A Tight Start

It has been about 2 months since I have updated. This is because there have a lot of things I had to do. At present I am researching on how to build my dobsonian telescope. Telescope building was common 40-50 years ago. With commercialisation telescope prices have become cheaper and more user friendly. Building a telescope may seem easy, but there are a lot of challenges that have to be faced during the building process. Firstly it is difficult to get some of the materials, especially the lens and mirrors, depending on the type of telescope. For a normal refractor, the most troublesome material to get is the primary mirror. Most optic/camera stores do not sell them. On the other hand the primary mirror is the difficult item to obtain if you are building a dobsonian telescope.

Until now, I am still searching for a suitable mirror. I awkwardly thought of using a hand mirror which won't work at all. If you are good at wood work you can use wood to build most of the parts. If not, it would be better to use some recycled cardboard materials. A hollow tube can be cut out from a snack box. The type of box used depends on the aperture of the choice and focal length. Sometimes there is a need to connect two tubes. But it is important to ensure that the aperture is large enough for comfortable views.

How to tackle the problem of getting a primary mirror? The only way to solve this problem is to get it from a telescope store or order from online. The second method is better as you can specify your size and focal length. Even with the mirror there are other problems like where to place the secondary mirror. This part involves some mathematical calculations, unless you are using exactly the same materials as the guide. The important thing needed to build a telescope is patience. Your first attempt may not be successful but you will still need to be contented with your attempt.

There is sometime important that I have to announce. This year is going to be a tight year for me. So there would not be any frequent updates on Astronomy. But Fact section will at least be updated once a month. This year I have decided to feature the Pleiades, M45 and Saturn. Hope I will spot it with Titan. If there are any other messier objects, I will also include them. It would be things like Orion Nebula M42 & 43 and Paraesepe, M44. Since I am not an expert in Astrophotography, I have decided to draw my findings. It may sound unusual but that is the only choice I have, if I were to update the site with pictures.

Secondly about the Owlestial shows I told last year. Unfortunately it will be delayed to 2011 or 2012. This is because I am not ready yet with the props. But I can give some of the outlines of the show. It will feature things like building a sun box for viewing the sun or eclipse and getting an ideal place which is good for stargazing. By the way, I will be updating with pictures of my findings.

If you are interested in building a telescope visit, http://pages.sbcglobal.net/raycash/manualv2.pdf