps. I have some cracking crater pics - will post a couple if anyone asks to see them. I DON'T want to bore you all!! Edited July 26, 2015 by Physicsman 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emt_911 Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 Yes please Jeff. How could anyone be bored by them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jock67B Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 Evening Jeff, It's a resounding YES from me as well. Looks like the only chance I'll have to see the Moon for the next couple of days! Great to hear more about Bill's granddaughter today - I love the innocence and it is wonderful when they have an enquiring mind. Freddie was with us for a couple of hours today, and whilst in my study, he looked around the shelves at the GBL locos on display and said 'Grumps, how comes your trains don't look like the ones that go past to London?' Sorry about the use of the words 'tr**ns and lo**s', but they serve to show how inquisitive our four year old great grandson is! I hope we can keep the same interest going in scientific subjects. I too am very sad to see a repeat of the sausage saga that really is being overplayed after the Bitton one - Andy has a great sense of humour but I can't blame him if he gets brassed off by this latest incarnation. It is my belief that Bitton was destroyed by too much opinionated and in some cases misleading advice, although most was very good. When Andy started 'Pencarne Junction', I'm sure he asked for serious input only - Jeff invented the 'lounge', now the 'asylum' for the jokes and nonsense so it would be good if it was switched here! Rant over. Kind regards, Jock. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Donw Posted July 26, 2015 RMweb Gold Share Posted July 26, 2015 I agree with the comment about the posts on Andy's thread, rather rude to make childish jokes while someone is not able to access their thread. I enjoy a bit of leg pulling and humour on threads when the owner of the topic is joining in and the comments relate to previous posts. I didn't find the recent posts on Pencarne amusing. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Physicsman Posted July 27, 2015 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted July 27, 2015 (edited) Ok, to keep the punters happy, here are some more images. Use the whole-moon shot as a reference. The 9.8 day old (phase-wise) moon: A mosaic of 8 images of the southern highlands. Oops! I missed a bit at the bottom!! The Copernicus (56 mile wide crater) and Appenine mountains: 2 close-ups of the southern area: Jeff EDIT: The last pics are what you'd see through a telescope magnifying around x 300. Edited July 27, 2015 by Physicsman 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allegheny1600 Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Four right royal arachnids! That is mighty impressive Jeff, you've clearly got the hang of this photographic technique, what detail! Brilliant stuff! John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Physicsman Posted July 27, 2015 Author RMweb Premium Share Posted July 27, 2015 As a final contribution - for a time, at least - from the howling werewolf that I've become, here's a montage of the Moon at 6.8 day, 7.8 day and 9.8 day phases. I think it's very pretty!! Jeff 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now