Tag Archives: Gary Parkerson

12 Free Months Of Astronomy Technology Today! Tell’em CNYO (Or Your Own Club) Sent You.

Posted on February 1, 2016 8:47 pm - - Leave a Comment

Greetings fellow astrophiles!

I am please to (have been given the go-ahead to) report on a special deal going on for new subscribers to Astronomy Technology Today (ATT,fb) – the announcement making its way into my inbox courtesy of friend (and fellow KAS member) George Normandin of Kopernik Astronomical Society and, in order to make sure that posting to the website was legit, friend (and managing editor) Gary Parkerson of ATT.

Brief, Biased Background

From the ATT website: If you’re an advanced star gazing enthusiast or would like to learn more about getting into the hobby, you need to subscribe to Astronomy Technology Today!

We are the only magazine in the world dedicated entirely to telescopes and related equipment. We offer both print and digital versions and as a subscriber you can view every back issue online, which means that you’ll have access to over 400 reviews, how to articles, new product introductions, industry news, ATM articles, astrophotography, and much more.

ATT, to me, is THE magazine for the committed, equipment-minded amateur astronomer who wants to keep track of the very rapid developments in scopes, CCDs, software, and image processing, just to name a few areas. This is not only evident in the quality of the reviews provided by professional amateurs on all ranges of equipment, but is also evident in the advertisers, including all the big name companies and distributors, but also including many of the very niche markets and suppliers of those “little extras” that you know were borne out of one astronomer’s own need to solve a problem. The reviews themselves are always well constructed and exhaustive – seeing someone hammer on a piece of equipment for 6 to 10 pages is not uncommon. I am also privy to some new info that the magazine itself is undergoing a bit of an expansion – no details, but I eagerly await what the next issues have to offer.

And, of course, CNYO members will know that I’m strongly biased, as not only has Ryan Goodson published in the May-June 2014 edition of ATT (fine details about the Paracorr Type-2, pg. 53), but I was pleased to provide a review myself of an NMT scope in the May-June 2013 issue (a 16″ NMT Dob, pg. 37) – and I’ve been a subscriber ever since.

ATT is a wealth of info. And it’s already inexpensive! And now even more economically enticing for up-to a year for CNYO or other club members.

The ATT Deal

The procedure works! I subscribed for the free year using a CNYO email address, so promise that you can get to the end from the beginning.

Follow the link below and use the Discount Code: “club” (no quotes, lowercase), then select the ONLINE ACCESS SUBSCRIPTION $12 option (as below – note! If your page says “Renew Your Subscription,” this code will not work – blame your cookies).

www.astronomytechnologytoday.com/?l=/sub_store/subscribe.asp

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You’ll immediately be taken to a Customer Information page to fill out. If the first page worked, you’ll see a “Discount for club -$12” at the top of the page and a “USD $0” at the bottom. You’re good to go! Fill in the Customer Information and skip the Payment Info. If you’re feeling associated, give CNY Observers as the Astronomy Club Name (and consider yourself an official member with all of the benefits that current members also don’t have).

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Hit Submit Order, and you’re good to go (and’ll have a confirmation email show up soon after).

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That’s it! I encourage everyone to take advantage of this great offer for a great magazine – then keep ATT going by going official when you get your Renewal notice. Also, if you’ve got a new piece of equipment and something profound to say about it, consider putting an article together and submit it for consideration. You could save someone many dollars and all their senses!

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An Astronomical Trifecta For Ryan Goodson And New Moon Telescopes

Posted on July 23, 2014 9:16 pm - - 1 Comment

Greetings fellow astrophiles,

Having a master scope builder in our own backyard has made the lives of several CNYO members very easy. Not only is Ryan Goodson a great observing partner, but he has either brought or built many of the best scopes that make their way to our library lectures, later-night school outings, county parks, North Sportsman’s Club, or his own observing base at New Moon Telescopes HQ. To that end, I’m happy to help Ryan and NMT celebrate a unique astronomical milestone this summer, having pulled off recognition in three prominent astronomy magazines.

1. Feature Article In Astronomy Technology Today

2014july14_ATTTo begin, Ryan contributed a combination technical analysis/product review based on a hot topic he’s been pondering from the builder perspective for over a year now. The article, “Calculating The Perfect Telescope Size Post Paracorr Type-2,” is one of the feature articles in the May-June 2014 issue of Astronomy Technology Today, one of the great amateur astronomy magazines that features contributions from the broader amateur astronomy community.

For those who missed their chance to pick up a copy at Barnes & Noble this year (the only place around here that we now carries it), ATT and their editor Gary Parkerson have allowed CNYO to reproduce the article in PDF format for your reading pleasure.

Download The ATT Article HERE

Several of us in CNYO are subscribers to ATT (I ripped this PDF from my subscription) and we encourage you to geek-out bimonthly to product reviews and expert opinions from real users in our community. From the article:

Calculating the Perfect Telescope Size Post Paracorr Type-2

And the perfect telescope size is…?

The perfect telescope size is… It’s a line that invites critique and insight from every corner of the astronomical community. Having built a number of telescopes for clients all over the U.S., I have called three of my New Moon Telescopes my own: a 12.5-inch f/4.9, a 16-inch f/4.5, and a 27-inch f/3.9. Outside of those three Dobsonian-style telescopes, I have also owned various refractors and binoculars and a large arsenal of eyepieces. But since I build Dobsonians-style telescopes (okay, “Dobs”) for a living, however, I will limit my opinion to that particular style. My opinion of the perfect Dob size has changed over the years as my observing habits have also evolved.

2. A NEAF Shout-Out In Sky & Telescope Magazine

2014july14_SkyTelNMT had a great showing at the Northeast Astronomy Forum (NEAF) this past year (and several of us stopped by the booth looking for free samples). In their own coverage of event highlights, the venerable Sky & Telescope Magazine (also worth your considered subscription – their list and coverage of important astronomical events is certainly one of the best ways to know what the month holds for amateur astronomers the world over) focused in on NMT’s new aluminum bearing design. Kudos to John Giroux for spotting the bearings first.

A snippet from the August 2014 issue is shown at right. Their brief write-up of the bearing design is reproduced below:

24. www.newmoontelescopes.com New Moon Telescopes had a great display of its custom mid- and large-aperture Dobso- nians. Of special note were the company’s new lightweight-aluminum altitude bearings with a textured powder coating that produced just the right amount of “stiction” for a Dob mount.

3. Star Product Designation From Astronomy Magazine!

2014july14_starproduct_indexTo soon be announced in the September issue of Astronomy Magazine, NMT’s 12.5 f/5 Dobsonian telescope has been selected as a Best-Of by the other venerable oracle of events and celestial highlights. An excellent notch in Ryan’s belt that several of us already knew all about. As a shameless plug, I’m the proud owner of the first NMT production model, a 12.5″ f/5ish Dob known affectionately as Ruby (for the red MoonLite focuser). Now over 3 years and many, many observing sessions in, I’ve yet to want for another telescope. Not even interested.

Stay tuned for more press when the official publication comes out. In the meantime, a hearty congrats to Ryan (and Heather and Lily!) and NMT on the astronomical trifecta!

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The 16-inch f/4.5 Collapsible-Truss Dobsonian From New Moon Telescopes – Feature Article In Astronomy Technology Today

Posted on June 22, 2013 6:08 pm - - 3 Comments

Greetings fellow astrophiles!

As if NEAF wasn’t already an excellent first showing for Ryan (and Heather!) Goodson and New Moon Telescopes (including discussions at Cloudy Nights (link 1, link 2) and a recorded observation in Sky & Telescope in this month’s issue), I am pleased to provide a full copy of the result of their first NEAF meeting with Gary Parkerson, Managing Editor of Astronomy Technology Today (www.astronomytechnologytoday.com): A feature (and cover) article (by yours truly) giving the NMT 16″ f/4.5 Dobsonian a complete walk-through in the May-June 2013 issue.

Before anything else – I’d like to personally thank Gary and all at ATT for providing a platform for my review of the NMT scope, their continued support of other amateur astronomers through many years of excellent equipment reviews, and their complete coolness with allowing CNYO to repost the complete article for your viewing pleasure.

Click HERE For The Full Article (PDF, 2.3 MB)


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From the article:

New Moon Telescopes (NMT, newmoontelescopes.com) is a very recent addition to the list of manufacturers of custom Dobsonians, having made their first company appearance at the Kopernik Winter Star Party (kopernik.org) this past January and their commercial appearance at NEAF 2013 this past April.

While NMT is now making itself known to the larger amateur astronomy community, NMT is no secret to Central New York observers. Amateur astronomers in several CNY astronomy clubs have seen the expert woodworking skills and design choices of NMT’s owner and sole craftsman, Ryan Goodson, first-hand, giving CNY observers and their always unpredictable weather conditions the honor of being NMT’s original customer base both in rebuilds and new Dobsonians.

The article introduction is no joke! There are three NMT Dobs owned just by CNYO session hosts alone (Larry S, Dan W, and myself), not counting whatever Ryan brings to our observing sessions, then several additional just in the CNY area (one CNY customer’s beautiful 18” Dob having been on display at NEAF). I remember just within the past ten years when SCTs and fancy mounts seemed to rule the observing grounds at Darling Hill Observatory, now all of the sessions I attend are populated by light buckets. The GOTO is increasingly being superseded in favor of memorization. I say excellent!

As a point of discussion in the article, I make reference to Ryan’s high-end component choices (the MoonLite focuser being high on the list – my “Ruby” (NMT #1) is named for its red focuser). I spent an extra block of time discussing the merits of a primary mirror purchase from John Lightholder at Lightholder Premium Optics.

Just as I have seen many an amateur astronomer start with seemingly decent eyepieces, then eventually sell and buy their way up to TeleVue (my personal bias, anyway), I have heard too many stories of observers with primary mirrors that eventually have their faults found out over the course of many observing sessions (the primary mirrors, that is). The solution, while not cheap, is simple – start with the best you can get and never, ever, find yourself regretting an “intermediate” purchase when you go to finally take the plunge on a high-quality primary.
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The mirror alone cost more than many of the major vendors are currently charging for complete-and-shipped 12-inch Dobsonian telescopes. The reason is simple – it is absolutely worth it.

A final thought about the whole enterprise comes from Gary himself at ATT:

The Goodsons’ telescopes captured my attention, as did the Goodsons themselves, for the simple reason that they represent one of the aspects I love most about the telescope industry. Astronomy enthusiasts are primarily served by what are essentially cottage enterprises, populated with business people and craftsmen for whom their astro products and services represent labors of love. Most are family businesses, as is ATT, a fact that is reinforced with each trip to NEAF as I am privileged to again greet in person the family partnerships who gather there each year.

I am grateful to Gary and ATT for allowing us to repost the complete article on the CNYO website (and this pruned version of the issue was generated from the PDF I obtained as an enlightened subscriber to the digital version of ATT). It remains an excellent source of information from real users of equipment, a kind of completeness of analysis and discussion many of us had the pleasure of experiencing during discussions with Stu Forster and still have the pleasure of experiencing with my favorite local scope-sage Bob Piekiel.

And why yes, now that you mention it, it is easy to subscribe to ATT today! Click on the image below for more info!

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