I have been keen on amateur astronomy since my High School days (1975).
My only tools of the trade are a 10-30 zoom x 50mm Binoculars, and a
My younger brother Christopher and myself, have attended a few of the local monthly meetings, at the Macarthur Astronomical Society (MAS) back in 2016, based here in Campbelltown, N.S.W Australia. I am a full member of the local MAS.
My main interest in the practical side of astronomy, is in viewing of the Gaseous Nebular, Planets, and Galaxies, at night and the early morning hours, when it gets all so cold, during the cooler months of the year, when viewing is best.
I would like, also to show others who may be interested, pictures of some of these Objects - this is where I think, Astrophotography will be very useful.
I would like to get involved in Astrophotography sometime down the line, when I may at that stage, buy a used or new, Celestron 6inch Refactor Telescope. If all goes according to plan, after getting used to and familiarizing myself with this Telescope, I would then like to take pictures of the Planets and deep-sky objects, such as the Gaseous Nebula and Galaxies, to show some of our more interested Residents, first hand.
My only hope, over the last 10 years, has been to look through a 12inch Newtonian Reflector telescope of some kind, or even a 4inch Refractor telescope, at the night sky, looking mainly at deep-sky objects such as Galaxies and Gaseous Nebulae.
Since the early 1990s, I have bought quite a few books on Astronomy,
some of these are just Atlases of the night sky. And, in these books, I have seen plenty of professionally taken pictures of all kinds of deep-sky objects.
I have now come to a point in my life, where I don't
need to be convinced anymore, of the beauty and majesty and mystery of our Galaxy and the Universe beyond, because I firmly believe in Almighty God, as the center and creator of all things. But looking through a pair of Binoculars or a suitable Telescope to explore the night sky, just gives everything an added dimension of experience, very hard to put into words.
Just a quick update on 27 May 2018 - I have had to leave my interest in Amateur Astronomy for now, and what this means, is that I won't be able to buy the Refractor Telescope I was planning on getting, or any other astronomy equipment.
The reason for all this, and I have given it much thought, is my interests in amateur astronomy, just cost me too much pursue, than my other, older interests, like computers and amateur radio, and space/flight simulators.
Kind regards,
and clear skies.
Howard Pew.
1 - 3 April 2018,
27 May 2018, May 2019, and March 2021.
