[Lvas] JBoronVirgo Diamond

Wed Apr 8 03:22:37 PDT 2009

John, 

Thank you for you interest in the Virgo Diamond. I certainly understand the problem with light pollution, and the dust. My son in LV is complaining of the dust all the time. 

When I come to LV to visit my son and his family it is difficult for me to get my bedroom dark enough to sleep. I stay in their guest house in the back yard which faces the airport. The shades and curtains are very brief.

I am very hopeful that there will be many observations and images of the Diamond at the next new moon.

I am actually going to leave my backyard and go to one of our dark sites which is something that I do not do often. Not necessarily for the VD, but for our next project the Virgo cluster. The VC does require a very dark sky to see all none galaxies. I am aware that several have already seen the nine (Fred). I can't remember at this moment if there was others.  

I have several local's that have already e-mailed me about this. Don Olive of GWU, maybe Jim Dire, and several others.

Regarding manual setting circles: Jim, your mount, the GM-11  is what I consider to be a dream mount. Made in Hollywood California. This is the most popular mount for the serious AP's in this region. I have mentioned this before. You have excellent setting circles and they are direct indexing meaning that the (two) index pointers move and the the RA circle remains fixed. This allows for a perfect match of the sky in RA at all times. 

My Meade mount works exactally the same. My Vixen GP mount is not direct indexing and I must reset my RA circle when I do a rollover from east to west or back. It is not a problem but the direct indexing system is superior. You are fortunate indeed to have a mount of this quality and I commend you for using the very effective manual circles. You do not need digital circles on this mount. This is my opinion since I have been so successful with mine. Let me say again. I like to star hop, but even with moderate light pollution this can be difficult.

With all the very faint objects that Fred Rayworth has seen he is surely one of the best star hoppers in the country. Surely something to be proud of. 

Roger 

6:15 am eastern time

> From: jboron at cox.net
> To: lvas at lvlug.org
> Date: Tue, 7 Apr 2009 20:22:10 -0700
> Subject: [Lvas] JBoronVirgo Diamond
> 
> Very nice Roger. I tried to view the Virgo diamond Sunday evening but the 
> light polution was too bad. I think we had dust haze which added to the poor 
> visibility.
> 
> I have the manual circles on my G-11 and I,like it a lot. I have thought 
> many times of adding the Losmandy Gemini system but cannot justify the cost 
> in my mind.
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <lvas-request at lvlug.org>
> To: <lvas at lvlug.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, April 07, 2009 6:16 PM
> Subject: Lvas Digest, Vol 22, Issue 26
> 
> 
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> > 1. Re: FW: Virgo Diamond Original Sketch (roger ivester)
> >
> >
> > ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > Message: 1
> > Date: Wed, 8 Apr 2009 01:16:57 +0000
> > From: roger ivester <drivester at hotmail.com>
> > Subject: Re: [Lvas] FW: Virgo Diamond Original Sketch
> > To: <lvas at lvlug.org>
> > Message-ID: <COL102-W1461265F67245F199507BCB3820 at phx.gbl>
> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="windows-1252"
> >
> >
> > Forgot to send my other pictures....regarding my favorite scope and 
> > setting circles
> >
> >
> >
> > Roger
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > From: drivester at hotmail.com
> > To: lvas at lvlug.org
> > Date: Wed, 8 Apr 2009 00:52:32 +0000
> > Subject: [Lvas] FW: Virgo Diamond Original Sketch
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > LVAS all,
> >
> > Just wanted to share my latest sketch. It is hand drawn from my original 
> > sketch which I did in April 1993. I used too much magnification on my 
> > latest sketch which ruined the effect of the "diamond" floating in space.
> >
> > Just like double stars you want to use the minimum magnification required 
> > to separate the primary from the companion. This asterism is basically a 
> > binary star system. All components again are thought to be gravitationally 
> > bound to each other. I sure hope that during the next new moon period we 
> > can get an image or two and several visual observations...with notes.
> >
> > I especially need some "visual" observations through different telescopes.
> >
> > I painted the outer area to better show the telescope FOV without drawing 
> > an amateurish white circle.
> >
> > I used Carolina blue spray paint for the painted matting. I then placed 
> > another can onto the black cardstock that was very close to my telescope 
> > minutes of arc for the magnification used. I then sprayed around my 
> > template or can base.
> >
> > I may try to start using this technique on all of my sketches.
> >
> > I also wanted to send a picture of my favorite telescope that has served 
> > me well for the past 18 years. The short pedestal is perfect for making a 
> > sketch or taking notes when sitting in my astro-chair. Please note the 
> > large Parks Optical Declination circle that I installed. I fabricated a 
> > brass index pointer in my garage during my lunch hour one day. The bigger 
> > the circle the more accurate. No batteries required.
> >
> > During a competition I beat a computerized scope in a showdown of 15 
> > mystery objects in a sealed envelope. I love to star hop but sometimes I 
> > don't have the time. It is unfortunate that so few are willing to use 
> > manual circles. Most Schmidt Cassegrain's have excellent direct indexing 
> > circles. No calculations or math...and they are driven. Another mound with 
> > great manual circles would be any of the Losmandy mounts.
> >
> > If you are unsure of how to use your manual setting circles send me an 
> > e-mail or if there is enough interest we can cover it in the forum.
> >
> > Best regards, Roger Ivester
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > From: drivester at hotmail.com
> > To: ddicicco at skyandtelescope.com
> > Subject: Virgo Diamond Original Sketch
> > Date: Tue, 7 Apr 2009 18:16:46 +0000
> >
> >
> >
> > Dennis,
> >
> > Being a double star observer for many years I realized that I ruined my 
> > latest sketch of the diamond by using too much magnification. I should not 
> > have sketched this object with the moon this past Friday night which 
> > required 266x to see the fainter components.
> >
> > I lost the beautiful effect of the diamond floating in space with the 266x 
> > magnification. Attached is a hand duplicated copy of my original from 
> > 1993. I was using 190x for this sketch.
> >
> > Jim Mullany and I have been good friends for almost 20 years. He mentioned 
> > to me back in 1995 that I should send you some of my hand duplicated 
> > numbered sketches. I am just now getting around to that.
> >
> > Jim's 105 Finest Deep-Sky objects was my first observing manual many years 
> > ago. I have at least 600 3x5 cards with both notes and sketches of each 
> > object in this book.
> >
> > I would be honored if you would accept this original Virgo Diamond sketch 
> > and a few others as a gift from me? I am also doing the number 2 
> > duplication for Jim Mullaney.
> >
> > I will ship this sketch and a couple others this afternoon.
> >
> > Best regards, Roger Ivester
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > I can see how it might be possible for a man to look down upon the 
> > earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how he could look up into 
> > the heavens and say there is no God. Abraham Lincoln
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