tomato

Here is 7.75 hrs of M106 and nearby galaxies, captured with the Esprit 150/IMX 571 OSC dual rig using 2 minute sub exposures. Calibrated and stacked in APP, processed in APP, PI and AP. Over half the data was captured in Nautical darkness and varying levels of moonlight, so both APP's Light Pollution Removal tool and NoiseXTerminator were employed to improve the background.

@Tomatobro beat me too it but I can confirm if we run the batch file from windows, all of the text is displayed in the DOS console window, but if you run the same batch file from NINA, the console window opens but no text is displayed. The file has executed all of the other commands but does not display the text. There are timeout steps in the file so it's not running that fast that you don't see the text, you just get a blank console window with a flashing cursor until the batch file has been executed, then it closes.

On the IMX571 cameras having a high USB speed or limit setting helps a lot with eliminating the horizontal banding, as does using a decent quality USB 3 cable, but I'm assuming Atik haven't skimped on the cable quality.

I think this would work and I have used this to good effect when doing synchronised dithering on the dual rig, but will NINA synchronise other events in a sequence across two instances? The problem I have is the master scope with the OAG stops guiding to refocus so the slave scope has to stop imaging and ideally run the refocus routine at the same time. The trouble is the subs download faster on the master scope compared to the slave (it’s a camera thing I think) so they can be quite a few seconds adrift after say 30 subs. I suppose I could time the delay and if consistent build a pause routine into sequence 1, although this wouldn’t work if other criteria were used to trigger a refocus. I think I would rather have the focus routines run sequentially, on one instance of NINA especially as the autofocus routine duration cannot be guaranteed to be the same each time.

Just in case anyone was wondering, @Tomatobro has embarked on this exercise to allow NINA to operate two HITEC Focusmasters (old black box type) on a dual rig since NINA will only recognise a single unit when two are connected.

Wow, they look a lot more high tech than the vintage versions.

Voyager 1 is sending back impossible data, no doubt aliens have hacked it... Voyager is sending ‘impossible data’ back to Nasa from the edge of the Solar System (msn.com)

Do I recall a line from “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” TV series about a spacecraft being “blacker than the blackest thing ever”? Well, now we know what it was painted with.

I think which camera supplier you go for depends a lot on previous experience and the value placed on peace of mind. I needed a second IMX571 sensor camera and my budget simply would not stretch to the established brands. As far as I can see, my RisingCam version for under £1000 is performing just as well my £1800 QHY version, but the decision will come home to roost if it has an issue under warranty, but I have been collecting data from two scopes for the last 5 months instead of trying to save up for a premium camera in an inflationary market. With regard to Starlight Express, do they intend to launch a CMOS range of cameras? I know they built a solid reputation on their CCD models but they must have seen astro camera sales suffer in recent years.

First class Leo triplet, and no Luminance subs!👍

Thanks all for the replies. Before I saw them, I tried to download the latest file from the forum, but you’ve guessed it Win 10 wouldn’t have it, too much of a security risk.. So I used some dodgy shareware to transfer it from an iPad download, how does that make sense Microsoft? In the midst of the head scratching last night I managed to initiate a go to with the RA lock on😳 but after this it was guiding at 0.35”. What a mount…

Just a quick question on what version of Sitech.exe folks are running. The website has version P available but I’ve just been given a link to version X via the forum to fix an ASCOM clock disparity issue flagged up by the latest version of NINA. However, this version isn’t on the official website as far as I can see?

I agree dark skies and more data will work better every time, but alas they tend to be not so easy to come by as a new piece of noise reduction software. I saw the reference to a discount if you already have another RCA product, but can’t seem to find a mention on the website, any idea how much the discounted price is? Thanks

On a positive note, the issue has been identified by ZWO and can be rectified but I appreciate that’s no consolation for you if you end up having to foot the bill for the repair. May I ask did the seller post a photo of the sensor as part of the advert? If so I presume it looks pristine or else you wouldn’t have purchased it? However, I can’t see that amount of liquid ingress occurring in just a few days, but maybe camera owners who have experienced this problem could comment on how long it takes to reach the degree of ingress shown on your photo? TS in Germany have repaired cameras with this fault but I have no idea what they would charge for the repair. It involves a dismantle, clean and reassemble, the sensor is not replaced.

Agreed, it does look like light leak to me, but I’m surprised there is no amp glow showing on a 300 sec ASI1600 dark.

+1 for blocklayer, resource used to print base protractor for retro fitting a setting circle to a 16” SW flextube.

Excellent M13, I do like your subtle approach to the saturation, good star resolution right to the core and the Propeller is clearly visible, as is the galaxy IC 4617, at 11 o'clock. 👍

Alas, that was my experience with an 8” OO Schmidt Newtonian from the early 90s. The corrector plate had been nibbled out of a piece of plate glass and the collimation screws were shocking, no spring loading on either the primary or secondary. I never came close to properly collimating the thing, eventually the glue holding the secondary failed allowing the flat to drop on to the primary. I still have it, I might attempt a restoration one day…

If you post or give access to the calibrated and stacked images, or even the raw data, and associated calibration files, there are folks on SGL who will have a go at processing your data, but I agree with @iapa, for someone just starting out your processed images are very good.

Dust has never been more photogenic! Congratulations to the worthy winners.

Thanks, I did intend to revisit this object this season, but I have probably left it too late now. It’s awesome to think amateur equipment can produce an image not dissimilar to the Palomar Sky Survey.

Great capture!👍 There is actually an optical plasma jet associated with this object but you will need to go close and deep to get a hint of it. If objects like this capture your imagination, have a go at this one, it will be be just a few illuminated pixels on the image, but the facts and figures associated with it are truly mind blowing.

You can image DSOs in Nautical darkness, but you do need lots of integration time. This is 6 hrs on the Leo Triplet taken with an Esprit 150/IMX 571 OSC, about 40% of the subs were taken in Nautical darkness. For comparison this is 4 hrs of subs with an Esprit 150/ASI 178 LRGB, all taken in Nautical darkness.

I agree, for all of the myriad of frustrations mentioned in this thread, they never get me down for long and are quickly forgotten when I’m able to get an image done.

Indeed, when I recall what could (or more to the point, what couldn’t) be achieved with equipment in the pre digital age, I am both amazed and delighted.