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| Saturn from decades ago, had a different ring tilt - more edge on. |
Planet Saturn Blasts into View - Celestron Nexstar 6-inch SE
As the story goes way back in the 1960s, I was taking classes in Jr. high school and a friend was pacing his new Criterion 6-inch reflector telescope that evening along with the Pastor's large refracting Unitron telescope. I was experimenting with the paramount invention of a new film developer, with the resolution of Acufine and the contrast of Metol. I asked to take a couple of photos of the planet Saturn through the telescope, not expecting much of anything, and he said, sure ok. When the negatives were developed, the results were mind blowing!
Seeing conditions were exceptional that night when I attached my Praktina FX camera with a roll of film, Kodak Tri-X emulsion, and snapped very few Saturn photos which were later developed that night in the astro photographic darkroom. When the negatives were printed, I was stunned and completely blown away as they had the appearance of an observatory telescope photo taken with an aperture of a much larger size. The ringed planet was obviously at opposition, closest to the Earth and the view was crisp and clear with many divisions in the rings clearly visible.
Now, with Saturn and the rings in a different angle of tilt position, more open to face on, it begins its long journey towards another apposition, and the nostalgic telescopes comes to mind. This time, the telescope is a high resolution catadioptric Celestron f/10 Nexstar 6-inch SE on an altazimuth tracking mount with GOTO features.
