MikeODay

Yes you do need to send a few sets of measurements for the MPC to check and make sure your measurements are within certain bounds. Once they qualify you they issue the code. The code to use for the qualifying sets is XXX.

Thanks! Although I'm pretty sure that the Pan-STARRS guys don't pay too much attention to the likes of me with my little setup - now if I find a comet one day, that might be different

Back in March I was granted an observatory code ( Q69 ) by the Minor Planet Center ( MPC ) and since then I have been spending all my available telescope time ( which due the weather has admittedly not been very much ) to capturing images of asteroids, that the MPC is interested in recieving data for, and sending in the positions that I have determined. Mostly I have been focused on asteroids that have not been observed/reported on during their current return to visibility. 2014 LA21 was my first after getting my code ... Here I was the first to report astrometry f

The great Barred Spiral Galaxy ( NGC 1365 ) in the constellation Fornax ( details and access to full size image here ) A Cluster of Pearls in the Southern Skies ( NGC 3766 " The Pearl Cluster" ) ( details and access to full size image here ) A deep look at Omega Centauri ( NGC 5139 ) ( details and access to full size image here ) The Cat's Paw Nebula ( NGC 6334 ) in Scorpius ( details and access to full size image here ) ............................................... And my favourite for the year ...

Thanks and yes, I might end up printing this one - it is one of my favourites. An older version from 2017 even managed to get published as an APOD ( here ) -although I think this one is much better

Thanks Taff, much appreciated.

Thank you, but way to kind. Really, it's just what happens when you are on holidays and the sky is completly clouded over - rework followed by tweak followed by more rework, etc., etc. .....

Lovely image - I love the colours and the detail.

Both are great - I really like the detail in the dark clouds.

Very nice.

A further go at trying to get the colours right; the changes are subtle: - the colour across the frame is now more consistent; - the star colours are now are as close as I can get them to what I think they should look like ( with daylight white balance and light pollution removed ); and - the crop is a little less aggressive resulting in the retention of a few more pixels around the outside of the frame. The globular star cluster Omega Centauri ( NGC 5139 ) in Centaurus ( please click / tap on image to see larger and sharper ) The full size image can be found here

Thanks Guys, much appreciated.

Congratulations on your new scope, I hope you have lots of fun with it. I can't help much with describing how the Orion nebula should look; I use my scope exclusively for photography. But with regard to finding stars through the finder - I have the same problem. To the eye a bright star seems isolated in the sky but through the finder it is just one star of many. Perhaps you could try first finding the three stars of Orion's belt - these should stand out in the finder due to their arrangement - and then you could try jumping from star to star until you get to Nair al Saif ( it is i

I really like the way you have bought out the white smokey cloud from the background - I like them both but I see what you mean about the Ha adding more depth.

Stunning image - I've seen the object before but never like this - well done! I've also never seen the face before ( albeit one with spooky glowing eyes and a rather long nose )

Very nice - I really like the colour of the nebula and the way you have manged to capture the multitude of stars as tiny pin pricks of light.

The weather here has been quite bad for a while now ( thunderstorms most nights and otherwise cloudy ), so, for something to do, I went back to the original exposures I captured of Omega Centauri back in the middle of the year and re-processed them with the aim of trying to improve the colour balance and also bring out the faint stars a little better. What do you think? The globular star cluster Omega Centauri ( NGC 5139 ) in Centaurus ( please click / tap on image to see larger ) The full size image can be found here

Lovely image. To my eyes it has a strong 3d feel. With such a prominent main subject I only just noticed the large number of small bright galaxies in the image.

Wonderful images Göran - a great collection, well done!

Very nice Adam - some great detail there and lovely stars.

Congratulations Richard on a wonderful set of images - I look forward to seeing what you can do this year ! All the best Mike

Thanks guys, much appreciated.

Lovely image!

Wonderful image with great stars and fantastic separation of the clouds.

Very nice! On my screen it has a kind of 3d feel ...