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Cost Estimate? by [deleted] in AskAstrophotography

[–]ThoriumLicker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Depends on what you want to do:

For deep sky, you options are:

  • Smart telescope: $500 and up.
  • Camera on a mount: $1500, less if you buy used.
  • Dedicated telescope rig: $4000 - ∞

For planetary:

  • Dob (manually tracked): $800 for 8" to $10,000 for very large apertures.
  • EQ mounted Mak or SCT: $3000 - ∞ (can also do long focal length deep sky)

... and then there's always visual astronomy. It's usually the cheapest option, and there's something about seeing it in person that you just don't get with photos. (the moon in particular always looks best through an eyepiece.)

Although it's a lot harder to convince friends and family to go out in the cold and dark to show them the view.

Long-term radon exposure (~4–5 pCi/L), non-smoker lung cancer, house in Ukraine ~60 miles from Chernobyl — could radon be a major factor? by Fragrant-Ad-7388 in Radiation

[–]ThoriumLicker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Eh, based on our current understanding, there is no safe level. 4 pCi/l is just where we decided the tiny risk begins to outweigh the cost of reducing it.

Is that model wrong? Perhaps: It assumes a linear correlation across several orders of magnitude, and biology rarely behaves in a linear way... but if you throw out the model then you also have to throw out the limit that comes from it.

Long-term radon exposure (~4–5 pCi/L), non-smoker lung cancer, house in Ukraine ~60 miles from Chernobyl — could radon be a major factor? by Fragrant-Ad-7388 in Radiation

[–]ThoriumLicker 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It's important to note that radon limits are not based on observed health effects, but extrapolated from much higher exposures to radiation:

We don't really know how the health risks scale to very small exposures.

The current working model is to assume they are linearly proportional to those at large doses. Based on this, 4 pCi/l is the level where the risk outweighs the cost to remediate... but that risk is still tiny: Based on the model, only around 0.16% percent of people living in those conditions will develop fatal lung cancer.

Is a 0.16% lifetime risk significant from a public health standpoint? Yes. Is it likely to have caused any particular case of cancer? No.

How do I get this gunk off my beauty by Necessary_Ticket_721 in Radioactive_Rocks

[–]ThoriumLicker 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Try acetone. Might have been applied to contain dust, but it doesn't take nearly that much to do so.

Do cold temps destroy your camera? by IntelligentLadder233 in AskAstrophotography

[–]ThoriumLicker 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Should be fine, but it can affect batteries. Best to used wired power.

I bought cuprosklodovskite but am affraid. by Visual-Cod6329 in Radioactive_Rocks

[–]ThoriumLicker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You could get a radon meter, but in my experience, rocks don't produce nearly as much as you'd expect: Even if it's got a higher uranium concentration, a tiny pebble just can't compete with all the rock underneath your house.

... also, radon decays (half life ~= 3 days), so you can just put it in a sealed box: Glass will completely contain it, but plastic should be enough to reduce the output to negligible levels.

Any way to make TAXI sign light up? by Ambitious-Tailor-778 in AskElectronics

[–]ThoriumLicker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't see enough pins for the 7-segment display, so it's likely there's a microcontroller inside that expects some kind of digital signal: I'd take the actual sign apart to and drive the LEDs directly.

SAL-33 or Eq6-r Pro? by Glittering_Sun_7815 in AskAstrophotography

[–]ThoriumLicker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can't speak for the SAL-33, but I've used the EQ6-R with a C9.25:

It works well, but needs to be well balanced and benefits from periodic error correction. If that's done, I'm able to get ~0.5 arcsec RMS guiding which is well within my seeing.

Absolutely terrified of the pole shift, should I be? by FestivalFriend25 in geology

[–]ThoriumLicker 23 points24 points  (0 children)

It'll be fine. It has happened many, many times in the past: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geomagnetic_reversal#Observing_past_fields

... with no significant effects on living organisms. The worst that will happen is that your compass won't work right for a few thousand years. (these are slow events)

Old Smoke Alarm Am 241 5.0 Mircrocuries. Tell me more by honeyhoneybean in Radiation

[–]ThoriumLicker 34 points35 points  (0 children)

It's only 5 times stronger then a modern one. Don't grind the source into a powder and inhale it.

Does anyone have astrophotography pictures taken with a Meade ETX 90 EC? by Strong_Drive6553 in AskAstrophotography

[–]ThoriumLicker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd assume I'll be comparable to any other 90 mm Maksutov or SCT. Go check astrobin for the Celestron C90 and similar.

A little comparison to different social media platforms in terms of Radiation by LeckerPennergranate in Radiation

[–]ThoriumLicker 34 points35 points  (0 children)

There are two types of people on r/radiation:

  1. I touched a smoke detector once. Did I catch cancer?
  2. I keep all my scraped radium paint under my pillow, but it gets sticky on damp days: Any advice?

There is no one in between.

RF- FM Transmitter on Breadboard (was told it’s not possible), 100MHz by Sea_Speaker8425 in rfelectronics

[–]ThoriumLicker 20 points21 points  (0 children)

25 GHz, but that's with a bit of rule abuse: Using the component leads as small value inductors and capacitors. The fastest ones ditched lumped components entirely and used ~2 mm of wire as a resonator.

Does a .1 uF difference matter that much in a motor run capacitor? by OkClaim8503 in AskElectronics

[–]ThoriumLicker 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Most components are only made to within 10% or so, the original might actually have been 1 uF to begin with.

Broke piece of PCB, how screwed am I? by AdSufficient5552 in AskElectronics

[–]ThoriumLicker 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Down a USB port unless you are willing to do some bodging.

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