From Sam Wormley - Educator
Educational Observatory Institute, Inc.
Binocular Mount Works Especially Well With Students (Observing) I have been using the Sky Window with my students (astronomy) for the last couple of semesters... When I want to show them something like sunspots or Brocchi's Cluster (of which CR 399 makes up a part) known to many as the "coat hanger", setting up the Sky Window works so easily for a whole class of observers. Putting the Sky Window on a tripod... the combination of mirror tilt and tripod swivel make location of different celestial object quick and convenient. I use a hefty Gitzo tripod with legs that can spread to wider angles providing a very stable base.
-Sam Wormley
Educational Observatory Institute, Inc.
From Steve Verba
(Answering various questions about his Sky Window on the net.)
Kirtland Ohio
I have 7 x 50 Fujinon's and spent about an hour that night with the SkyWindow. I will adress each of your questions below....> How do you think Sky Window performs?
I own an Astrophysics 7 inch refractor and mount. The SkyWindow machining and look and feel are of the same quality. Smooth, silky, very solid, well thought out. It immediately lifted my binoculars from a "20 second casual sky bite" device to a true astronomical instrument.> What kind of use have you put it through?
I basically worked the area from Hercules through Lyra and some of Cygnus for about an hour or so. I tended to work from the zenith down and then moved over in azimuth and started back up again. Sort of like the comet hunting technique.> What binoculars are you using it with?
The 7 x 50 Fujinon's . They are somewhat heavy but have a sense of letting a lot through.> What did you see, and was the view really enhanced by this neat little device?Well, right off the bat without any special plan I saw at least 4 or 5 satellites and one meteor. The views were so charming that I returned again and again to areas of interest. Often these were NOT classic Messier or NGC fuzzies, but lovely stretches of star patterns, curious doubles and triples, gem-like color contrasting stars, and entirely new views of old favorites like M13. I enjoyed it a lot. All this was from a patio table on our deck. I would however recommend a tripod in so far as ease of moving yourself to accomodate the SkyWindow when you change directions over large areas of azimuth. Also, the tripod allows you to get the exact height and angle for most comfortable viewing. It is easier to move the unit over a bit with a tripod than to move the unit and your chair to a different spot around a larger picnic or patio table (a minor point if you are just observing a specific area).There is a lot to be said for seeing a large part of a constellation at once...I have a 20 inch Obsession as well as the aforementioned Astrophysics. Now my Fujinons represent an entirely new and equally enticing third way to experience the skies, much to my surprise...I am really looking forward to using a laptop to correlate my views with reference data. With this device, binoculars become real instruments; ones that deserve real eyepieces, filters, encoders, guide books, etc. SkyWindow - your binoculars are wasted without it...One man's opinion...
From Dan Bush
Albany, MO
I use an Orion UltraView 10X50 binocular on mine and love it. The window performs great. Its ease of use is astounding. No more bending your neck skyward for a view of things near the zenith. The motions are very smooth. I usually mount mine on a Slik U212 Photo tripod for the azimuth motion. This also allows me to adjust the height above the ground of the window.I've never observed with it any other way but will try it from a table later on this summer. . Its fit and finish are awesome and it assembles in less than 5 minutes. I never take mine apart which is a plus not to have any take-down or setup time when observing.The only drawback in my opinion is the reversed image but this is not a problem with astronomical objects. It matches the views of my refractors.It takes a little getting used to when starhopping for an object and sometimes becomes quite confusing but with a little practice it becomes easier.I can see many deepsky objects and since it is so steady I can see many faint objects that require steadyness such as galaxies in the Virgo cluster. Large Open clusters are particulary pleasing with my setup. To describe the views more would be more of a comment or review of the binoculars themselves so I won't go into that too much. It's just that the images are rock solid and the viewing angle and comfort is wonderful. Even with one of those high dollar UniMounts or whatever they're called you still have to tilt your head back in some weird ways or lay in a reclining chair to see things overhead.Not with the Sky Window. Just sit down and look down and see directly overhead. Star images are not affected by the mirror....or at least I cannot notice any effect.
I kind of dismissed the claim on the Sky Window web site about seeing more satellites with it until I used it for a while. I can not believe the number of satellites that I see with it on any given night. Makes me want to take up a more serious program of satellite observing. I also get a kick out of looking at planes in the air as they go over my home here in Northern Missouri and I plan to try using the Sky Window to do that.
From John Stamm
New Orleans
I was finally able to use my new Sky Window in dark skies. Last week my Astronomy club, the Pontchartrain Astronomy Society (PAS) joined forces with the Baton Rouge Astronomy Society (BRAS) for a wonderful star party at the PAS dark sky site. Here was my first opportunity to use my new window to the skies!
I must say this Sky Window proved all the buildup was no hype. Using my Orion 8x42 UltraView's, I had a lot of fun looking at new, steady images through my binoculars. I was surprised at the ease at which objects can be found. This was one of my biggest worries before I purchased the Sky Window. I discovered that I could simply find the object I wanted by directly gazing into the mirror itself from right beside the binoculars. This made it a snap to view even objects at the zenith!
After getting the hang of navigating with this unit and when the skies really darkened, I was amazed at the objects my small binoculars could actually pull in. With the Sky Window, I was able to find M81 and M82, M51 (the Whirlpool), and M101. I was almost shocked to find these galaxies, shocked but pleased!
Other objects viewed this night were M13, M27, Lagoon, Trifid, and other clusters and nebulae in the Sagittarius - Scorpius region. Surprisingly, I even saw two very dim satellites. I especially had fun just scanning the Milky Way enjoying the view of the star clouds! Never before in my small binoculars has the view of the Milky Way been so crisp and defined. I must say having a comfortable, stable mount really makes a big difference.
Perhaps the most rewarding aspect of last weekend was to be able to share the experience with others. I'm not the only one who was impressed with the Sky Window. The current president of the PAS has even ordered his own. Perhaps, since there seems to be a growing interest in binocular Astronomy in the PAS, a number of Windows may be making their way down to New Orleans!
I do have a question. This may be "looking a gift horse in the mouth" but why didn't dew form on the mirror? Even though dew formed many times on the eyepieces on the binoculars throughout the four or five hours I was using the Sky Window, the mirror remained dry. I did NOT expect this. I expected the mirror to be a "dew magnet". Can anyone tell me why dew did not form?
