tmarkuk

I'm wondering is capturing a dark frame .avi might help with the noise, I don't know registax very well yet though. Though I think not as the noise is different in every frame. Something to have a play with another night I think.

Great stuff Peter, as you mentioned in the other thread a slightly shorter exposure may improve things, but then you end up losing the solar panels. Only getting a few minutes every few months to get things perfect is going to be a challenging business I reckon.

Yeah, I just swing it round to the brightest star in the sky, turn the exposure and gain up and lock in the focus with the bahtinov mask., it seems to do the trick. I'm learning on the job, and basically just followed the sticky topic on this page. It looks like tonight was the last chance for me on this pass anyway, and I'm really happy to have gone from white blob to recognisable space station!

I had another go tonight, this time with the barlow, if only to prove to myself that it wasn't worth the effort. I managed a few frames but not really enough to stack with any great result. The exposure was moved to 1/1500 and the gain up to 50. Unfortunately the images were just to noisy to fix. A more sensitive chip would help , and you really need tracking at that magnification.

I have enough trouble trying to work out which way to turn the mount once it gets right overhead, trying to keep it in view without breaking my neck. EQ mounts are not meant for this!

Hey Dean, I use WcCtrl, linked in my thread below, to set the webcam settings. It has marked lines so you know where you are setting things, and you can save your setup as well. Good image though, if you managed to get a few in a row, try extracting just that segment of video and stacking it in registax using 'centre of gravity' align. A small boost on the wavelets and then a very slight touch of gaussian blur should bring out a bit more detail. I'll be trying again tonight, I may even use the 2x barlow if I feel really brave! Tim.

I forgot to mention that these are stacks as well, of about 5 frames each, some more, some less. Where ever I was lucky enough to keep the scope on target for a second or two. Aligned and stacked in registax 5. One day I'll make a post and remember to put all this in at the start.

Many thanks for all your hard work on them Harry, they were a breeze to follow! That dark structures script is awesome, a definite improvement though you have to be careful not to make the background blotchy. I will however refrain from posting yet another copy of the same image in here!

Thanks all, for anyone interested the webcam settings were : exp 1/2500 gain 40 bright 60 Set using WcCtrl . I think I need to bump the gain up for the next pass, as the next highest exposure is 1/1500 and I really need 1/2000! I also saw another bright object trailing after the ISS a couple of minutes behind, would that be the H-2 transfer vehicle? I believe it is scheduled to dock tomorrow.

Hi all, Tonight was my second attempt to capture the ISS. Over the weekend my first attempt was hampered by clouds, incorrect exposure settings and the lack of an IR/UV cut filter. Tonight however with my new baader filter in place I think I have something worth showing. Impages were captured with a Philips SPC900NC on an Orion Optics Europe 250mm reflector. Manually tracked on my Vixen Sphinx EQ mount (fun!).

Welcome! You'll find this forum an excellent resource, and in case you don't know this already you have an excellent local society as well : Andover Astronomical Society Tim.

Here's a close up of the centre from the full size original. I think I'm going to be spending the next few week re-processing everything I have taken in pixinsight.

Last one I think, anything after this will just be experimentation. I shall name this image 'perseverance'. At least I know what I want for Christmas now.

Right then, I'm back with this one with a pixinsight re-edit. It no longer looks like a galaxy composed entirely of pick'n'mix. Got to say, I've fallen in love with pixinsight, I used Harrys video tutorials to get in the swing of things - www.harrysastroshed.com. Hopefully that shows some major signs of improvement!

On the subject of power, one thing I have for my 1000d that's proved very handy is a power adapter from astronomiser that lets you plug it directly into a cigar style socket. So at home I have it plugged into the bench power supply and away I can hook it into a power tank or leisure battery. Astronomiser Canon Power Supplies Obviously it's not official canon kit but it is a lot cheaper. It's nice to be able to set up the camera and know it's keep going as long as you need it to.

It's guaranteed to be clear now, at least over Basingstoke, because I broke my Starbook on Friday night so my mount is now out of action for at least a couple of weeks. Last night I managed to bodge some old slow motion controls from an eq4 on the axis so at least I can get some visual observation done whilst I wait for the repair.

I have an article sitting in my links from when I flocked my reflector testing various different materials, possibly a bit late for helping your decision but it may be of use to others! Flocking Materials Test -stray light reduction - Article

Hi Paul, That 8" Wildey wouldn't be the mirror I sold on Astro buy and sell a while ago would it? If so I hope you were happy with it! I'd love to see the pictures of it in it's new home, it's got to be better that the cardboard tube dob I had it in. I remember seeing the refractor when I delivered the mirror and being very impressed at the time. Tim.

Yep, I would have been better off getting some sleep last night, still it was good to get everything set up in the shed again, and the new streetlight the council have installed to replace the old orange one appears to turn itself off after 11pm which is lovely. Failing that I found exactly the right spot to hit it with a lazer pointer and shut it down whenever needed! As for imaging, I got a lovely picture of the pleiades, well, lovely if your only after the stars!

I'm up and imaging, though I'm having all sorts of fun with the moon and light pollution. Would I be better off with longer exposures at low ISO on the Pleiades? I'm not reaching the limit of my exposure time, but anything over a minute and a half comes back white at iso800. No auto guiding as I appear to have busted my Sphinx, bit of a bummer. Still it's tracking happily at least.