Introduction; Q's about Telescopes, Predition Software

Greetings! (Finally, people that share the same hobby as
I do!)

First, my introduction: I can't really pinpoint what started
me off in satellite viewing, but I think it was a FIDO echo
(SB Sat-Track) that was available on a local bulletin board.
It seemed interesting enough, so I attempted to do some research
on the subject; this was easier said than done.

I had to drive halfway across the state just to find a library
that carried Desmond King-Hele's (excellent) book, "Observing
Earth Satellites." His other texts are available only at the
not-so-local University, so it looks like I'm going to be purchasing
them.

Living in cloudy New England proves to be frustrating at times:
It seems that whenever I have the time to go out and search
for satellites, dense cloud cover rolls in. Conversely, if
I don't have any satellite predictions at hand, the sky
couldn't be clearer. (This used to be a _big_ problem when my
only computer was an IBM XT... To process 127 satellites
would take over two hours!)

Regardless, whenever I _actually_ get to observe some satellite
passes, it's a real treat.

Telescope question: Right now, I'm in the market to get a telescope
to view these satellites - especially the fainter ones. If anyone
can make a suggestion as to what to get, especially something that
can also be used for deep-space viewing, please do. 8-)

Prediction Software question: Since I recently upgraded to a
Pentium, I'd like to be able to process one of those monster
elements files (like the 8,000 element file available of the list
server). Unfortunately, my current software can't handle
anything more than 200 or so satellites. What's the best
PC software to do large predictions with?

  Regards,
    Greg
    gmortensen_at_delphi.com
Received on Sun Jun 04 1995 - 13:18:13 UTC