I had a great time too. I couldn't remember when is the last time I had so much fun. Thanks to everyone for sharing their wonderful telescope with me. Special thanks to Jim who trusted everyone with his excellent collection of eyepieces. The views from the Naglers were so good that everyone who used them want to own them. I have the chance to look through many different telescopes; Art's 16" Dob, Jim's 85mm APO and 12x60mm bino, Bill's new TV101 and Allan's 17.5".
On top of that, I brought my "new" used 10" Meade SCT which I received on Thursday. I bought it thru astromart and was eager to see Jupiter and Saturn thru it. To my dismay, I couldn't get the images to snap into focus. I was almost certain that I bought a lemon but Allan came to my help. He looked in the scope and said that the collimation was out.
A slight adjustment the secondary was all it takes to fix. What a relief. Thank you, Allan for saving my night.
Thanks to him too for showing me that the trapezium does indeed has six stars. I also saw the horsehead and the best views of Jupiter and Saturn.
The clouds rolled in after 3am and both Allan and I decided that it was time to pack up by 4am.
Ok, 12 more days before third quarter Moon....
Clear skies and no wind please,
ck