G'Day

[paul1598419]

Those were great photos, Andrew. They easily showed that green laser light is very visible at low power levels. You really don't need a lot of power to see it in the dark. In fact, in the dark it can be really off putting to suddenly see a high power green laser.

 

[RB astro]

Those were great photos, Andrew. They easily showed that green laser light is very visible at low power levels. You really don't need a lot of power to see it in the dark. In fact, in the dark it can be really off putting to suddenly see a high power green laser.

Exactly Paul.
For him to suggest that 80mW is not enough for star pointing tours means he's either:

(1) Made the wrong assumption and just wanted to advise the OP anyway.

or
(2) He's conducting star pointing tours outside the Bellagio. :crackup:

:beer:

 

[paul1598419]

My guess is #2. :crackup:

 

[G1yph]

First off thank you ALL for the responses. I have made one purchase decision already, a 5mW green from Laserglow (Lyra series).

I chose this for the presentation option because reviews said it was a solid construction, and the button isn't rubber. I would have gone with a Galileo but the button being on the back kinda kills that one for presentation (unless I just leave it on which maybe would have worked but would have eaten batteries).

I will obviously put this laser to the test outdoors for the other purposes anyways but realize that it'll likely fail (I just want to test the limits and will 100% report back fully).

As for the rest:

I'm sorry but this statement is not an informed opinion.
Yes, an 80mW green laser's beam may not be highly visible indoors.
Yes, the dot would be very bright for presentations.
No, experienced astronomer/observer don't want a green beam that is so bright that it ruins their night vision of the stars.
You're saying that an 80mW greenie is not very visible for pointing at stars???
I have experienced astronomy associates that I go observing/imaging with every other month and we use green lasers of between 5mW and 20mW to point stars and constellations out to crowds when we host star party events.
You don't need anything more that say 50mW and if by chance someone does use one that's brighter, they receive complaints from other astronomers.

You might think you like to see a mega beam when pointing out stars but that's just a noob mistake.
No one wants/needs more than a 50mW greenie for astro purposes.

To the OP, I have a rated 20mW green (532nm) pen laser that takes 2 AA's.
This is how I actually got into lasers, from astronomy.
It is perfect for indoor use, pointing out things to people.
It's perfect for pointing things out 10m away in daylight like rock outcrops.
And of course it's perfect for using as a star pointer that preserves your night vision of the stars once your eyes have adjusted to night adaptation.
You certainly don't want the beam to ruin your dark adaptation making it impossible to view the faint objects of the sky you're trying to point out and observe.

If it's good enough for a rig like this (sitting on top of a guide scope), it's perfect for handheld pointing out of stars in general.

Thank you! I am reasonably well-versed in physics and was pretty sure this post (and the one I called out above) was being more than a little unhelpful. Glad I'm vindicated here, and I agree the only place I could think this is necessary is in NYC or Vegas, but it's not like I'm in either of those...oh wait...I am. Well we'll see I guess!

RB Astro, I would love to look into the pen you have but unless I'm missing something I don't see a brand or any labeling anywhere! Would you mind sharing what it is, or at least PMing me?

Thanks again everyone, more updates to come once the pointer gets in.

 

[lasersbee]

What he is saying is any laser that would be safe for presentation will have a barely visible beam pointing out stars no matter how much you spend, I have a 80mW green laser and the beam is not very visible indoors but the dot is very bright for presentations but even at 80mW the beam isn't very visible pointing at stars.

It's just the nature of the beast i'm sorry to say.......

He understands just fine......
Read his post # 10 just above yours...

@G1yp..
Good choice...


Jerry