Macavity

Interesting that it is in 3:2 *resonance* (3 rotations per 2 orbits!) with the Sun - That is (apparently) NOT the same as "Tidally Locked"! 😜 You'd never avoid the "Fierce Glare of the Sun" (as they used to say!)? Yet there is still (water) ICE in the Polar regions (See NASA et al.) 😎

Heheh. Couldn't resist a Two Ronnies "Four Candles" reference! 😸 Recently I've been re-vamping a wide-field ST120 / Sky-Tee setup. To make the setup more *attractive* to use I decided to make the mounting / demounting of the scope (in the dark) less fraught? 😮 Sometimes I make a scope handle by using (inverted) Vixen Bars on the top of the rings... This can double to mount a camera etc. But this time I decided to make the handle simple/easy to use! 😛 The Brown "dowel" is cut from an Argos(!) curtain rail & slides through largish (hole saw!) holes in the two wood blocks. The M6 Bolts (+30mm washers) hold rings+blocks+handle firmly. The TOP scope ring / Vixen Bar has a "hook" made from scrap MDF and a piece Aluminium flat bar. This allows me to "hang" the scope *within* the saddle jaws (Handle in ONE hand for total security) tightening the saddle knobs with the other! 🙂 Quite a fan of "Push To", so the Sky-Tee has a printed PDF Azimuth degrees scale and new (posher) "Wixey" Angle Gauge (LED lighting + auto-sleep!) for Altitude. 😉 Quite a while since I did any Visual Astro! But I had a "good night" (rather easily!) finding Globular Clusters using "Stellarium" coords from a 7" Android tablet. 😎

I'm sure I have seen it (at elongation) via binoculars. But more by chance than careful planning? It was notably PINK... as is sometimes claimed? 🤔 I spent quite a bit of time trying to be sure I was imaging the right place with a MAK150 to records the transit first contact(s) last time. But then the clouds rolled in... Yet... for a few seconds the cloud thinned and... The REST of the day was notably clear for tracking on the sun's disk. 😜

AR2741 HA Animation ED80/Lunt50 Frankenscope 2x Barlow f=1200mm 13.05.2019 approx. 10:00-11:30 20x1min stacks @ 4min intervals -> 5fps! Not tried animation for a while. so some cut corners are evident! (Certainly needs FLATS to reduce faint NRs and the odd "blob"). 😜 Not bad seeing, but eventually contrails limited run to ~80min! Should we issue a "flashing images" warning? 😸 P.S. Which software are people using for Solar Animations these days? 🤔

Superb! 🙂

One thing I can tell you (Based on histograms being in the same place) the Baader Solar Continuum filter is just about "equal" to their ND 1.8! So, to match the average image brightness level, I use one or the other in addition to the integral ND3.0 filter of the Lunt Wedge I am using... For VISUAL use, the total density should >= ND 5.0 (Like Baader film) *** And that seems about right for the Chameleon3 CCD chip I use too? 🙂 For CCD use you could in principal reduce the total filtration to match Baader PHOTO film (ND3.8) -- That film is NOT intended for visual use. As ever (also for CCDs) it is essential to err on the SAFE side etc. etc. 😎

Great stuff. Nice to see all the HA activity in one mosaic... 😉

And finally, the other "active area"... Small spots? 🙂

It did clear up (surprisingly?) lol. So there ya go... 🙂 ED80 / Lunt 50 Frankenscope + 2x Barlow:

Up early to a beautiful clear sky... And good seeing apparently? But it clouded over at 8-00! So no closeups as yet. It is supposed to be clearing by 11 o'clock? 😜 (Lunt50 SS Non-barlowed w/Chameleon)

Intrigued. I discovered a golfball sized nest in my obsy. It was empty! Whatever had emerged from the few CELLS had obviously flown off... But I sense THIS was the "preliminary" stage? Queen Wasps needs a FEW workers to start things... Then the whole thing kind of expands?! ? In retrospect, I feel a bit SAD the *BEE* Colony that moved into my cavity wall died out in their first winter... But I think they might have (no fault of theirs) become a bit of a problem? A HIVE-FULL of Bees in my small garden was quite a *sight* though! They didn't sting me. ? I believe WASPS might be a bit more feisty...

The "Greenhouse Effect" of the transparent dome etc. I would always hate being observed, while observing. ? I do sometimes "covet" a (flat top) roof observatory... ? Despite the known / specific objections to such things?

Finally got round to trying my ASI120MM via SharCap... Offline & LIve Stacking This a rather "faint" M3 using an ED80 / 100x 4sec frames. So it works anyway... A nice smooth image, pleasingly small stars - But not very deep in magnitude? By contrast the old Watec 910HX with an 8" Newt: Brighter! A tad "rough & ready" but not quite as BAD as imagined? Of course this is not a FAIR test... "Aperture always wins". Plus I am not convinced MONO8 format uses the full 12/14 bit potential of the ASI? Must read the manual(s) and do a few more "tests" tho! ?

I suppose my "ideal" would have been a *16-bit* (hardware-stacking!) 1" Watec-thing, pumping out higher ADC resolution (than 8-bit!) images on standard coax at 25 fps? ? Not yet sure how I will approximate this. lol. EEVA has moved to (RT) software stacking. I *imagine* a "fair frame rate" (different images) at ~25+ fps is going to retain options! With an 8" f/4 Newt (wobbly HEQ5) a slightly larger than 1/2" chip would be handy. ? There is so much FUN stuff you can do with less-obvious targets using EEVA-ish Cams: Hubble Deep Field... Uranian Satellites... Meteors... (Mercury Transits... Lunar Eclipses...): EEVA doesn't get me embroiled with "classic" auto-guiding, cooling... YET! [teasing] ? I am moved to try out a (neglected!) standard DSLR / Lenses / Scopes... for Wide Fields. A casual wide field image got me far more "likes" than anything else I've produced! lol

Thank You! Ideed M31 & M33 etc. are not (exceptionally so) the "easiest" objects at this image scale. But I have a few more scopes / lenses to try on larger and/or low surface brightness objects. Not all of my "historical" data has dark frames, but there are other "recovery" possibilities too. The Watec 910HX has quite a few hot pixels (now)... I mostly used the darks to remove those. But I find they can also be treated (better?) by the camera processor.... So still a lot of options available! ? Lest we be downhearted I located one of the plots of M31 surface brightness... I "know" I can just about get to Mag +20+ with my "very best" skies. But these closer Galaxies can go on... and on... ?

True (all) Dat! ? For the moment I'm leaving my Camera choice up "in the air"! Indeed some excellent input (grist for the mill!) here and elsewhere though. ? I am now tempted by a Mono Ultrastar, but worry about the "Black Streak"? ? After a long layoff (mostly solar imaging) I forget stuff... Notably the virtue of smaller (1/2") chips: They are within "Coma limit" of my budget 8" f/4 Newt! ? I may "struggle on" with my *eight bit* Watec 910HX for a while. I've no idea how to factor in 8-bit hardware pre-stacking to the general equation of EEVA! It may not be ALL that bad? As indeed some of my past (Wat 120N+ images). THIS may have been taken with an ST102... I processed the life out of it. (sic)! For those who don't mind "post-processing", it may illustrate my problem? ONE mere click within GIMP (Photoshop?) can make or break the image! ? Notice, in the corners, I am fighting (what I call) the "Generic HEAT Haze"?!? Who knows? Couple of years back I built a cooling case for the WAT910HX. (Contemplated adding a small cooling FAN... A Peltier Chip chip even! lol I sense there are two types of heat-effect? On-Chip heating AND also the surrounding electronics... Ambient temperature? A lot of air cooled EEVA Cams have small cases... get VERY hot... At least on Summer Nights now? ? Aside: EEVA'ers can be forgiven if... "Their Brain Hurts"? [Monty Python!]? ? </wibble>!

Great Stuff! It went ominously QUIET for a while? lol. It's been a while since I did any "Video Astronomy" and I did need to catch up on the latest ideas / trends! ? As we Astronomers know, it is often possible (unwise?) to stretch a budget 2X! ? So maybe an "Ultrastar" is not completely impossible... Thanks @Martin Meredith I also read this: (See section on EEVA) https://agenaastro.com/zwo-astronomy-cameras-buyers-guide.html I find myself drawn (whatever the price) to ASI183 type cameras... Having enjoyed the luxury of Watec "half inch" chips (Or "slightly dodgy" polar alignment!) I am reluctant to go to smaller chips. My 8" f/4 Newt is OK for many Messier, Caldwell DSOs etc., But l still aspire to (larger chip) "better framing"? ? And my smaller(!) ZWO Cams give me some possibilities to TRY OUT this stuff...

Colour certainly livens things up! And (with extra effort) I can do this via a manual alignment of Narrow Band RGB on compact Planetary Nebulae: N.B. I can NOW rid myself of (tri-coloured!) hot pixels by using Camera hardware. ? And of course, get into such things as dark field subtraction... Flat field processing. I suppose the only less inspiring experience is with diffuse nebulae. But I can still image M42... And even use software masking for some "extended contrast" stuff? ? I guess I will TRY pitting my Watec 910HX (using internal hardware stacking + offline stacking / processing) versus my ASI120MM using (SharpCap) *LIVE* Software. I sense many modern cameras have similar Q.E's to Watec Cams! ? 16 versus 8 bits? But nothing is totally cut and dried until tried in practice? I sense I will limit myself to non-cooled Cams. I like the simplicity of EEVA. (Though I have no qualms re. using processing. "Whatever works" for me). ?

After (quite a few!) years doing "Video Astronomy" -- Using my trusty Watec 120N+ (later Watec 910HX) 8" f/4 Newt, I am / was fairly happy with 8-bit hardware stacking + offline (stacking) processing. But still hoping to improve previous DSO images? ? I prefer to image a WIDE variety of DSO rather than emulate the Classical image(r)s. ? (Ultimately I found myself inspired by "going a bit deeper" e.g. HG & ARP Galaxies): BUT I SENSE I could now *make life a bit easier* by moving to 16-bit Cameras + LIVE Stacking etc. At this stage of life, I might struggle to "invest" £1000+ in a Camera... But think I might just stretch to a Lodestar X2 Mono (if still available) AFAICS it uses the same CHIP as a Watec 910HX... AND 16bits > 8bits, right? ? I can anyway practice LIVE stacking with Watec Cams... ZWO ASI120MM/MCs? (I guess I still HOPE there will be some place for my "older technology" too!) ?

I suppose... when they cart me off to the canonical "Old people's home"... a Maksutov 127... Or maybe smuggle in a "102" in my personal effects? ?

An amazing achievement for all concerned! At the risk of being a tad controversial, but hopefully giving some fellow (American too) scientists a good-natured chuckle: How many times can Jim Bridenstine mention the word "American" in one Tweet? ? I SALUTE ALL scientists who work hard... for long hours... (not always huge salaries!) and despite (threat of) cuts/stoppages and the uncertain whim of administration? ? But back to the REALLY important question: "Where can I BUY: https://www.amazon.com/Celestial-Buddies-Earth-Plush/dp/B005ESB6PG HTH! ?

Another one brought up on SPM's Observer's Book"! Three inch refractor... Six inch reflector... Notorious Pillar & Claw Mount! ? (I did try out the One Dioptre spectacle lens idea too!) My pocket money would only stretch to one of the "dread" 30x30 scopes sold in many seaside resorts! But it taught me quite a lot. I rapidly realised it was *usable* if I stuck my microscopes e.p's (longer focal lengths!) in it... But with only £12.50 in P.O. savings, when I left school, I simply gave up! ? Next 30 years (Uni... jobs... travel) I completely almost forgot Astronomy. Until... By chance... I bought an Astro Mag in WHS! I was *amazed* I could finally afford a REAL telescope (OK... an ST102 / EQ3-2 Combo anyway!) ? And I did LOVE it... But I had supposed this 4-inch scope would be FAR better that SPM's 3" (I suspect f/12) doublet achromat? lol. I knew about "chromatic aberration" so I paired the ST102 with a MAK90. With that I became aware that a smaller color-free / well figured scope had merit! ? WITH HELP from Astronomy Forums (+ my experience as a "scientist") I began to understand the underlying issues more clearly? It isn't really just about SIZE (though it does matters! lol) but a whole host of stuff... ? My real "revelation" came with discovery of Video Astronomy. Again that (like the Astro Mag) a completely random thing! ? My (Astro) Life is mish-mash of chance / learning / Darwinian selection? ? "Faint heart never won fair lady" sometimes "making the BEST of things"!

A personal thing that occurs to me when I see a "slideshow" talk of DSOs etc., by an expert imager is to wonder about the *actual size* of these objects? ? Can they be seen by casual observer? Can Amateur scopes SEE this thing? I began my "Video Astronomy" talks with a discussion of *magnitudes*. A basic intro to the idea of Logarithmic scales... The visual magnitude limit. The (rather positive) ability of technology to see things in the real world? ? They might end up a tad disappointed in the long run, but that's science! ?

I live in an area that (despite the rumours) is *relatively* crime free. With a little ingenuity, protecting e.g. tripods against (casual) theft, seems a real possibility? Whatever, I have devised extra obstacles to less determined "non-professional" criminals? A few extra HOLES in metal things... Add Heavy Chains... Padlocks? ? I suppose if "Bad people" come equipped with Angle Grinders, Bolt Cutters etc., I will be heartbroken to lose (my precious) few £100's of "scrap metal" at most? (The Telescopes and "Optics" live indoors with me at all non-observing time!) ? I AGREE that a potential enemy is "careless talk"? According to ONE neigbour I have "Thousands of pounds worth" in my Shed... I'm also a Secret Millionaire? ? (Seriously, if I had a *tiny* fraction of the stealable wealth of such speculation!)

I get the impression there may be real news at about 3 p.m. UK time? ?