Observation #2: Telescope Disorientation

As a complete novice to astronomy, I made a number of mistakes on observation 2, stemming mostly from a poor understanding of right ascension and declination, and how to use them to map stars. I was, as it turns out, doing nearly everything wrong - yet in the excitement of getting outside and stargazing, I was too lazy to read the manual and correct myself in the moment. I noted the azimuth and RA of my observations, but since I did not correctly calibrate my telescope these observations are not super useful.

Despite this, I was able to make a few fun observations.

November 23, 2020

21:30 EST - 22:30 EST

Sunset: 17:33

Approximate lat-long: 28, -82

Skies: clear

Temperature: 60 F

Light pollution: moderate

Astronomer mood: excitable

Observations:

I was able to observe several easily-located celestial bodies, including:

Moon: South-Southwest of position. Sea of Tranquility (Mare Tranquillitatus); multiple craters, names yet unknown. Waxing gibbous.

Orion: Roughly east. Learned to use right-ascension to track along Orion's belt.  

Betelgeuse: bright, easily visible to naked eye. Telescope observation made.

Aldebaran: bright, easily visible to naked eye. Telescope observation made. 

I did find a star cluster I could not easily identify. Relative to Aldebaran it was southeast; but again, due to improper technique, I have only a vague idea where to find it. Next observation, I will try to collect the specific coordinates of this cluster and see what it is. 

I also observed at least two distinct owls in my neighborhood by sound - no sighting was made of these birds. Several aircraft also passed overhead, mostly North- and West-bound.