My new toy - Astronomy telescope

Theer are always comets over the white cliffs of Dover, but usually too faint to be seen without a biggish telescope. :slight_smile:

Your best bet right now is Comet C/2024 E1 (Wierzchos) but even that is only magnitude 7.

or you might catch a glimpse of one in the Vera TV series. :smiley:

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Here is absolutely fine. I also created another thread a while ago, which I’d forgotten about.

As for Physics or Astrophysics sort of things, I’m definitely into that as I did what was basically a joint Physics and Computer Science degree (although I didn’t complete it). For an astronomy angle, when I was there, they were doing early research on what became adaptive optics for large telescopes. The green lasers they used at night from the top of the physics tower caused lots of UFO reports :joy:

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On a much less elevated plane, I have an O Level in Astronomy. :smiley: :smiley:

Nowadays that would get your collar felt for disrupting air traffic! :smiley:

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I got a Scouts badge :face_with_hand_over_mouth:

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Well you are the best qualified of all of us then!

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Do the planets line up tonight? I read somewhere they do.

Yes - i think Sunday night is the best alignment but they don’t dash about too much so anytime in the next few days… shortly after sunset.

Six planets on show in celestial ‘parade’ Planetary parade 2026: Six planets visible in night sky - BBC News

ETA: Jupiter and the Moon are high up and easy to spot - the others are low in the West - I’ve just been outside to look but my western horizon is obscured by trees and clouds.

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Saw the most brilliant display in the skies just after dusk on on Saturday night..

full moon (?) sunday was magnificent and then the most wonderful surprise this morning (Monday) just before 7am.. a brilliant red moon disappearing behind the trees on the western horizon (WNW). Dashed for my camera but was tooo late.

did anyone else see this. Never seen a moon that colour before.. glowing, molten tomato. wow

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Technically full moon is tomorrow (Tuesday 3rd) but SAunday would have been close to full of course.

I suspect the red glow on the Moon was atmospheric dust, probably from the Sahara.

You get a similar effect (with the Moon higher in the sky) from a lunar eclipse, where the Moon passes through the Earth’s shadow. But you’ve missed the most recent total one visible from France it was on Sept 7th 2025 - there will be a partial lunar eclipse on August 28th this year.

Weather permitting of course… :roll_eyes:

Strangely enough… I’ve been reading about the Blood Moon which is due tonight/tomorrow.

The glowing tomato which I briefly saw this morning was obviously a “rehearsal” for the real thing.. :rofl:

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Not visible in Europe, unfortunately - the eclipse’s totality is centred on the Pacific.

Not to be confused with the odd drone or missile

Exactly the same chez moi, stunning.

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