Norris Adams

Beautiful image!

Competing with Hubble? Somebody likes a challenge! Amazing work - great achievement! Regards, Norris

Hi Tony, I'd been looking for something to give me a better focusing ratio for some time. Not being able to find an over-the-counter solution I'd tried various home-made ideas with limited success. Your chance remark (regarding a clamp) made me think of a small, retail clothes 'grip' that I had thrown into my tool box just the other day. I felt sure it would be useful for something...! I've just tried it and it works great! Rigid, secure and light to control and move! Because I'm only using it at the point of fine focus (for EAA work), it will never have to move more than a few degrees., so there's no interference issue. But trying to achieve those few degrees (or even sub-degree movement) when using a small wheel is mighty difficult!! Thanks again!!! Norris

Here's my first go at a DSO. Bode's after seven minutes! It was taken a couple of years ago. Even though it's smeared and grimy, it still delighted me at the time. Without a camera, I'd spent many nights 'wobbling' the scope to try to catch a glimpse of something that the star maps told me was definitely there, but I'd never been able to see it. Here at last was proof they weren't lying!!! Norris

Hi Ed - I guess with the task of sketching particular targets you probably observe much more than the average astronomer. Your work reminds me of a conversation between Dr Watson and Sherlock Holmes in "A Scandal in Bohemia". "When I hear you give your reasons," I (Watson) remarked, "the thing always appears to me to be so ridiculously simple that I could easily do it myself, though at each successive instance of your reasoning, I am baffled until you explain your process. And yet I believe that my eyes are as good as yours.""Quite so," he (Holmes) answered, lighting a cigarette, and throwing himself down into an armchair. "You see, but you do not observe. The distinction is clear. For example, you have frequently seen the steps which lead up from the hall to this room. "Frequently." "How often?" "Well, some hundreds of times." "Then how many are there?" "How many? I don't know.""Quite so! You have not observed. And yet you have seen. That is just my point. Now, I know that there are seventeen steps, because I have both seen and observed." Well done Sherlock! I suspect you (and your peers) see a lot more than the rest of us - imagers and visual astronomers alike! Norris

Hi Recretos - Stunning captures from such a remarkably compact piece of kit. Great work indeed!! Regards, Norris

You must be delighted Aditya!! Amazing! Regards, Norris

Each to his own Dave! Maybe one day I'll dip in to the deep-end! Clear skies!

A very succinct summary Elp! As you say, sometimes features emerge that you hadn't expected. I shot my regular five minute exposure (10.7s subs) of a reflection nebula (NGC 6914) in Cygnus a few nights ago. After the allotted time, I was beginning to see something that I hadn't expected, so I let the camera run for another 15 minutes. The result is attached. It's far from perfect but it kept me happy! Norris

Paradoxically Carastro, Smart telescopes seem a bit 'too easy' to me! Not that I have ever used one, but I have tried subscribing to remote telescopes and processing the images they deliver. Even though the quality is much better than anything I can produce with my own kit, the finished output didn't feel like I owned it....since I hadn't put the effort in the acquire the image - I'd done it through a middle-man. Maybe I'm just too 'old-school'! Perhaps, to misquote an advert on TV - "maybe one day all telescopes will be made like this". Norris

Hi Roy, It's certainly been a difficult year. With so few clear skies, I can understand why people crave a permanent housing for their kit (just to snatch a few images when the opportunity arises). Norris

Thanks Coco - For all its frustrations (and there are plenty!) I'll stick with my trusty CMOS camera! I understand what you're saying though. Visual astronomy is a very different experience. I think you 'live in the moment' more looking down an eyepiece - if that makes sense? Norris

Hi Vroobel - I guess that'll be all the wet Atlantic weather squeezing up towards the Pennines! Well done on the perseverance front! Norris

I am blown away by many of the images that serious astrophotographers show on this site and other comparable astronomy portals. I cannot (and do not) expect to achieve similar results. My equipment, my patience and the Yorkshire weather place stringent limits on what I can realistically hope to do! But I can acquire an image in around five minutes - and sometimes it's out of all proportion to what I was expecting! Here's one I did of C12 earlier (a few nights ago). It was stacked in SharpCap and incorporated both Darks and Flats (the latter for the first time). I also did a little stretching and final touch up in GIMP. Of course it still takes 30-45 minutes to set up, but I can usually beat the clouds and get a few captures in before they come back! EAA allows me to cut through light pollution, to see objects five or six magnitudes fainter than with the scope alone and finally, it gives me a permanent record of what I have observed. I recommend it to the house! Norris SkyWatcher P150i / ZWO ASI 183MC

Hi Ardsley - You've got to be well pleased with these early attempts! I started with open clusters because they were 'easy'. You've jumped in nearer to the deep end! Also, I used to write a list of the things I felt I'd gotten wrong or needed to fix to before my next shoot. (Actually, what do I mean...used to)? Norris

Nice work! The galaxy appears almost annular and the clarity of the concentric rings is impressive. Norris

Hi Ben - Welcome to the learning curve (which never seems to stop)! Finding your way round the constellations (using identified stars) is a great way to start. It's like scouting the lie of the land. Plus, there's a host of deeper space objects lying in wait for when you're ready. Arkansas? I bet you'll enjoy lots of warm nights and clear skies in deep South! Spare a thought for us 'Northerner's'...two pairs of socks and two pairs of trousers / pants are essential here from October onwards.! Norris

Well, the OU course is easy to dip into and out of, and its nominally only 20 hours, but it whetted my appetite for more. I did think some time ago about doing a Certificate in Astronomy & Planetary Science (also OU) but that was a lot more work (600 hours) and I worried I'd be losing valuable imaging time trying to achieve the goal! It's still being run (Course S10). I guess you've just got to decide what fits best with the other commitments you already have. Norris

Yes Pat, I noticed the motes, but I guess they'd disappear with the application of Flats. Funnily enough, I tried my first Flats last night (in SharpCap). I had previously used only Darks, but my daughter bought me a Light Box and I set it up properly for the first time last night. (I'd noticed an increased degree of vignetting recently so I felt it was time)! It was a bit of a faff, but it seemed to work well. I have yet to process the images to see the full effect, but they looked good on screen during the wee small hours. I know you can take Flats at the end of a shoot, but since I'm not really post-processing I've got to do it before I take the Lights. Norris

From one Irishman to another...! I've previously found Bode's to be a challenge (it always appears to be slightly diffuse and ethereal), but I see you have also managed to capture Holmberg IX into the bargain! I had a quick look in my last image of the same target but there's nothing comparable there! It's an accomplishment to be able to pick up these targets so close to the solstice. Norris