In a message dated 8/1/03 10:44:30 PM, sciteach@mchsi.com writes: << (2) how many minutes of angle apart would they be at the best possible angle directly overhead? In other words, can I expect to be able to resolve the pair using my 7 x 35 mm binoculars? >> As pointed out, the tether is vertical, so a near-zenith pass produces a near eclipse, not maximum separation. The tether is 4km, so you can approximate the projected separation with a little trig, depending on the range. My rough estimate from a scope view is around 3 to 5 arcminutes. 7x should be enough to split them for part of a pass. The end masses are faint enough to need dark skies to see well. I don't know if anyone has seen the tether with 7x35s. I have used 10x70s, 11x80s, tripod mounted and aimed at a preset star field. Finding TiPS is quite a bit easier for me with a 6" or 12" Dobsonian, at low power, 30x to 50x. I find that I can track more smoothly with a scope (than handheld binoculars), and this helps spotting the glints from the tether. Dan Laszlo Northern Colorado Astronomical Society ----------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from SeeSat-L, send a message with 'unsubscribe' in the SUBJECT to SeeSat-L-request@satobs.org List archived at http://www.satobs.org/seesat/seesatindex.html
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