Mar 23 2006 Nexstar 8 Moon Valley Observatory 9:20 PM MST Excellent seeing (8) for 15 entire minutes. It is an evening with some high clouds, but it looks steady, so I open the roof and let the scope cool for 30 minutes. As soon as I put the 10mm Lanthanum eyepiece in (200X) I know that it has been worth my time. The view of Saturn is sharp and shows excellent contrast. I immediately put in the 7.5mm Lanthanum and it provides the best view at 267X. Saturn is really showing off at its best. There is detail on the ball of the planet--one wide yellowish band, another that is more ivory in color and the polar cap is dark and unmistakable. The rings are terrific, the inner Crepe ring is quite easy and Cassini's division is black and sharply defined. Titan is the easy satellite on the east side of the planet, Dione and Rhea are off to the west. Tethys is near the disk of Saturn on the SE side. A great view of an old favorite. After all these years it is still a fascinating planet. And then, the good seeing went away as the breeze picked up and I did some wide double stars for a while. Just a warm up for the marathon; Steve Coe -- See message header for info on list archives or unsubscribing, and please send personal replies to the author, not the list.