Best Time to View Saturn?

So I gave in to peer pressure and bought meself a telescope to see Mars
with. A reasonable unit (Meade ETX-70AT). And I did see the polar icecaps,
which was cool.

I've been told that I should be able to see the rings of Saturn reasonably
well (I've got a good selection of eyepieces, from 4 to 25mm, plus a 2X
Barlow), so I'm thinking one of these crisp Autumn nights I'll find a dark
spot away from the heat of the city and give it a try.

So ... is there some night that will be better than others for this? I'm
assuming that a night when the moon isn't totally full is good, so there
isn't as much glare and screw up our night vision and all that. Any other
nights that will be better or worse? When will Saturn be the closest in its
current orbit?

Thanks!
Chris

"Chris Cooper" wrote in
:

So I gave in to peer pressure and bought meself a telescope to see
Mars with. A reasonable unit (Meade ETX-70AT). And I did see the
polar icecaps, which was cool.

I've been told that I should be able to see the rings of Saturn
reasonably well (I've got a good selection of eyepieces, from 4 to
25mm, plus a 2X Barlow), so I'm thinking one of these crisp Autumn
nights I'll find a dark spot away from the heat of the city and give
it a try.

So ... is there some night that will be better than others for this?
I'm assuming that a night when the moon isn't totally full is good, so
there isn't as much glare and screw up our night vision and all that.
Any other nights that will be better or worse? When will Saturn be
the closest in its current orbit?

Thanks!
Chris




The moon doesn't really matter for viewing planets, nor does city light
pollution. You can observe Saturn fine from your back yard (if you have
one). The key thing is to observe when Saturn is near it's maximum
altitude. As you mentioned autumn, you are obviously in the Northern
hemisphere. That means Saturn is in a very good part of the sky for you to
observe it over your winter months. Not so good for me in the Southern
hemisphere :-(. Saturn is at opposition on the 31st Dec so the best viewing
will be at midnight for you on that day. At present try around 3:30 am.

Rgds Llanzlan.

"Chris Cooper" wrote in message
...

So I gave in to peer pressure and bought meself a telescope to see Mars
with. A reasonable unit (Meade ETX-70AT). And I did see the polar
icecaps,
which was cool.

I've been told that I should be able to see the rings of Saturn reasonably
well (I've got a good selection of eyepieces, from 4 to 25mm, plus a 2X
Barlow), so I'm thinking one of these crisp Autumn nights I'll find a dark
spot away from the heat of the city and give it a try.

So ... is there some night that will be better than others for this? I'm
assuming that a night when the moon isn't totally full is good, so there
isn't as much glare and screw up our night vision and all that. Any other
nights that will be better or worse? When will Saturn be the closest in
its
current orbit?


Chris,

Saturn's rings don't require much power to see. 30x or so will reveal them.
100x will make them look very nice in your telescope.

As was pointed out by Lanzlan, the more the planet is near the highest point
off the horizon it will obtain will always supply the best image. It should
be noted however, that as a rule of thumb, reasonably good observations are
possible when an object is somewhere around 30 degrees and more from the
horizon under normal seeing conditions. This is because at a lower angle to
the horizon the image is generally more unstable. Couple this with the much
thicker layer of air and the subsequently increased particulate matter which
impedes on an observed object's view and you'll realize the importance of
viewing objects well off the horizon.

Saturn will be 30 degrees above the horizon around 11:15 p.m. tonight.


Martin

To reply remove "ilikestars" from my email address

"Starstuffed" wrote in message
nk.net...
"Chris Cooper" wrote in message
...

So I gave in to peer pressure and bought meself a telescope to see Mars
with. A reasonable unit (Meade ETX-70AT). And I did see the polar
icecaps,
which was cool.

I've been told that I should be able to see the rings of Saturn
reasonably
well (I've got a good selection of eyepieces, from 4 to 25mm, plus a 2X
Barlow), so I'm thinking one of these crisp Autumn nights I'll find a
dark
spot away from the heat of the city and give it a try.

So ... is there some night that will be better than others for this?
I'm
assuming that a night when the moon isn't totally full is good, so there
isn't as much glare and screw up our night vision and all that. Any
other
nights that will be better or worse? When will Saturn be the closest in
its
current orbit?


Chris,

Saturn's rings don't require much power to see. 30x or so will reveal
them.
100x will make them look very nice in your telescope.

As was pointed out by Lanzlan, the more the planet is near the highest
point
off the horizon it will obtain will always supply the best image. It
should
be noted however, that as a rule of thumb, reasonably good observations
are
possible when an object is somewhere around 30 degrees and more from the
horizon under normal seeing conditions. This is because at a lower angle
to
the horizon the image is generally more unstable. Couple this with the
much
thicker layer of air and the subsequently increased particulate matter
which
impedes on an observed object's view and you'll realize the importance of
viewing objects well off the horizon.

I never had great views of Mars at opposition for that very reason. Coupled
with the fact I was viewing over rooftops. I did get moments of good seeing
to make it workwhile though.


Saturn will be 30 degrees above the horizon around 11:15 p.m. tonight.


DaveL