Sweet!!!

So I finally got the ST80 outside and was able to use it!

Since the ST80 has a short focal length, Chromatic Aberation is gonna be an issue. i looked at the moon, and it was nice and clear, with just the slightest bit of purple fringe around the edge. For me, it was not an issue, and even looked kind of cool. I am sure that refractor purists are having kittens at this point, but such is life. There is one accessory that comes with the scope that takes care of this issue.

The lens cover has a 40mm hole in that when uncovered, effectively increases the focal length of the scope and makes the CA go away. The trade off is reduced resolution.

My other targets were Saturn, which is showing the rings getting flatter and flatter until they go edge on in 2009.

The last stop was the double star Castor, in Gemini. The scope was able to split it at roughly 133x. The two components were both bright white. Pretty cool

Here's to clear and dark sky's at Eagle Cliff campground next week!