Magnus_e

12 hours ago, Pryce said:

They are mounted at the base of the dew shield closest to the lens,  and they were on.  At about 50-60%.

I don't think it was dew, because the guys over in getting started helped me select a few different stacking parameters to test out, and with a few of them I didnt encounter the same haloing effect. But I did get some weird gradient in one of the corners that ruined the image in a whole other way 

 

Was the setting that produced halos the (3x drizzle) or similar in deep sky stacker? I remember that setting reeking havoc on my stars when I tried that a few years back. 

Hei Pryce. Bra med flere nordmenn

As your third astrophoto this is looking very well executed.

Guiding looks like it's a 10/10 with no noticable streking of the stars.

Setup loks great with the corner stars as round as the center stars, so that's good.

I'll let someone else comment abuot the stars. My guess is focus is slightly off, however could it be a dew issue? 

I see in your sig that you have a dew heater and strips, where have you mounted them, and where they on for this capture?

Here are my 5

All with Celestron AVX, SkyWatcher Equinox PRO 80 APO, ASI 1600mm-c, ZWO EFW with, ZWO LRGB and Baader SII, Ha, OIII

From my remote obsy: Observatory17b @ Bortle5 skies

April - September Crescent nebula ngc6888 Ha(synth)OIII

October - November Elephant's trunk nebula ic1396 (HA)SHO

November Andromeda galaxy m31 L(R+Ha)GB

November Pelican nebula ic5070 (HA)SHO Starless

December (reprocess) Elephant's trunk nebula ic1396 (Ha)HOO

I just (today) recieved the correct adapter ring for my new Hotech SCA T-adapter. This will hopefully remove the tilt seen, starting fresh in 2021 with better stars!

Hope you like and Clear skies!

5 minutes ago, Phillyo said:

I am rather partial to a starless image if it is done well, and this one is done very well. I think it shows the structure of the nebula much better without the stars distracting from the image. Lovely images, thanks for sharing.

Thanks, mee to. 

I think the first starless image i have seen was the Pelican nebula. I think ths object lends it self to having the stars removed. 

Happy to se you think it's done well. It did take me some time to get it done, so nice with some feedback. 

Just now, Adreneline said:

Very nice.

I'm a fan of a well produced starless image - just as I am of a well produced star filled image - both have a place for me in helping us appreciate the structure and beauty of these nebula.

Thanks for sharing.

Adrian

 

Thanks Adrian

4 minutes ago, alan potts said:

I prefer it with stars but interesting result

Alan

I think they perhaps should not be compared?

The star version is a true astrophotography, while the starless version is a statement in artistic freedom. Even more so than the usual prosessing?

I like both, but with different merits. 

Hi everyone

So here is my first attempt at a starless nebula.

Processed in PI. I used the morpological transformation and starmasking for a few iterations, redooing the starmask as the stars was dissappering.

I removed the stars for the L(Ha) channel and the SHO independently before LRGB combining.

If you zoom in, you will see som yellow star remnants, but at 1x1 view it works ok?

Let me know what you think, and please let me know if you see something I can improve.

And the original starred version.

Hi again :)

Now I'm at my obsy location and have been checking the scope and FF.

So. I'm not sure if getting a new focuser is even possible for this scope. There is no pattern of these three screws on the circumference of where the focuser mounts to the ota.

It looks like it might be one locking screw, and then som sort of threading?

On the good side, the focuser tube was the same diameter for more than 50mm. (I chatted with FLO and they sad that if the focusertube was 2" for atleast 50mm, the Hotech 2" adapter would work)

Also, i tried unscrewing the nosepiese on the FF, ant that was possible. The nosepiece had threads for a 2" filter on the side that goes in to the focus tube. When I removed the nosepiece the FF had same size threads. I did try screwing in a 2" filter in the FF, and I'm 99% sure that was the correct threads. (The body of the filter and the FF stopped me from being able to attach the filter, but I'm pretty sure it was correct size threads)

So if the Hotech adapter has same size threads as a 2" filter, then it all should work just fine. On FLO there is not given any size for the threads. It only states that is has room for a 2" filter.

Anyone know for sure this is the same threads?

Hi, and ho, ho, HOO 🎅 

Have been having some fun with the HOO palette lately.

I like that it's possible to get very different looking images with most of the same data, or 'less, as the SII data is not used'.

Posted a (Ha)SHO pelican late november, but with these clouds, I had some fun processing a (Ha)HOO Pelican.

This does give me the opertunity to 'unfairly' compare it to a 'one shot color' pelican from 2015. This was imaged with my canon eos 550d(a), and shows some progress, I think.

Hope you like, and let me know how you think 2020 compares to 2015

2020

and 2015

Hi

So 2018-2019 was a lot of technical issues for my astrophotograpy hobby that started with frying the motorcontroller of my Celestron AVX.

Now on the other hand, I have completed 11 smaller and larger projects so far in 2020 alone, and it feels great 👏

After some time with little use of PixInsight, it was a slow start, but I think (hope) I'm picking up some speed.

With a few clouds now, I decided to reprocess the Elphant'sTrunkNebula. One (Ha)HOO and a (Ha)SHO. This time with new Flats, and Calibrated with DarkFlats and not Biases. That seams to work  I also tried to ceep controll over the stars as the first version has to bright stars, probably not masked at a point they should.

Hope you like the reprocess

Link to previous version.

5 minutes ago, david_taurus83 said:

I forgot to add. Its only really suitable if your focuser is 2" for the whole length of the nosepiece. All my refractors have had a 2.5" drawtube and only the 2" adapter on the end was 2" with a compression ring so the front part of the nosepiece was in the 2.5" section! Wasn't ideal so ended up selling it.

I see. I think it might be bigger down the tube. I think I'll just send a message to FLO, they probably know.

Looks like I did not read it all.

It does seam like it has a more advanced centering setup than most others.

"The thing just works. No matter what kind of attachment system your focuser drawtube has (single set-screw, compression ring, etc.), the device works the same. Screw your camera onto its T-threads and slide it into your drawtube. Then twist the big, black, knurled knob to compress the O-rings. Give it a few good twists and what once might have been a jiggly connection becomes rock solid. I might as well have epoxied the camera onto the focuser drawtube. Well, had I, I’d never get the camera off, but here all you do is untwist that knurled ring and then slide the camera out.

This might be worth trying first, as it's a lot cheaper than a new focuser.

37 minutes ago, david_taurus83 said:

What about the Hotech SCA? They do a flattener but also a nosepiece?

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/adapters/hotech-2-sca-t-adapter.html

Only thing is 'will this be centered without tilt'?

Looks like it does not have the radius like the FF, but other than that it needs to work well with the stock focus tube and self center.

Could be and option. looks like its quality, at least.

1 minute ago, vlaiv said:

I think that focuser is made for some strange S88 or similar, not ID 86.

You can't attach it directly to tube with inner diameter of 86, at least I think so. In any case, you should have focuser with 96mm ID and you'll need Steeltrack to ID 96mm adapter - but again, do check.

Yes, it is better to have FF nosepiece removed as it just adds distance which can make it difficult to focus properly (nosepiece just goes inside focuser normally and does not count towards optical path).

Check if you have thread under nosepiece. I read somewhere that some FFs have nosepiece removable and that there is also M48 thread there, or it might be M54 in that model - not sure.

If it's different thread - then yes, you'll need different adapter from S58 to that thread (S58 is strange designation for steeltrack focuser thread).

Ok. Then I have some things to doubble check, before I decide anything

My scope is in a remote Obsy, so I cannot just go outside and check.

With the clouds and rain here, I have time for some maintenece

8 minutes ago, vlaiv said:

If it does - that should be 2" filter thread - or M48. I linked suitable adapter for baader steel track focuser above. Hopefully it will have that thread and you'll be able to use it.

I see. Just a little slow

So The focuser is made for ID 86, and I need an adapter if the Equinox 80 has a ID of 96

Then the focuser https://www.firstlightoptics.com/baader-diamond-steeltrack-focusers/baader-steeltrack-diamond-rt-for-refractors.html

And the M48 adapter from the fucuser to the FF filter thread.

I guess if its possible to unscrew the FF nosepeace and get some threads on the body of the FF, then that is preferred? A more secure connection?

In case, just have to swap out the M48 adapter, to mate to the FF, unless that is M48 too?

6 minutes ago, vlaiv said:

I'm just looking at focusers, and I think that best choice for you would be Baader Diamond Steeltrack refractor focuser.

You only have to make sure you have proper connection to your telescope to replace your stock focuser.  It will probably be either for flange ID 86 or ID 96 (that are two standard tube inner diameters for Skywatcher).

If it's ID 96 - then it is easy - you have ready made adapter:

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/baader-diamond-steeltrack-focusers/baader-steeltrack-diamond-rt-adapter-for-synta-sky-watcher-celestron-otas-with-id-97mm.html

And in the end, you only need M48 adapter:

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/baader-diamond-steeltrack-focusers/baader-diamond-steeltrack-m48-adapter.html

 

This looks like a really nice upgrade. 

A lot less expencive than a new scope, and something that will give me the best function from what I allready have

I will have to check the ID of the scope, and see what kind of FF I should get, If I'm not able to screw on the one I have now. 

I do belive it has threads for a filter on the nose end. Not sure if that could be used, or if the entire nose peace with the radius thing can unscrew, and show some usable treads.

Nice project to figure this out, and possibly get a bonus christmas present 🎅

8 minutes ago, vlaiv said:

Comments on that one you linked say that it can use both 2" and M48 connection.

Does 2" nose piece unscrew from flattener? Does your focuser have any sort of threaded connection?

 

I think the aswer is no on both parts, but now I really want to figure out how to make that a Yes

I would have to check, to be sure, but a google search shows no threads. I wonder if there is a chanse to get a focus tube with treads, or some other upgrades to this scope.

I have had it since 2015, so I can afford some upgrades on it now.

I got mine from flo, but it's not in their lineup any more. 

It looks more or less identical to this one. Only that it was SkyWatcher and claimed to be very well matched to the Equinox 80 

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/reducersflatteners/ovl-field-flattener.html

Figured I could make a drawing of what I tried to explain in the first post.

Just a crossection of the FF in blue, with the self centering radius, and what I think is creating the tilt.

The box outside the blue is just the focustube.

How it ideally should work

How it ends up with a filterwheel, camera and more hanging off it.

4 minutes ago, Owmuchonomy said:

Looking at your subs, the whole frame is suffering with oval stars to a point so I guess the tracking/guiding is not optimum.  Regarding the corners is it worse on the chip that is the largest?

Guiding migt be more 95% than 100% on, but I think there is a lot worse in the corners. If you look at the stars in the middle of the last image (new pelican), they are a lot better than in the topleft corner.

The first pelican in colors is from the canon eos 550d. Ith has a APC-C sensor that is bigger than the asi 1600mm-c, and it has worse stars than the asi subs.

It looks like on the color pelican there is a issue on both top corners.

If it is a issue with the centering function of the FF then there will be differences. (I have unmounted and mounted everyhing several times for swapping camea, cleaning, etc, so the tilt would vary)

Hi

So my issue is that every sub has stars at one corner pointing to the middle of the image, as if it's not being corrected by my Field Flattener.

This has been a problen since it was new, however when I got the FF I was using my astromodded Canon EOS 550d. As I astromodded it myself, I could not be sure that the tilt was not because of the sensor could have been tilted after the mod.

After that I have got a new camera, the ZWO asi 1600mm-c, and the tilt is still there. 

So the tilt is not in the sensor of the modded 550d, but is it the scope or the FF?

I have one even older sub with the scope + canon 550d and no FF. In this image it looks like all the stars are equally pointing from the edges towards the middle (no tilt).

So the FF in question is a SkyWatcher unit. It has one 'tube' that goes into the focuser, and one larger tube with the glass elements. Where the two tubes meet there is a self centering function. The smaller diameter tube 'fades' into the larger diameter tube with a radius that trails the circumference of the two tubes.

This does center the FF into the focuser tube, but that is where the issue lies I think? If the FF is sentered, then the smaller diameter tube on the FF is not making contact with the inside of the focuser tube, as the diameter is slightly smaller than the focuser tube.

When I then hang my filterwheel and camera on the FF, then it moves untill the FF tube and the inside of the focuser tube meets, making the optics tilted.

So if this is likely the case, then I can do one of two things.

1. cheep fix. Wrap the smaller tube of the FF with one or two layers of tape, so that the FF mets the inside of the focuser tube centered, and not making the optics tilt. 

2. get a new FF 

I really want to make my corner stars perfect. When I process something with the meridian flip, I get these stars in two corners, and they are not allways easy to process out.

I do need someone to agree with my findings, or point out something I missed before continuing. 

Here are the subs I'm trying to decode.

All the subs is with the SW Equinox 80 PRO APO

1. eos 550d, modded, no FF, no tilt, all corners pointing to the middle

2. Pelican

eos 550 modded, FF, Tilt, topleft and toprignt pointing towards center

3. California

asi 1600mm-c with FilterWheel, FF, Tilt, topleft pointing center

4. New Pelican

asi 1600mm-c with FW, FF, tilt, topleft pointing center

Some processing under these clouds!

I might add some OIII for a HOO version of this. I have been wanting to try a HOO with RGB stars, just to try

Hope it doesn't come across as too noicy, but it's only 2h 20min.

I finally got som flats, and used dark flats instead of biases after reading up on it. Looks like I have been calibrating these files wrong after getting the asi 1600mm-c...

Now I stacked DarkFlats, Calibrated the Flats with the MasterDarkFlat, then stacked the Flats. Stacked the Darks without Bias calibrating, then calibrated the Lights with master Flat and master Dark.

Looks to be working nice.

@Unity and -25c asi 1600mm-cool

28x 300s Ha Lights

50x 0.2s Ha Flats

150x 0.2s Dark Flats

25x Darks

Hope you like

Just now, CraigT82 said:

Very nice image, I really like that. Very natural looking

Thanks Craig! 

I tried to restrain myself from over sharpening, and over saturating. 

Nice that you noticed

3 hours ago, Yawning Angel said:

A very nice image! Thank you for sharing 

Tanks! Happy that you like

Full mon from Dec 1th 2020 in LRGB, my first OK moon with mono kamera and LRGB filters.

Need to look into getting a 2x barlow to use with these full moon nights.

For this integration I collected a total of 10.000 subs in the .ser format. At Unity gain and -25c i shoot 2.000 subs for LRGB each. I then shoot 2.000 L with a gain of 100, for a HDR L channel. All RGB subs was at 2ms exposure, and all L channel was at 1ms.

Each .ser file was stacked in Autostackert!, then aligned using the FFTRRegistration in PixInsight.

The L channels was combined with HDRComposision, then some curves and unsharp mask. RGB channels was combined, saturated and added to the L channel with pixel math.

I then upscaled the image by 2x.

Scope Equinox 80 PRO APO
ZWO Asi 1600mm-c @-25c
ZWO LRGB filters

Everything controlled via EKOS and Indi ControlPanel, except FireCapture for streaming .ser with the asi 1600mm-c

Hope you like, and Clear skies!

Also on SGL https://stargazerslounge.com/gallery/album/4302-observatory-17b/
and http://observatory17b.com