Flight carry-on telescope setup

[Komal Bhardwaj]

I am curious to know how does your flight carry-on telescope setup look like? CloudyNights has got great information, but I wanted to check from the TAC folks also as I know many of you personally :) 

I am thinking it could be useful for next year's eclipse travel to path of totality (Texas / OK) and other flight travels to national parks or dark sky sites. My main use case is visual observations.

I've a Astro Tech 115mm EDT refractor with Stellarvue M2C mount + Tripod. The refractor has got a heavy duty nylon case. I am not sure if this refractor can go as carry on luggage, and I don't want to check it in and repent if it is not handled well by airlines. Or am I being too pessimistic with airline handling? 

From the little research that I did, I am leaning towards a used ~90mm refractor and reuse the existing SV tripod / mount that I've got. Celestron AWB 5" also seems to be a very affordable / good alternative. But perhaps its optics may not be comparable to a good quality refractor. 

Regards,

Komal

[Aris Pope]

Have you thought about shipping it to meet you there??

Aris

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[KG]

Personally I would rather drive to Texas!

(That was my plan, but unfortunately will be out of the country at that time 😂).

Sent from my iPhone -made in China😴

On Oct 26, 2023, at 12:29 AM, Aris Pope <arispo...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Komal Bhardwaj]

Aris - interesting option. I've not given a thought about shipping - sounds like a decent option. I checked the shipping rates and it comes out to ~ $140 for Fedex roundtrip (Cupertino to San Antonio). Definitely cheaper than a refractor, but may start becoming expensive for multiple flight trips. 

Gopal - yes, I would also prefer to drive down, but family will shoot down the proposal.

[Philippe Fossier]

Having recently observed some pretty "rough" handling of checked luggage being offloaded from a plane,

I would make sure your gear is extra well protected before trusting it to any airline.

-p

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[Alex]

Checked is always gambling. Even with no serious accidents a refractor may arrive with ruined collimation, which will be impossible to correct in the field. Reflectors are much safer as you can remove the optics into carry-on and re-collimate in the field.

[Ted Hauter]

This will be a very difficult eclipse for me. There are no hotels available on the path in TX and rumors are raising hotel prices above $1000.00 for rooms that might be available or sold from under us. There is no BLM land to set up camp, no campsites available near the path that have all been reserved. To top if off, weather predictions are spotty and there is no western travel to get out of clouds unless a trip to Mexico which I will not have my passport renewed in time nor will go to Mexico with my young Son. 

Eastern travel for clear skies predictions takes us 600 miles into OK or 800 miles into AR which has surprisingly the better weather forcast. Roads are limited and if most folks who saw the eclipse in OR ID and WY is there things could get congested a bit.

I believe school is also a factor and have to pull my Son out for several days which is a guilt trip. 

If not enough excuses this is TX people. CA folks are not going to get any special treatment as all the CA folks who moved there have brought no jobs, clogged the roads, and raised all the prices. No fans of CA!

I hate to say it but I might be skipping this one. Only if I can get a bunch of cash together I might fly us to Toronto and see family to meet in Buffalo NY an extreme longshot for weather, availability and ease of getting a site. Tough one!

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[John Pierce]

if my mexico trip hadn't happened, my plan was Elks Lodge[*] camping somewhere within around 200 miles of the eclipse center line, and getting up early that morning and driving to one of 100s of tertiary roads that cross the center line, and just parking on the side of the road.

[*] yes, you have to be an Elks member to RV camp at an Elks lodge, and its RV only, no tents.   Many non-urban lodges, even if the reservable hookup spaces are taken, will let you dry camp a couple nights in their large parking lots for a very reasonable fee.

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[Jonathan Lawton]

Texas state parks were released for booking yesterday morning.  If you are still looking for a site, leave no stone unturned.  There may still be a chance if you act quickly and search exhaustively.  There are also tools you can use to check automatically for cancellations.  It's possible!

What's your source for weather predictions?  From what I've seen estimated cloud fraction increases pretty smoothly along the path.  This is nearly 6 months away, I don't think it's possible to make a more definitive statement about the clouds this far out.

Jonathan

On Thu, Oct 26, 2023 at 11:20 AM Ted Hauter <thgo...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[Alex]

For the 17th totality I have built the perfect itinerary to the dead center spot in Wyoming. On Friday evening after the work I took 4 flights to Nebraska (last leg on the ancient 4 propeller plane). Slept and ate at airports and on the planes. Then raced with the other astronomer from Utah on two rented cars to the centerline of Totality in Wyoming for about 40min on empty freeways. Stopped 10 min before it, precisely by GPS, set up my 4" astroscan and, enjoyed the corona and prominences, celebrated with a glass of local wine with neighbors at the curb, then 4h of driving back to the airport in traffic, dropping car, boarding 10 min before departure, and after 4 planes back to SFO drinking coffee at work in SF at 9am on Monday. 

-Alex

[John Pierce]

I've been using Jay Anderson's 'average cloudiness over NA on April 8th' map, based on satellite data from 2000-2020

https://eclipsophile.com/2024tse/

I expect to be at about 6500 ft elevation in a high desert somewhere north of Durango within 1km of the centerline.

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[Lumpy Darkness]

Hey John, why go to Durango when San Antonio is actually center line with direct flights?

[Arvind K]

I used to do air travel with my scope. Except the tripod which was checked in, every other item is taken as a carry on. My most traveled OTA was the Takahashi fs60 but I’ve traveled with a FSQ106 f/5 inside a soft case from Stellarvue. 

My mount (rst135) goes in a compact wheeled carry on.

Some other notes:

1. I’d recommend only checking in items you’re ok to lose/have it destroyed. 

2. As for shipping: account for possible shipping delays, or travel (flight) delays especially if it’s a quick trip. 

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[John Pierce]

On Thu, Oct 26, 2023 at 1:06 PM Lumpy Darkness <itsmar...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hey John, why go to Durango when San Antonio is actually center line with direct flights?

1) San Antonio is actually on the edge of the eclipse zone, you'd need to travel about 100 miles N to Kerrville or thereabouts to be on the center line.  Good luck finding a rental car at this late stage.

2) that band of Texas has a 50-60% chance of cloud cover on any given April 8th, based on 2000-2020 satellite coverage averages.   Durango is around 20%

3) I have refused to fly commercially since 9/11 for a variety of reasons.

4) The Eclipse is the icing on a 4 month road trip exploring much of Mexico, including Veracruz, Yucatan, Chetumal, Oaxaca, Acapulco, Mazatlan, and the Copper Canyon.

[Jeff Crilly]

Komal --

TL;DR: See if the Pelican 1535 AIR (or TRVL) will fit you AstroTech115.

For the 2017 eclipse we flew from SFO to CVG and rented a car to drive
to kentucky.

The gear I brought along was:

Carry-on :
- Lunt 80 (single stack at the time, but could fit double stack.)
- Canon 15x50 IS
- DSLR & 100-400mm IS lens

Check-in bag:
- Vixen Polaris EQ mount
- Metal bin for counterweight (no weights)
- Various hardware for the mount, and solar filters for the Canon
Binos, and DSLR lens.

Check-in box:
- "Short" vixen tripod. (legs in a separate check-in box)

(There were two of us travelling by air, and it is possible I stuffed
the Canon Binos in my wifes carry-on.)

The Lunt went into a "soft travel bag" -- like a duffel but also has
backpack straps -- padded with a soft jacket, etc... maybe there was
some foam also. This fits in the overhead. Likely not under the
seat.
The mount head and tripod top plate went into my check-in bag. I put
the mount head in a foam lined cardboard box, and put the cardboard
box in my check-in bag.
The legs didn't fit in the check-in bag and went in a seperate box
about the size of the legs; This was considered oversized and came out
in the oversized area.. but it really wasn't that much taller than my
check-in bag.

I didn't want to exceed the weight limit with counterweights, so I
attached a common kitchen metal & plastic "cylindrical pantry bin" to
the CW shaft.
Then when we arrived at CVG we went to the local home depot and picked
up a bag of cactus potting sand (black) and filled the "pantry bin".
(The sand was later disposed of after the eclipse.)

TBH.. I used the PST for the October 2023 eclipse, and that was imo
the best view... visually... mainly due to brightness.
(Normally, the downside with the PST is the lack of full disk "in
tune".. and during an eclipse the "full disk" isn't visible for half
the time anyhow!)

However, with the total in 2017, I found out having a decent setup for
totality is essential. And what served best at that time was the
Canon 15x50 IS w/ the solar filters removed.
I also "imaged" totality with a DSLR / 100-400 zoom, handheld, with
the solar filter removed. It would have been nice to have this
automated on an EQ mount.

If imaging, then it is a bit more complicated; I've seen some ppl use
6" APOs on big mounts, with totally automated exposures, etc. But
modest is likely doable.

Also.. I now have a Pelican 1535TRVL which is overhead-bin-sized; I've
used this for air travel but not with a telescope yet.

I am 99.9999% sure the 1535 AIR (or TRVL) can carry a 110GTX (cuz IIRC
Roland travels to Hawaii with that setup), so I think it should be
able to fit your AstroTech115.

One thing to keep in mind is limited overhead bin space.
In the past few years we have been doing air travel with AlaskaAir...
about 4 times a year (at least)...
We opt for "Premium" seating (or 1st class depending on cost), and
this pretty much assures us overhead bin space.

-jeff

[Lumpy Darkness]

John,

SMF!  I was looking at the annular map.  I thought you were going to Mexico as you've mentioned it before, so I was surprised at mention of Durango, thinking it was Texas and you'd changed plans.  I assume you're talking about Durango Mexico?

I don't need a rental car if I go to TX, I have a chauffer there with property very near exact centerline.  Trip is worth it for me, clear or cloud.  :-)

Anyway, I thought this thread was about flight carry-on telescope gear.  On that I can say, when I went to Chile with my 10" Dob I packed everything except the glass in a 3/8" plywood case I made, and everything delicate went with me as carry-on.  Super easy.  And, as for shipping stuff, I've done that for 20+ years via FedEx and USPS both domestic and international, with only a very few mishaps (out of a lot of shipments).

[Hitesh Dholakia]

Jonathan,

Can you please share links/details? I tried the SP sites and all of them end their choice by March 2024. (They don't have an option for April).

Thanks!

Hitesh

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[Jonathan Lawton]

Yes, the earliest arrival date you can reserve is in March but you can book a stay of up to 14 days. So, everyone booked a 2 week stay yesterday (which covers the night before the eclipse) and will likely cancel most of the reservation except for the night before the eclipse.

Jonathan 

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[Alex]

That's why it is impossible to find any camping around! Crooks booking 4 weeks and canceling 27 days!

[Jay Freeman]

I missed the first part of this thread, but Mark's comment quoted below prompts me to pipe up that I have made a 10-inch Dobson designed for airline portability -- everything except the truss struts packed into a commercial cubical foam-lined container designed for maximum volume subject to airline baggage-size limitations. The truss struts were each composed of two pieces joinable at the half-way point (using as low-tech an assembly technology as I have ever heard of in telescopes), and when disassembled, they fit into a large traditional suitcase.

There is a long article about the telescope and the observing I did with it from the Onizuka Visitor Center, 9200 feet up on Mauna Kea on the big island of Hawai'i, on my web site: http://www.jayreynoldsfreeman.com/Aux/AstroPDFs/HawaiiTrip.text.pdf

I do not have any photographs of it that I can find -- it is well known that I am not an imager -- but an article I wrote about my Hawai'i expedition appeared in (I think) the June, 2002 issue of Sky & Telescope. It has some pictures of the 10-inch, as well as of yours truly, wearing sufficient cold-weather gear for winters in Vermont while on a tropical island in summer. They looked at me very strangely whenI got off the plane in Hilo wearing a down jacket.I know I got brain damage somewhere, somehow -- that might have been it ...

-- Jay Reynolds Freeman, Deep-Sky Weasel
---------------------
Jay_Reynol...@mac.com
http://JayReynoldsFreeman.com (personal web site)

[Jonathan Lawton]

Assuming the cancelation is done timely and not at the last minute, I don't see how this practice makes it impossible to get camp sites?

I do agree that it's not a great policy, though.

Jonathan 

On Thu, Oct 26, 2023, 3:52 PM Alex <alex.k...@gmail.com> wrote:

That's why it is impossible to find any camping around! Crooks booking 4 weeks and canceling 27 days!

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[Akarsh Simha]

On Thu, Oct 26, 2023 at 9:11 AM Komal Bhardwaj <komalb...@gmail.com> wrote:

Aris - interesting option. I've not given a thought about shipping - sounds like a decent option. I checked the shipping rates and it comes out to ~ $140 for Fedex roundtrip (Cupertino to San Antonio). Definitely cheaper than a refractor, but may start becoming expensive for multiple flight trips. 

Gopal - yes, I would also prefer to drive down, but family will shoot down the proposal.

I may be driving to Texas and if I have free space in my truck and you are flying to a nearby region of Texas, I can arrange to carry it. Lots of if's, but it's a legit plan.

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[Karen Bieber]

I’m going to Mazatlan April 2nd, and would like to take my SeeStar. Does anyone have information about size of the telescope case and flying with a lithium battery?

Karen

Sent from my iPhone

On Oct 26, 2023, at 4:02 PM, Jonathan Lawton <jan...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Akarsh Simha]

The lack of public land in Texas makes this one particularly hard. But I know a guy who lives 300 miles from the center line, and he planned out both the 2017 and 2023 eclipses for me. So I've built the habit of relying on him.

Regards

Akarsh

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[John Pierce]

if you're going to carry the scope onboard, it has to be within the carry-on luggage limits, for domestic airlines, its 22 x 14 x 9 including handles and wheels.   Double check this with your airline.

I believe Lithium batteries have to be under 100 Wh total, and no more than 2 batteries,  which for a 12V battery means under 7.5 AH and they must be in your carry-on, NOT checked luggage.

On Thu, Oct 26, 2023 at 6:08 PM Karen Bieber <kaleb...@gmail.com> wrote:

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[Karen Bieber]

Good information. Thanks, John!

Sent from my iPhone

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[Aris Pope]

Karen you can only fly with 100wh maximum

Aris

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[Komal Bhardwaj]

Thank you everyone for your responses. I have got some great inputs. 

Eclipse in April is one event, but I am planning to for other flight travels as well. 

Akarsh, thanks for the offer. I'll sync up with you closer to the time. I may want to align our plans for joint observations. I've rummaged inside your truck a few times and know my refractor / tripod can be shoved somewhere there :) 

John Pierce, thanks for the dimensions - I'll triple check my luggage weight / dimensions. 

Jay Freeman, your website is so cool. Thanks for the meticulous description of how you packed your Dob for Hawaii. Great report. It's going to be daunting for me to do the same with my Dob as my DIY skills are limited, but good to know how it's to be done if need be. Also, a bit of digression, I checkout a few other articles on your site as well. The comment about NGC 4565 is so apt: 

Mark Wagnor, good to know that Dobs can be taken on airplane, and Fedex / UPS shipment is reliable. 

Jeff Crilly, Arvind K - thanks for sharing details of your setup. My setup might look like yours in terms of dimensions / weight - just that my mount will be for visual & not for AP. 

[Ted Hauter]

Trying! Passport renew soon.. 

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[Ted Hauter]

Binos (and a camera) go in sport bag heavily lined with clothing. Tripod goes to golf travel airline case with avx mount. No need for counterweights.

[Ted Hauter]

Pic did not go through.

Wish could put on AVX😅

[Karen Bieber]

Thanks, Aris! This is the SeeStar spec sheet. It may be under, but I will double check with Alaska when the time comes.

K

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[Arvind K]

This is what I use for air travel:

Anker - PowerCore III Elite 25600 mah 87W USB-C PD Portable Charger. This is just under the allowed limit and is safe to use for domestic air travel. 

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[ma...@astrospotter.com]

When in Texas for the annular eclipse I took my 60mm stellarvue finder with right angle 1.25" diagonal (part of the unit).  Then I put a 60mm solar 'mylar' filter in front and used the televue 8-24mm zoom eyepiece.  This was all put on top of a metal but light weight tripod where the legs had 4 sections and a central bar to hold the foot.  So this allowed the entire collapsed tripod to fit in a standard rolling suitcase with room for cloths and other stuff.  A little tight but great due to no need for thick jacket as it was daytime observing.  I left my quark solar 'eyepiece' filter at home but may bring that for April.   I also then could remove mylar filter and use scope/eyepiece to project onto paper the eclipse progress.  Worked great!