Come, my friends,
'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.
Push off, and sitting well in order smite
The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds
To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths
Of all the western stars, until I die.

                              Tennyson, "Ulysses"

Amateur Astronomy

I have been an amateur astronomer in some guise or other since I was a small boy. At that time my parents presented my sisters and me with a small 60mm Tasco refractor. Too young at that time to really appreciate the beauty and mysteries of astronomy, I allowed my interest to remain dormant. It remained so until I was posted with the U.S. Army to Fort Lewis, Washington, in 1982. Enroute, I discovered the old Tasco, now much older and abandoned in the garage, and took it with me. Several months later in Washington, I set the old telescope up for its "first light" and was seduced by the revelation of Saturn and its rings.

Star-Hopping There are two ways to find astronomical objects: by accident (not recommended) or by design. Star-hopping allows you to find almost any object with having to resort to computer support or equatorially driven telescopes.
References So, just what is out there to see? You won't have a clue unless you have some sort of idea.
Miscellaneous Other items of interest.

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Updated 1.31.99

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