Explore the Cosmos

Finally a good night to look at the stars and tragedy struck. My phone mount broke, so no more pictures until probably after Christmas. I guess that's what I get for trying to save a couple extra bucks and buying a used phone mount. Other than that, not a bad night. It finally wasn't too cold and I saw the double star Castor for the first time. The highlight of the night though was probably looking at mars and Jupiter with the 6mm with the 2x Barlow (217x magnification). I also saw the Orion Nebula with the 15mm which is also always good. I think the Orion Nebula is still my favorite object to view.

Also unrelated.. I got the idea tonight to add to this website a list of the objects I've seen so far. Then each night I go out, I should try to look for something new. I can keep a record of when I saw it, with what equipment/accessories, the date, the location, etc.. The only issue is I don't think I want to have all kinds of "paperwork" to fill out each time I go, so I should try to account for that somehow.. Either way, something to think about..

I figured I should make a post outlining the equipment I have. So here that is:
• Celestron StarSense Explorer dx 130az
• 25mm, 15mm, 10mm, and 6mm lenses
• 2x Barlow lens
• Celestron Heavy-Duty Tripod with the default StarSense Explorer Alt-Az mount
• Phone mount (iPhone 14 Pro)
• Generic moon, blue, and red filters

It's been too cold out lately to go out and enjoy a good session. Also, according to the Clear Sky Chart, the viewing has been bad lately anyway. I'm not going to freeze outside for subpar viewing.