got a chance to try them last evening and I
would rate the experience as a "B+". The images are
plenty sharp in the center but quality falls off quite
noticably toward the edges of the field. The light grasping
power is very nice for stars but not for bright plants.
I viewed Jupiter and the moons were clearly visible
but Jupiter was actually far too bright. The 16x
boarders on being too much. I didn't quite get the
"expansive view" feeling that I am useded to with the 10x. I
am definatly glad I did not get the 20x. I am quite
satisfied overall with them but I have a feeling that the
10x50 Ultimas will remain my primary tool.

he eye releif is 15mm which is less than the
22mm of the ultimas. I have been viewing (daylight)
more since I posted the last time and the problem
seems to be getting less bothersome. I imagine I am
just getting used to it. Tonight, I'll see how they do
with the job I bought them for, astronomy. It is
supposed to be a very nice, clear night. i'll update you
tomorrow.

nd have made disgustingly little progress this
summer. I have to do another marathon before the summer
sky is completely gone. I'm not even gonna<br>START
on the Deep Sky Club until I've nailed the Messier
certificate.<br>Clear skies for both eyes (whoever came up with that
one, it's a hit!)<br>Bob Waters<br>Des Moines
Astronomical Society<br>Web page on my astrolinks page, among
club links

know Ultimas have something like 22mm. My
Nikons<br>are 18 and also are great pretty much regardless of
where your eyes are. Misallignment is a possiblity,
especially in shipping. But it could simply be a function of
less eye-relief than you're used to.

lad to see this new club. I am working on the
Messier and the Deep Sky Binocular Lists of the
Astronomical League. Is anyone else?<br>Clear skies and skinny
moons,<br>Tom Williams<br>President, Escambia Amateur
Astronomers Association<br>Pensacola, FL
USA<br>www.meteor.dotstar.net

eceived my new giants today and they look great
in the daylight. Of course it clouded over and began
to rain theis very afternoon for the first time in
over 30 days. Boy did I call that one! Anyway, it is
supposed to be clear tomorrow night. I will take them for
a test spin and let you know how they handle. One
concern I have already, and it may be unfounded, is that
they seem to be very sensitive to "eye alignment". I
have a pair of 10x50 celestron Ultimas that have a
good view with little regard to where your eyes are
positioned. These 16x80s seem to require that your eyes be
aligned very caefully. If you move to one side or the
other, or the two sides are not exactly adjusted as far
as distance, the image seems to be "doubled". Is
this something that is common tho higher power binos?
Or is this a sign of misaligned cells? If anyone has
expereince with this type of thing, I would appreciate your
comments.

oon.<br><br>This is the weekend of Astrofest,
sponsored by the Chicago Astronomical Society. We had a
gorgeous night last night, which was also surreal.
Everybody in the club was at astrofest, I had the
observatory all to myself, and this huge, beautiful sky!
Found the Dumbbell in my 10x50's, and went through the
usual rundown of M31, and the Sagittarius Milky Way.
I'll probably go back tonight, though at least one
other person is going and I plan to get some telescope
time in. Not many nights like these left, I'm afraid.

ell, I took the plunge today. Orion said they
were in stock so I should have them by end of next
week. That will guarantee a week of overcast skies. Oh
well, we need the rain.<br>(It also asures that they
will go on sale in about a month.)<br>Anyway, I'll let
you know how they look when they arrive.

hich generate brief, intense flashes of light at
predictable times (there's an ephemeris in the astronomy
links I posted here at the club) over specific
geographical locations. The brightest I've ever seen was -1
magnitude. They can be fun<br>to watch for, especially when
it's party cloudy and/or there's alot of moon and not
much else is visible. They vary greatly in intensity.
I believe the ephemeris has info on how bright
individual flares will be. Astrophotographers hate them, for
obvious reasons. But they can be really pretty.

'm looking at the same ones.

have heard reference to this before but never educated myself on it. What is
it?

ob,<br>I have just about decided on the 16X80 Orion. They sem to be the logical
compromise. I too, think 20X would be pushing the envelope a bit. I appreciate
your input.

es, I already have a mount that I use for my 10x50.

erence Dickenson, whom I generally find to be a
reliable guide, cautions against 20x80s. He says that
between the narrow field and the dark view, they simply
deliver sub-par views of nebulae and other deep-space
objects. Personally, I thought Hale-Bopp looked fine
through a friend's, but I'm not impressed with deep space
views thorough them myself.<br><br>Incidentally, the
pupil-shrinkage business is only an average. I'm 48, and my
pupils still dialate to a full 7 mm. If you can tell the
difference in brightness between, say, 10x50's (5mm), 7x42's
(6mm) and 7x50's (7.1mm), yours do, too.
Obviously<br>the biggest exit pupil you can notice a difference
with is the way to go. I, too, favor 10x50's for the
combination of magnification and size. But for sheer
aesthetic pleasure, 7mm wins hands down.<br><br>No matter
what the size of your pupils, though, I would caution
against an exit pupil smaller than 5mm for astronomy.

specially on moonlit or cloudy nights, when we can't see anything else! I agree-
they can be really neat!

saw my first Iridium Flare satellite this weekend, very impressive, an
extremely bright flash lasting a second or two.  Has anyone else seen one?

agree with you on exit pupil not being critical
if you dont have dark skies, in fact, the higher
power should help increase contrast. Although I haven't
used either the 16x or 20x binocs, I would recommend
the 16x for the wider field of view. You should also
plan on buying some kind of binocular mount.

ello to all. I just joined the club and this is
my first post. I use telescopes, but for me, nothing
pleases like the views through my Celstron 10x50 Ultimas.
I am now thinking that I will get an additional
pair, something in the 11x80 to 20x80 range. I have
narrowed it down to the Orion 11x80, 16x80, or the
Celestron 20x80 deluxe. I have never viewed through
anything with 16 or 20x. I am thinking that it may be nice
to have more power but I do not want to sacrifice
the image quality at all. Exit pupil size is not
critical as I rarely view from extremely dark areas and I
am almost 50 so my pupils probably max out at 5 to
5.5mm anyway. I would appreciate any comments and
especially any first hand knowledge of these
products.<br>Clear skies for 2 eyes,<br>Bill

believe the "meteor of 2026" refers to an
asteroid that a group of astronomers that research near
earth asteroids announced had a good chance of hitting
the earth in 30 or so years. After the announcement
NASA found old photographs showing the asteroid and
were able to refine the calculations of the orbit and
determine that it would not hit the earth. Since this
snafu, I believe that astronomy organizations have begun
to share info like this before announcing it to the
world.

oes anyone know if the meteor of 2026 is going to hit Earth?

ven Alabama sounds great to me! I'm a globular lover!

mega Centauri is spectacular! It dwarfs M13 and
is worth a trip to the southern part of the USA just
to see it. A member of my club (in Pensacola, FL)
took a trip to Boliva for a stargaze and earned the
Southern Skies Certificate. I am soooo jealous. Someday I
will make the trip myself.

mega Centauri? I guess Eta Carina, the Jewelbox
and the Magellanic Clouds would be too far
south,<br>wouldn't they? There are so many great things in the
southern sky that I think it might be worth retiring there
just to have a whole new set of wonders to observe!

have 7x42, 8x42, 7x50 and 10x50 binos, and will shortly purchase some 15x80's.
I also have an 80mm<br>equatorial refractor.

currently use Orion 10x70's that I bought in
1986. I used 10x50's and 7x35's prior to that. I have
tried all kinds of binocs thru the years. My telescope
is a Celestron C-8 that I have had since 1984.

es, I do have my binocular messier certificate
as well as my deep sky binoc. certificate. I have
even started working on the Southern Skies program
since I can see a fair number of them form down here.

've got a 7x50 and a 10x50 and a 60mm telescope I use. What equipment do you
guys use?

ave you gotten your Messier certificate yet?
Some<br>time when I've got time and Iowa skies are clear and
dark (fat chance) I may finish mine. Remarkable how
many you can make out with just a pair of 7x50's on a
clear summer night.

he AL has organized observing programs for
binoculars including open clusters, globular clusters,
nebulae, and galaxies visible in binoculars. Members of
the AL, either through their affiliated local club or
as Members-at-Large, can record their observations
and receive certificates for completion of the
observing programs. Even if you aren't interested in the
certificates, the lists are still a highlight of objects
visible in binoculars. See the link to the AL observing
programs on the links page.<br> 

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