Introduction

Welcome to the Amateur Astronomer's Notebook! This site is the result my 38+ year interest in astronomy. Within this site you will find information on a wide variety of topics that may be of interest to both casual star watchers as well as experienced amateurs. Below is a list of topics available for your inspection. I hope you find this site interesting and useful especially if your nights out include Florida Holidays with family and friends!! This page is also available in Romanian language.

Menu

• How I got started in Astronomy My start in 1973 through to today...

Telescope Basics

• Advice for first time telescope buyers Are you thinking of getting into Astronomy? Here is my advice about what to look for and what to avoid.
• Excellent First Telescopes Here are my picks for some of the best telescopes for beginners.
• Telescope Eyepiece Fundamentals An quick introduction to telescope eyepieces.
• Anatomy of a Newtonian Reflector Telescope A page that shows the basics of a classic telescope design.
• Anatomy of a Refractor Telescope A page that shows the basics of a classic refractor telescope.
• A Typical Junk Telescope Ad An extreme example of what NOT to look for when considering the purchase of a telescope!
• Tasco Telescopes: Why they are to be avoided (and how to fix them up) Frustrated with your Tasco telescope? This article explains why and also offers some suggestions on how to significantly improve the optical performance of your Tasco (or other "department store" telescope).
• Simulated Telescope Images A comparison of how Saturn looks through various sized telescopes (and also through small telescopes pushed beyond their limits).
• Can you see the Flag on the Moon with a Telescope? Not a chance, but read here as to what size scope you would need (HUGE)!

Astrophotography

• Showpiece Image Gallery A gallery of some of my very best images.
• Joe Roberts Astrophotography A chronicle of my activities in astrophotography (includes both film and CCD images). Hundreds of amateur astrophotos for your perusal!
• Fundamentals of CCD Imaging A high level article for those thinking about getting into CCD imaging.
• CCD Imaging with the Orion StarShoot Pro Deep Space CCD Color Imaging Camera My experiences with this great new reasonably priced 6MB Color CCD camera.
• CCD Imaging with the Orion Parsec 8300C Color Imaging Camera Images I took using the Parsec 8300C single shot color imager.
• Imaging with the Orion StarShoot Solar System Color Imager II My experiences with this low cost but high performance Lunar/Planetary imager.
• CCD Imaging with the Meade Pictor 216XT My past experiences using this (now obsolete) entry level CCD imager.
• Astrophotography for Beginners Here are some hints on getting started with taking pictures of the night sky.

Information For Observers

• Naked Eye Observing Many people believe that a telescope is required to participate in amateur astronomy. However, that's not true. A lot of very interesting observing can be done without any optical aid at all -- particularly if you have dark skies (article written by my friend Peter Chapin).
• Keeping warm at the telescope Here is some advice on ways to stay warm while enjoying the clear winter skies.
• Joe Roberts' observation log Check out some of my personal observations (mostly from my early years) to see comments about some of the objects I've seen.

General Information

• Light Pollution Topics Light pollution is a serious threat to astronomy in most areas of the US. Learn what Light Pollution is, how to recognize it, and how to help reduce it.
• Questions and Answers Here are a number of answers to questions regarding many topics in astronomy.
• Useful Data for Amateur Astronomers Below are several articles you may find useful.
• How far is that Star? An attempt to put the vast distances of astronomy into "human" terms...
• How to do Greek Letters in HTML A list of the Greek alphabet characters and the code to generate them in HTML documents.
• Calibrate Your Monitor A chart that allows you to see if your monitor is cailbrated for the best possible viewing of images on this site.
• Magnitude Comparison Tables Tables containing data which will help you to determine how much brighter (or fainter) stars will appear in various size amateur telescopes.

Advanced Topics

• CCD Imaging:
  • Noise Reduction in CCD Imaging An introduction to the concept of noise reduction in digital imaging.
  • Stacking Astronomical Images in PhotoShop A look at how to use PhotoShop to stack astronomical images, along with a proof that the method does indeed work as desired.
• Amateur Radio Astronomy. This document attempts to describe how an amateur with modest equipment can get involved with radio astronomy (article written by Peter Chapin).
• Building of a Backyard Observatory. After 30+ years of waiting my childhood dream of a backyard observatory has been realized! See a detailed chronicle of the construction...

That's how the Amateur Astronomer's Notebook looks today. Thanks for stopping in. If you'd like to drop us a note, please e-mail me!