michael8554

The images and Flats for each night should be loaded in different tabs in DSS. Michael

If you are viewing with an eyepiece, then swapping in the DSLR, you are bound to have moved off target. Canon cameras have software that allows the magnified Live View to be seen on a PC or laptop screen, but I don't know what's available for Pentax. If you up the ISO to the max value (12800 ?) and take a 1 minute exposure you should see your target if it's there. To be more sure of being on target, goto a bright star near your target, centre it on the screen and SYNCH, use it to fine-tune your focus too. Then a goto your target should be accurate. Michael

Hide the Life Insurance policy......... Michael

Hi Philip I don't believe you've told us what solar scope you have bought ? My PST was on a wobbly EQ1 mount with an erratic clock drive vaguely set up pointing north. I imaged with a webcam no problem. Of course if you have a much longer FL solar scope then PA might need to be a bit better 🙂 You might try getting PA good at night with a leveled tripod, then daytime setup level and pointing northish and see what happens ? Michael

In the day I found my SPC900 exposed best on Auto with SharpCap. Michael

Sorry, I misunderstood when you said the star looked horrible and was not guideable. A bright star like Arcturus is good to start setting focus with, as even way out of focus it presents a large bright Airy disc, still bright enough to see - a dim star would be invisible if way out of focus. Fine tune on dimmer stars like you'd expect to guide on. Michael

Arcturus is not a suitable guide star, it's so bright it's over exposed. Of course its jumping around, that's what you're trying to get rid of when you guide ! If you've run out of focus range, add a couple of mm of spacer into the main imaging path. When you come to guide for real you'll have to employ your FOV frames to find stars, just having the target in centre of frame is only the start ! Michael

It would. But as Riccochet says, you already have all the parts you need. No need to buy any more parts, just follow his simple instructions. Michael

Hi Mark It wasn't obvious, but if you look at hubble's original image, it shows the Baader Filter unit (the black item with the Baader logo on the side) already attached to the ZWO. That was indeed a M42 to M42 connection Leaving only the connection to the focuser. Michael

I'm getting the feeling you're being deliberately obtuse. We're both saying there may be a fitting on the end of the focuser that will unscrew to give you a screw thread for the camera to connect to. That's what we meant by "a bit of disassembly". No spanners, screwdrivers, or monkey wrenches, just unscrew by hand. Mark's image says that if you manage to do that there may be a M68 thread - might be a difficult adapter to get. So the simplest thing in your case would be to remove your star diagonal and use the item I linked to, as you're saying the camera has a M42 thread. Michael

Okay, I see now that image 2 shows the Baader Filter Unit attached to the camera, so it's the connection to the focuser that's the problem. Is there a threaded end to the focuser that the Baader Filter Unit could screw onto, maybe after a bit of disassembly ? Diameter? Male or Female? Does the Baader Filter Unit have a thread on the telescope side? What Diameter? Male or Female? You need an adapter with those threads. But maybe the focuser doesn't have threads, even after some disassembly. I see that the Esprit has a 3inch focuser with 2inch and 1.25inch adapters. In that case you need a 2inch nose piece with the correct size threads to match the threads on the Baader Filter Unit. Something like this https://www.firstlightoptics.com/adapters/astro-essentials-2-inch-t-mount-camera-nosepiece-adapter.html You may also need a long spacer, to replace the optical path length of the Star Diagonal, otherwise the camera may not be able to reach focus. Michael

You haven't explained your problem very well. Which parts don't fit ? Which parts do fit ? Michael

1) your usual SCT FR has 105mm back focus - the distance the camera sensor needs to be from the back of the FR - so it depends on the optical path length of the star diagonal being used. If it was possible to mount the FR after the star diagonal your camera would have to be 105mm further away, rather cumbersome and wobbly. 2) Straight through with the correct spacers for the FR has less light-robbing optical surfaces and is more rigid. 3) Do you mean an optical magnifier for the DSLR optical viewfinder ? Old hat, use the up to 10X magnifier on the DSLR Liveview screen. Michael

I said faster, try 1/500th at ISO 800 or 1600. Michael

Can you not get your scope to goto the centre of the prism once you've Synched on Arcturus in the imaging camera ? Michael

There's some tilt - the bottom of the moon is in focus, the top is not. The full moon is very bright, so you can afford to use as fast an exposure as possible that gives a decent exposure. Take 10 or so shots and pick the best. Some will still be blurry due to atmospherics, but those fast exposures may capture a few in atmospheric sweet spots. Michael

I use the two-eye method with a Telrad, which puts the object close to centre of a 9x60 RACI. Michael

I would start with Arcturus. Get imaging camera focus spot-on with Bahtinov mask. Then use Stellarium to put Arcturus on the prism, and fine-tune focus on the Guidecam to get lowest HFD reading on the PHD2 Star Profile window. The star shape may well be poor at the edge of FOV, but PHD2 apparently copes. Merlin's suggestion of prism tilt would improve that, but would be hard to incorporate in the design I'd say. Then try your luck on some favourite targets. Michael

+1 for EOS Utility. Use the Liveview magnifying button with the Bahtinov mask. Michael

Or the led display is faulty. 😞 There's a Reset, but that's in the menus. You could try to blindly go to the Utilities/ Brightness menu. After switch-on and initialise has finished, press MODE 4 or 5 times, should then be on the OBJECT menu. Then use the Autostar menus chart in the handbook to blindly navigate by appropriate button pushes to Brightness and Contrast in Utilities. Or knock £75 off the price, or get a used one so you can demonstrate the scope when you sell it. Michael

Hi Merlin O to Ic = O to Ig. Agreed, but hard to measure! P to Ic = centre of prism to Ig That you can measure, close enough to start with. How do you get your prism on the corner of the Canon FOV, is that your Spectroscopy setup? Michael

Might have booted up with the Brightness and Contrast turned down. Under the right lighting conditions and viewing angle you might be able to discern the characters enough to get to the Utilities / Brightness and Utilities / Contrast menus. Michael

Most modded DSLR's have the LPF2 filter removed, which extends the spectral response to give more Ha output. But usually the LPF1 filter remains, which filters UV and IR. MIchael

Are you unable to get the guidecam close enough to the prism to focus ? Or not far enough away with all of the 5mm post adjustment? The mini has 4mm less back focus, so would get closer, if the eyepiece holder doesn't add too much depth. The 290 Mini nosepiece is M28, not M42, If not enough height, then add an appropriate M42 spacer. Get your ruler out and measure how far the 294MC sensor is from the prism, the 294MC has 6.5mm backfocus. Then measure where that distance is up from the prism centre to where the guidecam should be, the 290 backfocus is 12.5mm. That will give you a starting point. Michael

He certainly has ! Looks like he doesn't need help from us. But I'd say as fast an exposure as gives a reasonably bright image. 3X Barlow will either improve or ruin your resolution, you'd have to try. Michael