Looked at mars with telescope, nothing to see though

On TV I heard all you need is a telescope with a 70mm refractor to see
he surface of mars now. So I pulled out my old telescope which has a
70mm refractor out of the closet I got on my birthday when I was much
younger .

I looked in the south-east here in British Columbia and saw a bright
star, guess that was mars. It was just a bright dot in the sky. I
looked through my 50x binoculars and my 400x telescope and saw nothing
more than just a bright orange dot, no details of any kind . What a
disapointment.

If you don't have your own observatory then it's probably best to just
look at pictures of mars on the internet.

Was the 400x telescope the 70mm refractor you pulled out of the closet ? Were
you handholding your 50x binoculars ?

Was the 400x telescope the 70mm refractor you pulled out of the closet ? Were
you handholding your 50x binoculars ?

"Mike" wrote in message
om...
On TV I heard all you need is a telescope with a 70mm refractor to see
he surface of mars now. So I pulled out my old telescope which has a
70mm refractor out of the closet I got on my birthday when I was much
younger .

I looked in the south-east here in British Columbia and saw a bright
star, guess that was mars. It was just a bright dot in the sky. I
looked through my 50x binoculars and my 400x telescope and saw nothing
more than just a bright orange dot, no details of any kind . What a
disapointment.

If you don't have your own observatory then it's probably best to just
look at pictures of mars on the internet.

For you people up north, Mars may be a more difficult viewing target than
for those of us south of you. It really depends on the viewing conditions
on any given night, so keep trying. In the meantime, I heard a rumor that
there just may be other celestial objects to hold your attention. Some
objects, which are easy to find and sure to please are the Ring Nebula
(M57), (M92) a great globular, (M15 & M13) two more globular clusters. In
about a month from now, look for M42...if it doesn't float your boat,
nothing will. Oh yes, Mars will still be around for a while, and the seeing
can only get better in the Fall.

Al

"Mike" wrote in message
om...
On TV I heard all you need is a telescope with a 70mm refractor to see
he surface of mars now. So I pulled out my old telescope which has a
70mm refractor out of the closet I got on my birthday when I was much
younger .

I looked in the south-east here in British Columbia and saw a bright
star, guess that was mars. It was just a bright dot in the sky. I
looked through my 50x binoculars and my 400x telescope and saw nothing
more than just a bright orange dot, no details of any kind . What a
disapointment.

If you don't have your own observatory then it's probably best to just
look at pictures of mars on the internet.

For you people up north, Mars may be a more difficult viewing target than
for those of us south of you. It really depends on the viewing conditions
on any given night, so keep trying. In the meantime, I heard a rumor that
there just may be other celestial objects to hold your attention. Some
objects, which are easy to find and sure to please are the Ring Nebula
(M57), (M92) a great globular, (M15 & M13) two more globular clusters. In
about a month from now, look for M42...if it doesn't float your boat,
nothing will. Oh yes, Mars will still be around for a while, and the seeing
can only get better in the Fall.

Al

I live in the High Mojave Desert of Calif. Northeast of Los Angeles and I've
been watching Mars for some time now. With my F8 8inch DOB and my 4.8 neggler, I
can make out not fine details, but at lest the dark areas and last week I did
spot the two moons with this set up.



--
"In this universe the night was falling,the shadows were lengthening
towards an east that would not know another dawn.
But elsewhere the stars were still young and the light of morning
lingered: and along the path he once had followed, man would one day go
again."

Arthur C. Clarke, The City & The Stars

SIAR
www.starlords.org
Bishop's Car Fund
http://www.bishopcarfund.Netfirms.com/
Freelance Writers Shop
http://www.freelancewrittersshop.netfirms.com
Telescope Buyers FAQ
http://home.inreach.com/starlord

"Mike" wrote in message
om...
On TV I heard all you need is a telescope with a 70mm refractor to see
he surface of mars now. So I pulled out my old telescope which has a
70mm refractor out of the closet I got on my birthday when I was much
younger .




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I live in the High Mojave Desert of Calif. Northeast of Los Angeles and I've
been watching Mars for some time now. With my F8 8inch DOB and my 4.8 neggler, I
can make out not fine details, but at lest the dark areas and last week I did
spot the two moons with this set up.



--
"In this universe the night was falling,the shadows were lengthening
towards an east that would not know another dawn.
But elsewhere the stars were still young and the light of morning
lingered: and along the path he once had followed, man would one day go
again."

Arthur C. Clarke, The City & The Stars

SIAR
www.starlords.org
Bishop's Car Fund
http://www.bishopcarfund.Netfirms.com/
Freelance Writers Shop
http://www.freelancewrittersshop.netfirms.com
Telescope Buyers FAQ
http://home.inreach.com/starlord

"Mike" wrote in message
om...
On TV I heard all you need is a telescope with a 70mm refractor to see
he surface of mars now. So I pulled out my old telescope which has a
70mm refractor out of the closet I got on my birthday when I was much
younger .




---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.512 / Virus Database: 309 - Release Date: 8/19/03

Mike wrote:

If you don't have your own observatory then it's probably best to just
look at pictures of mars on the internet.

How wrong you are. An orbital telescope is the minimum requirement!

Mike wrote:

If you don't have your own observatory then it's probably best to just
look at pictures of mars on the internet.

How wrong you are. An orbital telescope is the minimum requirement!

On 27 Aug 2003 19:29:03 -0700, (Mike) wrote:

On TV I heard all you need is a telescope with a 70mm refractor to see
he surface of mars now. So I pulled out my old telescope which has a
70mm refractor out of the closet I got on my birthday when I was much
younger .

I looked in the south-east here in British Columbia and saw a bright
star, guess that was mars. It was just a bright dot in the sky. I
looked through my 50x binoculars and my 400x telescope and saw nothing
more than just a bright orange dot, no details of any kind . What a
disapointment.

If you don't have your own observatory then it's probably best to just
look at pictures of mars on the internet.


Patience is required, and reasonable optics. using a 90mm Mak-Cass
last night, in not great seeing, at 54.17N, so Mars is low in the sky,
I could see the North polar cap, and some suggestions of the dark
markings, intermittently, when the seeing settled down.