astrolulu

Thanks Jeff, the telescope seems quite decent, although it requires careful attention to collimation, and the standard coma correction turns out to be a bit insufficient with a large sensor. Even in my ASI 183 camera, it happens that the outer parts of the frame lose precision due to coma.

Thank you very much, it was an exceptionally nice night and good conditions. I took more shots, but unfortunately some of them turned out to be spoiled due to the strange striped pattern that appeared on the stacks - especially in places with less varied textures. I'm trying to identify the source of the problem - the only hardware difference from previous sessions is the use of ADC...

Quality optics and a good logo can be valuable during visual observations. When stacking hundreds or thousands of frames, they become meaningless - what matters is the aperture.

Thanks so much Graham! I'm very happy to hear that my map is being used. It is true that this is an "analog" project in a sense and does not allow for development along with the progress of technology - as is the case with interactive maps. Well, that was the idea - to do something that is available with one click, without having to run the software. Of course, this significantly limits functionality, so it's good to know that someone still sees a reason to use such a solution 🙂 An here the next image, extending slightly further north, covering Tycho's neighborhood:

Hi Patrick. The models you mentioned have definitely too large pixel size (3.75), which will prevent you from using the full resolution resulting from the 8" diameter of the telescope. In the case of SCT with a focal length of approximately 2 m, the 2.4 pixel, used in models such as the ASI 178, is much more optimal. To get closer to the optimum, you would have to use a Barlow lens, extending the focal length to an absurd size of 4 m. Please have a look: http://www.wilmslowastro.com/software/formulae.htm#CCD_Sampling

The moon in this phase is considered unattractive due to the modest chiaroscuro. And yet it can be beautiful!

Thank you so much for these inspiring comments! It's time to post something to revive the thread. The first frames from the memorable Tuesday, March 19. The night near Krakow was beautiful, unique compared to what had been happening since the beginning of the year... As for technological innovations - I used the ZWO ADC corrector, although the Moon was so high that there was no special justification for it. But that's what I meant - I wanted to check whether the ADC would not worsen the effect even when it is clearly not necessary. It doesn't seem to worsen the picture. NexStar 8SE + ZWO ASI 183 MC camera with Baader UV/IR-cut L filter.

Perfect details, nice natural color. I like it 🙂

Great - the scale of the photo perfectly matches the actual resolution.

Hello Michael. If I can give you any advice - first try to reduce the size of the image to the smallest one that does not result in the loss of the smallest details, and only then sharpen the image.

Beautiful picture Mandy, congratulations!

Beautiful, delicate color - closer to natural than the effects of the "mineral" series.

The weather is so miserable that there is nothing else to do but reach back to last year's arrears and finish processing the autumn photos. For example, I came across this... Technically it's not exciting, but the lighting of Copernicus and its surroundings turned out to be so interesting that I decided it was worth presenting. September 9, 2023 by NexStar 8SE:

Even worse - it's hard to talk about art here, rather a temporary stylistic trend... 🙂

I worked on the tripod for days. I removed the original varnish, then applied 4 layers of shellac and protected it against moisture with 2 layers of yacht varnish. As a result, the color of the wood returned to the dark tone in which it originally came to me, while also retaining its high gloss, which surprised me a bit, but it seems that these old tripods were painted in this way by PZO. It turns out that at the moment this model of an old tripod has become very sought after in Poland as an element of "loft" style interior design. Heavy stage spotlights are mounted on it, which contrast well with the light, openwork structure. On advertising portals, such a tripod in the interior design section can cost many times more than the entire set with the telescope in the astro equipment section 🙂