You're not alone! I have about the same setup, and I'm looking at a
slightly orange dot just slightly bigger than what it appears to the naked
eye. I'm starting to wounder if I'm getting my $$$ worth. However, the new
found interest has helped me become educated in the universe around us.
I've learned that the Earth isn't in the center.

Saturn was a fasinating view. I could see a dot with a tight ring around
it. The world isn't black and white, but I'm starting to believe the
universe may be.



D-

"Livingston" wrote in message
...
I just got the same exact scope. Fun to move, isn't it?

You are magnifying 200x with the 10mm and the barlow.
It appears as it does, I suppose it is small. Professionals say you
should train your brain and eyes for a few months before you can
expect the best results. Your calculation is correct, but the
distortion is greater observing Mars.

Personally, it is so bright all I can see is the now quite modest
southern polar cap, and I am getting glare lines off of the disk, akin
to a Hubble close up of a star. I think I will be happier in a few
weeks when I may lose a arcsecond or two off of the disk, but the damn
thing will dim back to where it is not washed out. I catched the
impression of a continent like dark patch earlier just above, or now
below, the cap, but it was quite hard to perceive. Now, it is rotated
away and I have better things to look at.

Folks here were talking about how the Moon is deceptive, that you
think it is bigger in the sky than it really is. Sometimes near the
horizen you get distortion that creates that effect too. Basically,
someone said to hold a dime at arm's length to get a good
approximation. Sad to think this is the best Mars can get.

Saturn comes up soon to the east in Gemini I believe, you could target
that for something more satisfying tonight. I am getting the distinct
impression a lot of the Mars hype is justified, but a lot of it is
also folks making a buck.

- Livingston


On Sun, 24 Aug 2003 06:15:01 GMT, "Muff" wrote:

Just got a new scope, it's an Orion Skyview Pro 8. I have a 10mm, 25mm
and
32mm plossel eyepieces and a 2x Barlow.
Only used the scope twice so far. First night wasen't the best viewing
conditions and I was just playing around looking at starts. They did'nt
look
any different in the scope then with the naked eye.

Tonight the viewing conditions and my location were a bit better and I
had a
clear view of mars. A nice dot in the sky. Under the telescope it took on
the form of a very very small circle, only slightly bigger than viewing
it
with the naked eye. No matter which eyepiece I used or even with the
barlow
it still was a very small circle, appeared to be about 2mm across at
most.
The eyepieces don't seem to make it much bigger, even the 10mm eyepiece.
It
just narrows my field of view.
I read somewhere that with 70x binoculors that Mars would appear the size
of
the full moon. I haven't tried using binos but my scope is certainly at a
magnification much higher than that. And with an 8" mirror I thought for
sure the planet would have appeared much much larger.

Is there something wrong with my scope or is that how it appears to all
of
you who have viewed Mars recently?