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Posts posted by Double Kick Drum
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Hi
i think most contributors have already covered off the low surface brightness of M33. I usually see it as a large dim face on smudge in semi-rural skies.
M81 and M82 in UMa are better targets at this time of year. Both are quite bright and tolerate some light pollution , although are smaller. They are visible in the same FOV (depending on your choice of eyepiece) and present themselves at different angles.
Leo also has a number of brighter galaxies which can be seen as pairs or greater. M65/M66 and M95/M96/M105 are good examples as well as NGC2903 in the lion’s head, which is an easier find.
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Fantastic and thorough.
Top marks for gratuitous use of the 'Dark Side of the Moon' album cover!
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That top one is really nice!
What settings did you use? I have the same camera, so I'd like to have a go at this myself one day.
I am still learning my way so don't take this as gospel.
The camera will need to be on a manual setting (M).
Focal ratios between f4.5 and f6.3. Lunar shots need a longer ratios to reduce the amount of light captured, I believe.
ISO between 800 and 3200
Shutter time between 15 and 30 seconds. Any longer and star trails become noticable - which is fine if that is what you are after.
All done with the standard 18 - 55mm lens.
The two I posted plus the others in my gallery are all single exposures. I used a basic photo shop programme to get better balance.
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Ok. These are some early attempts with my new Canon EOS 1100d.
No raw data, no stacking. Just working out best exposure time / ISO / focal ratio etc. Here goes...... Orion, Jupiter, the Hyades and Pleiades.
and one of Auriga, including M36, M37 and M38 if you look hard enough. Does that count as a DSO shot?
The next attempt will be with raw data and I will have a go at some basic stacking and maybe add a dark or two. I need to read 'Make Every Photon Count'. Trial and error only goes so far.
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Am I mad or isn't it simply easier to just remember the planets?
Remembering a mnemonic and then transposing the initial letter into the planets seems like hard work. Twice as much to learn.
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I stand corrected, Wiki says -12 for two to three months, which is full moon like you said above.
With the current weather, I would say there it would be obscured by cloud.
Maybe a 10 to 1 shot I would get to see it, assuming it blows while i'm around.
Knowing my luck, the next star to blow would be 39 degrees or more South of the equator.
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Sad news.
One of a kind and a huge huge legacy left.
I think the next session outside will have to be dedicated to him. Caldwells and maybe a bit of a Moore marathon!
Thanks for the inspiration.
RIP Sir PM
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I'm trying to figure out this place but the problem is that I'm a bit technology literate and also French. So if anyone's got some input on this place here I would greatly appreciate it.
thanks
sylvie
A good way to start is at the "Welcome" and "Beginner's" forums.
Both these are viewed a lot and where you may get the most help.
Good luck!
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I don't cope. I have had a 5" refractor for just over two years and am already considering how to convince my wife that I really need a 10" dobsonian.
At the moment, it is affordable but what happens when i'm bored of 10" of aperture..... apart from a divorce.
I fear there are much worse cases judging from the kit some people have around here.
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There is still a group called Mid-Kent Astronmical Society if SEKAS is too far away. I used to belong a few years back and have recently found website and forthcoming events.
Might even rejoin myself!
See link to homepage.
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This site's brilliant. A little bit of trial and error finding my way about but that's more to do with me not reading instructions properly (typical bloke).
Users always seem ready to help too!
I salute you
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Hah! to 'nebula'.. it was being called a 'vacuum' that I resented, the longer I sat silently browsing the more it irked !
(this post won't count will it?... nevermind, most of my posts are nebulous anyway )
Speaking as a vacuum.....what am I saying? I am not a vacuum, I am a free man!
2 posts until I am promoted, let the good times roll!
What did you see tonight?
in Observing - Reports
Posted
I used to observe and report very regularly on SGL (between 2009 and 2013) but then became a parent (twice) and so I have only added a half dozen reports over the past decade. It also means my DSO finding mojo is missing in action (or the lack of) - it is surprising how easy navigation is with practice but so disappointing when you come back to it after a long hiatus only to find some relatively easy objects far more difficult to find than before.
Tonight was my first session since March and TBH the sky was not great (VLM less than 5.0 with the odd cumulus drifting by). I spent some time with M57 - the hole in the ring was detectable with the 8mm lens. I also viewed M11 in Scutum and M71 in Sagitta before giving up on M27 (the Dumbbell nebula).
Now the kids are a bit older (eight and six), I should be able to get out a bit more. My oldest has already viewed the moon and Jupiter and is definitely interested. Hopefully there will be opportunities as the nights draw in.