tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post843215833967334842..comments2024-01-16T21:38:14.352-10:00Comments on A Pacific View: Looking through the cloudsTomhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07917420597770463210noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-1257962019659529392010-05-25T22:22:21.556-10:002010-05-25T22:22:21.556-10:00Hi Qfenestrate,
Sounds interesting and I think I ...Hi Qfenestrate,<br /><br />Sounds interesting and I think I understand your original comment now - yes, it makes sense. <br /><br />This isn't the sort of thing done on pro telescopes since we don't use our "eyes" the way you would have done - everything goes through computers and we can sort out things afterwards, plus we tend to look at very specific parts of the sky anyway.<br /><br />One of our biggest problems is dealing with the moon. Although we may not be looking anywhere near it, it's so bright it can reflect off various surfaces (dome, telescope, something else) and appear as some very odd artifacts in our images. We've mostly solved this but every so often we get surprised by some odd reflection we never thought could happen!<br /><br />TomTomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07917420597770463210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-7816215586827192082010-05-24T09:14:23.943-10:002010-05-24T09:14:23.943-10:00I don't know if someone who uses a telescope r...I don't know if someone who uses a telescope regularly ever had use for one but back in the 80's as Halley passed overhead they were giving out pieces of cardboard that folded into what appeared to be a cereal box with no ends. When you were close to the city and looked through one end of the box you could see the comet better because the box allowed your eyes to ignore the background light from the city. If the cloud was acting as both transparent and a blanket in various portions of the sky it would reduce the light from stars so that you can focus even better on single stars. If that makes senseQfenestratehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07110120275669488255noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-46449180062751656572010-05-23T20:54:46.365-10:002010-05-23T20:54:46.365-10:00Qfenestrate - I understood everything you wrote un...Qfenestrate - I understood everything you wrote until the last sentence. Could you clarify what you mean? <br /><br />Thanks for popping by my blog!<br /><br />TomTomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07917420597770463210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-74309428232140926712010-05-23T19:12:23.973-10:002010-05-23T19:12:23.973-10:00Interesting description of the problems with viewi...Interesting description of the problems with viewing through cloud cover. Ran across a similar situation recently where I could see through upper atmosphere clouds and see stars through the clouds, but could not see stars where the clouds weren't as I was too close to Chicago city limits. I wonder if the cloud does not act transparently but similar to one of those view boxes you use for seeing comments, cutting down background light.Qfenestratehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07110120275669488255noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-1276470793130767942010-03-20T23:23:36.945-10:002010-03-20T23:23:36.945-10:00I know I should know this about clouds (great, jus...I know I should know this about clouds (great, just gave myself a Joni Mitchell earworm) but since it's not part of my everyday experience, it just doesn't occur to me that logically, the water vapor is frozen at such high altitudes.<br /><br />Clear glass, not lens, gotcha.<br /><br />And if Iceland's current burp doesn't quit, maybe there will be another Mauna Lea-like mountain on the planet. :-)Keera Ann Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07466103379725251225noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-84328483910608237652010-03-20T23:15:13.839-10:002010-03-20T23:15:13.839-10:00PS - not a lens, the cirrus clouds (if consisting ...PS - not a lens, the cirrus clouds (if consisting of ice) simply aren't detectable in the submillimeter - they're just like clear glass while to us working in the infrared they're like stained glass!Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07917420597770463210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-63276977470593706382010-03-20T23:12:47.132-10:002010-03-20T23:12:47.132-10:00I'm sure you've seen a large halo around t...I'm sure you've seen a large halo around the moon on several occasions - the famous 22 degree one. That's caused by ice crystals in high altitude cirrus clouds!<br /><br />Tom<br /><br />PS. There are so many other reasons to build telescopes on Mauna Kea-like mountains, none of which I touched on. I wrote about them some time ago but haven't the energy to find the post/s just now! One problem is that there are few if any other Mauna Kea-like mountains on the planet...Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07917420597770463210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5822428485586445604.post-15703504984558218702010-03-20T22:57:04.420-10:002010-03-20T22:57:04.420-10:00Keera is quite satisfied with Tom's yes and no...Keera is quite satisfied with Tom's yes and no answer. Now. :-)<br /><br />The things I learn here! It hadn't occurred to me that the clouds would be frozen, for example. And that ice is a great lens (if I've understood you correctly) for some types of viewing.Keera Ann Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07466103379725251225noreply@blogger.com