DaveS

I started with AA5 and continued for quite a while. When I tried to update to V6 I found I'd lost the original manual with the SNo in so held off. Eventually bit the bullet and bought a new install of AA7 which is much more powerful. Had a go with the trial of PI, even bought the book, but just couldn't get my head around the philosophy.

Looking at those graphs I would expect it to be sensibly free of colour, though am still to be convinced that it fulfils the Abbe condition for apochromaticity, which needs three different glass types.

As I recall they sent the main mirror off to OOUK for recoating. A real classic home-build telescope from the old days.

Hopefully, with the raised interest in astronomy, more people will become aware of the horror of light pollution and will kick up a stink. Might get something done about it.

BBC4 at 9 o/c *NOTE* not the usual 10 o/c to make way for Shakespeare. The life of stars, supernovae etc, and Pete has a go at photographing the Sun.

The 150mm f/5 Startravel is a simple achromat, and with those specs will have pretty severe CA for imaging. You may get away with a 150mm f/5 Newt.

You could probably do a Ronchi test if you can put a fine grid in an eyepiece, but a Zygo test needs a serious interferometer. Zygo Testing

That's going to take some serious engineering. Another approach I've seen floated (Deliberate pun alert!) is for a fleet of airships that would float at a less hostile altitude and explore the surface remotely. There was even a plan for a crewed version in the future. I recall the article being in AN.

But is the Tak truly apochromatic? It has 4 elements, but that doesn't guarantee apo status, as it has , I think, an ED doublet OG and another doublet in a Petzval configuration.

Haha, it's last year's top end model, heavily discounted. I could put it in one corner and watch it sat in front of the fire come winter.

Yes, better than the usual Horizon fare.

I watched live but was hoping to pick it up on iPlayer as I get full HD picture and better sound through my amp and speakers. My old 24" TV is theoretically HD but doesn't have an HD tuner. Never mind, I have a 55" LG OLED coming from JL now they do a two man delivery and unpack.

Agree with the last point, we need an orbiter but it'll be a hell of a job, got to get there, and then slow into orbit. Pluto doesn't have much gravity to help. Gonna need a bigger engine.

And not on iPlayer

This is one I did back in May-June, 24 hours in total mostly under Nautical Dark using the SHO palette. This could NOT have been done in OSC.

New.

Tonight BBC2 at 9 o/c. How data from New Horizons is changing our views on Pluto.

Not sure that a photo would show the effect, but I'll try. The prints look like traditional "glossy unglazed" silver halide prints from my darkroom days, and because they are FB Baryta they can be dry mounted using dry-mount tissue on conservation board using an iron on a cool setting. I've been trying especially Permajet Royal Gloss And Brilliant Museum papers. Undecided which one I prefer. Have you looked at White Wall and Peak Imaging for online printing?

I have an old Epson R2400 A3+ printer that I've started using again, currently looking at different "Fine Art" Baryta papers that can be dry mounted.

Yes. When I was living in London suburbs, Bortle 8 I did quite a few NB images that still stack up well, but my attempts at galaxy imaging in RGB were a disaster. The only worthwhile RGB I did was of M13, which is nice and bright, cutting through the LP well.

This image of Deer Lick and Stephan's Quintet was processed entirely in AstroArt 5.

I haven't seen any apart from some "legacy" files on Warren Keller's site which you have to pay for. Bit annoyed that he describes it as "legacy" as though it was some antediluvian antique, when it is very much alive and being developed. The latest version has much better help files and built in tutorials, though I bashed my way in to AA5 the hard way. Most of my images on here have been processed entirely in AA5 or 7, with only some NB images (So far) having been taken into Affinity Photo for final polishing.

One thing to remember is that AstroArt is more than a processing program, it can do everything for capture too including platesolving and guiding. It was the software I moved to from APT when I moved from DSLR to CCD. I did try PI, but since I was already using AA5, and shortly updated to 7, and PI was such a different experience, I stayed with AA7 which does everything I want in post production.

Just so. Which is why I advised Carole to beware of it, I'd torn enough of my hair out trying to get anything even superficially reasonable, as my image above shows. Put an ASI 183 on the end and it frames Markarian's Chain quite nicely, but it's a bit expensive for a one-trick pony

Regarding the dew shield. The 80mm f/4.4 had a thumb screw to secure the dew shield, while my 130 f/7 TS Photoline has the three little hex grub screw that do the same.