image size...what to expect?

I recently purchased a Celestron - NexStar 114 GT from Costco for $198.00
with a $40.00 instant rebate. I felt I got a good deal on this scope. After
the first use...I have to say that I'm disappointed with the size that Mars
appeared. Slightly larger than the eraser on a pencil. I used the standard
10mm eyepiece which gave me 100X. I thought I would be able to see the Polar
Ice caps etc. Is there a better eyepiece that will give me a larger image
with better detail? Honestly, my binoculars and spotting scope were almost
as good as this scope....am I doing something wrong?

Bakenshake wrote:

I recently purchased a Celestron - NexStar 114 GT from Costco for $198.00
with a $40.00 instant rebate. I felt I got a good deal on this scope. After
the first use...I have to say that I'm disappointed with the size that Mars
appeared. Slightly larger than the eraser on a pencil. I used the standard
10mm eyepiece which gave me 100X. I thought I would be able to see the Polar
Ice caps etc. Is there a better eyepiece that will give me a larger image
with better detail? Honestly, my binoculars and spotting scope were almost
as good as this scope....am I doing something wrong?

Well, 100x is a little on the low side for viewing Mars, even with it being as
close as it is now. A pencil eraser is about 8mm across, so to have Mars look
at 100x the size of a pencil eraser, that eraser would be about 65.7 cm (or
about 25.9 inches) away from your eye. You would need probably 200x to get a
better view with that scope, but even then, Mars will still look fairly small.
There are eyepieces which will yield such powers, or you can insert a 2x
Barlow lens in the scope ahead of the eyepiece to get the magnification you
need. Clear skies to you.
--
David W. Knisely
Prairie Astronomy Club: http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org
Hyde Memorial Observatory: http://www.hydeobservatory.info/

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* Attend the 10th Annual NEBRASKA STAR PARTY *
* July 27-Aug. 1st, 2003, Merritt Reservoir *
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On Wed, 27 Aug 2003 03:30:12 GMT, "Bakenshake"
wrote:

I recently purchased a Celestron - NexStar 114 GT from Costco for $198.00
with a $40.00 instant rebate. I felt I got a good deal on this scope. After
the first use...I have to say that I'm disappointed with the size that Mars
appeared. Slightly larger than the eraser on a pencil. I used the standard
10mm eyepiece which gave me 100X. I thought I would be able to see the Polar
Ice caps etc. Is there a better eyepiece that will give me a larger image
with better detail? Honestly, my binoculars and spotting scope were almost
as good as this scope....am I doing something wrong?

Hmm lets see you are looking at an object Smaller than Earth 35
Million miles away, just how big do you want it?
--
---
The two most abundant elements in the universe are Hydrogen and stupidity.
Why is the ratio of Hydrogen to Stupidity less in usenet than anywhere else in the universe?