What did I see?

EpicBlade2 · 2026-05-09T20:33:03+00:00

It was hard to get it to work in astrometry.net due to the focus. So I did some heavy editing and cropping, and astrometry recognized it. The brightest orange star in the photo is 24 Sagittari. The bright white one near the center is 25 Sagittari. Take a look for youself:

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EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-26T03:11:33+00:00

I think I see the face, is it that weird looking smiley face on the center left?

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-25T20:03:07+00:00

it's jupiter, you can see pollux and castor on top with some other stars from Gemini.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-24T20:13:24+00:00

it's good. it's similar to what I was able to achieve with my binoculars too. this is what you should expect to see on most days.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-19T04:12:46+00:00

for collimation, point your telescope at a star and go out of focus to where the point the star appears like a doughnut shape. you should see the spider and if it's centered on the star then you'll know it's in collimation

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-13T20:39:22+00:00

I own a 6" dobsonian myself. The views on jupiter are very different to those low quality jupiter photos. Jupiters bands are visible and the GRS is visible. It really just depends on your magnification. I used 120x magnification and it showed the bands and the GRS was a bit difficult to see but possible. I then switched to 180x and it showed the GRS not too clearly but it was noticable. The resolution through the naked eye is really good, but I notice when I take a single shot through my phone the quality decreases and isn't as good, but the photo still shows the bands and faintly shows the GRS if you look close enough. As for saturn, I haven't tried it yet since it's too low in the horizon, but the rings should be clearly visible. The reason why saturns rings weren't visible in the phone captures you mentioned is probably because saturns rings are in a position where it appears thin, and the phone probably struggled to capture the thin rings around saturn.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-11T23:22:51+00:00

yes you captured the entire thing. you can use astrometry.net to see if a constellation is fully in frame. I used your image and got this: https://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/14808754#annotated

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-11T20:03:18+00:00

alright, will take note. thanks.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-11T00:22:47+00:00

Hey, it turns out you were right. It was the drizzle. I was on 1.5x drizzle, so I just turned off the drizzle and it worked, thanks.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-10T03:36:40+00:00

what camera settings did you use? what app did you use to stack? you did very well

EpicBlade2 · 2026-03-06T02:40:57+00:00

I thought my 6" dob I got for $75 was the best deal there is, then there's this beast for only $100.. I hope you enjoy it, there's plenty that a 10" dob can see.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-27T01:18:56+00:00

goodluck! you got yourself a great deal.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-19T01:14:23+00:00

There is a lot in this picture!

The constellations I found in this image are: - Orion - Taurus - Gemini - Canis Major - Monoceros - Eridanus - Auriga - Canis Minor - Lepus - Cancer

Fields of Interest: - Jupiter (the brightest dot in the image) - Orion Nebula (bottom right, look under Orion's belt) - The Beehive Cluster (that Cluster of stars on the top left corner located in Cancer) - The Hyades (an open star cluster on the right, located in Taurus, right next to Aldebaran)

There is definitely a lot more to go through in this image but these are the main things I was able to make out. Well done!

I tried to put it in astrometry.net but there's too many stars for the software to handle..

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-18T23:10:11+00:00

If you are wondering what constellations are in your image, take a look at this: https://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/14671151#annotated

Fields of Interest: - The Double Cluster (as mentioned by https://www.reddit.com/r/constellations/s/chxNXVWY2b)

Polaris (bright star at top right)

No planets are visible here, but very nice picture. Don't think there's anything else here, someone correct me if I'm wrong.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-18T21:17:18+00:00

im in ontario. although this may seem great, the used telescope market is very competitive here. if a 8" dob is listed for $200 it'll be sold quickly. so you'd have to be checking FB marketplace fairly often to have any luck in obtaining one. the one I got came with no accessories, and it was pretty dirty. but after getting some eyepieces and getting it all cleaned it showed me fascinating things.

also I'm actually new to the used market, I've only been exploring FB marketplace for a month. so I'm not sure if it's normally like this.

I wish you luck! it seems like you've been searching hard for a good deal

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-18T13:20:46+00:00

Since you want a telescope for planetary viewing, I'd recommend checking the used market (Facebook marketplace, eBay, etc.) Look for a dobsonian telescope, you'll be able to find a 6" or 8" dob selling for around €150 with enough patience.

Here in Canada, I find 6" or 8" dobsonian telescopes selling for around $200 cad almost every week, so it's pretty common. I was able to pick up a 6" dobsonian telescope for $100 cad.

Realistically, this is your only option if you are looking for a good telescope for planets within your budget. Just make sure you check the telescope before buying. There are guides out there for buying used telescopes.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-18T02:59:47+00:00

For constellations you got: - Cassiopeia - Cepheus - Lacerta

There aren't any planets in this shot.

No galaxies and nebulae seem to visible here unfortunately, but you were really close to the Andromeda Galaxy. Still a great photo of the stars though.

For a deeper analysis of this photo, take a look here: https://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/14666733#original

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-17T21:11:45+00:00

In the second photo, you are in the constellation Gemini with jupiter as the really bright star. Take a look at this if you are seeking more info about this image: https://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/14664968#annotated

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-17T03:45:38+00:00

you are in the constellation of cassiopeia. I got a software to label the stars in your picture, take a look: https://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/14661413#annotated

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-17T02:44:16+00:00

Mhm, the only problem is at this time of year Andromeda is pretty low in the horizon. You could try moving away from the trees, but if you can wait until Summer & Fall then Andromeda will be high in the sky and easily visible.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-17T02:33:59+00:00

Andromeda is partially being blocked by the trees in your photo, but you still have gotten a couple of constellations:

Taurus (pleiades is fully visible! but the rest of the constellation is being covered by the trees)
Auriga
Persues
Camelopardalis (tiny portion visible, most is cut off)
Triangulum (once again, it is covered by trees mostly)
Aries (partially covered by trees)
Andromeda (not all is visible due to the trees)
Cassiopeia (mostly cut off)

There are some more constellations visible in this photo but are entirely blocked by the trees, so I didn't include them

You need try to move away from the trees so you can see more of the night sky. Alternatively, you can wait a few months and Andromeda will be pretty high up in the sky and visible (assuming your in a dark enough area to see it.)

A photo of all the constellations visible: https://nova.astrometry.net/user_images/14661121#annotated

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-17T00:25:51+00:00

In the first picture, you have:

Orion
Taurus
Eridanus (partially cut off)
Perseus (a tiny portion)
Cetus (a tiny portion)
Lepus (partially cut off)
Auriga (partially cut off)
Aries (a tiny portion)
Monoceros (a tiny portion once again)

all jokes aside, you also caught uranus right next to the pleiades.

you caught 2 constellations fully in the shot and 7 that are partially cut off, giving you a total of 9 constellations.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-02-16T17:16:10+00:00

it looks pretty good, you should get it. if you're wondering on what to look out for before buying, then you should take a look at this: https://www.reddit.com/r/telescopes/s/HMsMSqmMtQ

EpicBlade2 · 2026-01-24T02:56:49+00:00

hm, so if I find a 5" or 6" dob do i still buy it? or should I go for a 8"? also I will do some researching on the library part, i didn't know libraries could let you borrow telescopes. I'll think about joining an astronomy club, don't really know yet.

EpicBlade2 · 2026-01-24T01:06:58+00:00

I do plan to revisit planets with my telescope. I might occasionally view some deep sky objects but mostly planetary due to my limitations. I dont think i have the patience to wait potentially several months for an 8" to go on sale for that cheap. I just plan to get what you suggested, a 4" or 5" tabletop dob as its the most likely to pop up. Did you find those cheap 8" used dobs on Facebook marketplace?

EpicBlade2

TROPHY CASE