Bottom line, I liked this series. As an "avid astronomer" myself, it was really something out of the ordinary to see a sit-com done with Siding Springs and massive telescopes as the backdrop. The humor is good too. I thought the scope of the first season wasn't too much, neither too little. So I liked it.
That said, I know it's low budget, but could you at least get a first year astronomy student a six pack of beer and have them spend 15 minutes with each episode??? The technical stuff is cringeworthy. And I mean at the level a 12 year old kid with a backyard 'scope would catch. We also don't need KBOs being called planets after all the stupidity around Pluto's status. It's too bad that some git that doesn't know a CCD from a hole in the ground from...well, it's too bad that some git had to claim they could be a technical editor, because, whoever you are, you obviously couldn't test out of primary school physics.
I'm serious. Get your 12 year old nephew aside that has a telescope and ask if you can observer with the lights on indoors. Could even the most far-fetched science fiction writer explain how one can tell that you're dealing with a NEO simply by looking at it through an eyepiece. Whilst Sirius, the brightest star in the sky is in the field of view. That's really absurd. A telescope that size looking at Sirius? You'd either have to use a filter or you'd be blinded for 10 minutes. Either way you wouldn't be able to see a faint asteroid.
IF any of SS's telescopes still even have a primary focus; most all have been replaced with CCDs and are used remotely from a computer screen. The only thing that seemed to have consultation was the blink comparator at the end...and it was simply grafted on in a way that made no sense given what they've said before that point. Add to that they don't seem to know the difference between the universe and solar system... It's too bad. Contact me guys. I'll edit for free. It could be a really nice series if they could just take the SUBJECT MATTER seriously. Seriously, the science in this series is about as much real astronomy as the Simpson's treatment of Homer at his job is real nuclear physics.
That said, I know it's low budget, but could you at least get a first year astronomy student a six pack of beer and have them spend 15 minutes with each episode??? The technical stuff is cringeworthy. And I mean at the level a 12 year old kid with a backyard 'scope would catch. We also don't need KBOs being called planets after all the stupidity around Pluto's status. It's too bad that some git that doesn't know a CCD from a hole in the ground from...well, it's too bad that some git had to claim they could be a technical editor, because, whoever you are, you obviously couldn't test out of primary school physics.
I'm serious. Get your 12 year old nephew aside that has a telescope and ask if you can observer with the lights on indoors. Could even the most far-fetched science fiction writer explain how one can tell that you're dealing with a NEO simply by looking at it through an eyepiece. Whilst Sirius, the brightest star in the sky is in the field of view. That's really absurd. A telescope that size looking at Sirius? You'd either have to use a filter or you'd be blinded for 10 minutes. Either way you wouldn't be able to see a faint asteroid.
IF any of SS's telescopes still even have a primary focus; most all have been replaced with CCDs and are used remotely from a computer screen. The only thing that seemed to have consultation was the blink comparator at the end...and it was simply grafted on in a way that made no sense given what they've said before that point. Add to that they don't seem to know the difference between the universe and solar system... It's too bad. Contact me guys. I'll edit for free. It could be a really nice series if they could just take the SUBJECT MATTER seriously. Seriously, the science in this series is about as much real astronomy as the Simpson's treatment of Homer at his job is real nuclear physics.
