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JWST Image releases: What's next?
Jupiter & Saturn at their best for 2022
Tele Vue Eyepieces
New Nikon Binoculars
Normy Haddad used his Sky-Watcher Star Adventurer and Nikon D5100 to capture the Milky Way from his backyard in suburban Sydney
James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) stuns us all - what's next?
Now fully operational, the JWST has a busy 12 months ahead of it.
JSWT images released by NASA this week.
When did light first flood the Universe? How did mature, fully formed galaxies appear so early in the Universe's history? Can you map the Surface and Atmosphere of a Lava Planet? What's the weather like on Pluto? Can we see signs of life as we know it beyond Earth?
This week saw the release of the first science images produced by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). What we saw went beyond even anyone's wildest guesses - and with the JWST now "Open for business", the world's best astronomers are lining up to use this powerful new instrument.
Over 1,200 serious proposals were made by scientists applying for initial observing time on the JWST.
For its first year of operation, 266 projects from forty-one countries were selected, with about third lead by women. Some are concentrating on specific areas of research. Others are attempting to answer the "Big Questions". There's also "treasury programs" - deep surveys of the furthest reaches the Universe that will be freely available for scientists across the globe to study and likely produce discoveries for decades to come.
Read more about what's next for the JWST in our blog article below.
Jupiter and Saturn at Opposition - why all the fuss?
Have you seen news reports about various "planetary alignments" in the early morning sky? You might have even headed out in the pre-dawn to view the spectacle.
These alignments have been haunting viewing BUT were simply a coincidental lineup of the bright planets. The real show for keen observers of the Solar System arrives in the coming months where Saturn, Jupiter and then Mars are at "opposition".
Saturn at Opposition - Not to scale (Image via NASA)
As we orbit the Sun, planets further away from the Sun from us take longer to complete their own orbits. This means that that the Earth "catches up" and then overtakes them. Once every so often, we are directly opposite these planets.
When this happens, a planet is said to be at "Opposition" when compared to the Earth. This is a big thing as we're at our closest to the planet. It will be brighter, bigger in your telescope's eyepiece and on your camera compared to other times of the year. They are also visible all night. Jupiter particularly will be the third brightest object in the night sky. (The Moon and Venus being brighter.)
Opposition dates (Sydney time) for the bright planets are:
- Saturn: 15th Aug 2022
- Jupiter: 27th Sep 2022
- Mars: 8th Dec 2022
While planets are at their best for observing and photographing on these dates, the days and even weeks even side of the opposition days are excellent as well. There's no need to rush out and see it on the night!
Even a smallish telescope will show the rings on Saturn and Jupiter's bands and four largest moons. We'll be talking over the coming weeks about the best way to view Solar System planets. Certainly the Celestron NexStar and Celestron Evolution series are proven planetary telescopes. These start at just $1199 - call BINTEL for availability.
Celestron LandScout Spotting Scope with pocket tripod $149 in stock now
This very handy but powerful spotting scope from Celestron is the perfect travel companion. Pack it away in your luggage or keep in the car, this little spotting scope sets up in seconds for up-close views of nature or wildlife.
It can quickly zoom from 12 to 36 times magnification, which is much higher than you'll typically find on binoculars. The 60mm main front lens means bright, clear views especially when light conditions are poor.
Celestron LandScout 60mm Spotting Scope with 12-36x Zoom
Also included is a handy carry pouch.
New Nikon Prostaff 7s Binoculars From $369 in stock now
BINTEL have sold Nikon binoculars for decades and they're a favourite here!
We've always found Nikon binoculars and spotting scopes to have some of the best optics available, reliable in the field and good value for money. Nikon tend not to make many changes to their gear simply for the sake of it, so when they do announce updates it's always worth looking into.
Nikon Prostaff P7 8 x 30
The Nikon Prostaff range have always been rugged, excellent value binoculars. Many BINTEL's birdwatching customers have told us over the years that they like the Nikon Prostaff binocular as they're not too heavy, have sharp optics and they appreciate them being waterproof.
Nikon have recently upgraded their Prostaff binoculars, and we have their new P7 models in-store and on the BINTEL website.
Improvements to the Nikon P7 compared to previous models include a revamped exterior, even sharper optics, and even advanced glass coatings that even allow smudges like fingerprints to be easily wiped off.
Tele Vue Plossl Eyepieces from $189 now in stock
We're lucky enough to have an increasing number of Tele Vue eyepieces come back into stock. These have been tricky to get for last couple of years due to various "events" around the world.
Tele Vue Plossl Range
If you're not familiar with Tele Vue, they're simply the world's best telescope eyepieces, with an amazingly broad for wide-field, planetary and deep sky viewing.
While many Tele Vue eyepieces and accessories still need to pre-ordered to secure them, BINTEL has a good range of the Tele Vue Plossl eyepieces in stock.
BINTEL Open Box Bargains
We posted this last week. Products on offer have changed!
From time to time we have products that have been opened and used for product photography or other reasons. We then check them out, repack them a re-box them.
Then we drop the price.
There's not a lot of products in this area, but each one has the same warranty and support as a "factory fresh" item. Keep an eye on this area as it's always changing.
We're also not putting this on our main website menu for now.
Next time....Dew control. Keeping your telescope dry in the cold winter nights.
