Mcwaffles2003

Snagged a couple of these recently. Going to wire them in parallel to run my setup.

Specs as I understand them: Full well depth: The amount of electrons each pixel can store before becoming saturated. Higher numbers lead to greater levels of dynamic range ADC: The degree of accuracy to which the fullness of a well is read. Higher numbers lead to greater dynamic range capping out when capable of reading per electron Quantum efficiency: The chance when a photon hits the sensor that it will be read. Higher numbers lead to more brightness in the image and that brightness has hyperbolic scaling (a 60% sensor exposed for 8 minutes is equivalent to an 80% sensor exposed for 6 minutes or a 40% sensor exposed for 12) Sensor size: Literal size of the sensor. Larger sensor gives a greater field of view limited by the image circle formed by the telescope. Pixel size: Literal size of a pixel. Large pixels will gather light more quickly according to their area while smaller pixels will increase angular resolution up to dawes limit (if seeing allows) Read noise: The average amount of noise, in extra electrons, per pixel per second. Higher noise leads to reduced contrast. Please correct any inaccuracies in my understanding, or point out any nuances that I have missed.

Would a normal Ha filter offer any contrast of surface features?

What's the difference, is a solar Ha filter much more narrowband?

So I have a 6" RC and have been enjoying taking pictures of the night sky for a couple years. I was wondering if I could add some filters to my setup and get some really nice pictures of the sun. I bought some solar filter film back in 2017 to take pics of the solar eclipse (This event is probably the point of inspiration where I became determined to do astrophotography) and now it leaves me thinking. Could I just get a sheet of this and fit it over the aperture of my scope (securely!) and then use an H-alpha filter on a mono camera to take pictures of the sun?

I wanted to do this when I started out and saw the weight and thought, well I guess that wont work... that's why I went for an RC, better brightness than a Cass and much lighter than a Newtonian while still having a great focal length (the 1370mm FL with my 1300D sensor will fit the solar eclipse in 2024 perfectly). BTW how much of a difference has the belt mod made for you? I have been considering that as well and I hear it does wonders for backlash and the loud grinding sound the HEQ5 makes.

I primarily do imaging for DSO's but go for planets from time to time to check up on them to make sure they're okay 😛. Also, I'm aware of the limit of an RC from the secondary effectively making the scope perform as a 4.5" Hadn't thought of that and will definitely consider it as that wouldn't be a very costly upgrade, especially if I can sell the starshoot. In retrospect I'm wondering now why the star shoot is $300 vs the ASI being $150 when the star shoot has pretty much the same size sensor and is uncooled. As I understand it the larger pixels help it collect more light for better accuracy on stars but 2x2 binning should lead to a similar result, if not better since it is cooled. Correct? I was referring to the EQ6, my mistake. The weight limit for the HEQ5 is about 30lbs though and I thought the rule of thumb was to try and stay below 50% capacity. Cool, I was thinking as much. I figure allowing myself to use narrow band imaging would greatly increase my time at the scope since I live in a light polluted area and the moon being the beautiful obstructive thing it is 1/2 of the month. Not to mention the shear reduction in noise that accumulates on a 25C+ sensor. BTW, I do not know what OSC stands for I'll probably snag the sky tracker mount before taking the nearly $2000 leap on a dedicated mono camera + filters

Been doin AP for almost 2 years now and have put together the basics of a kit over that time. This is my setup so far: Mount: SW HEQ5 OTA: 6" f/9 RC Camera: Canon 1300D Autoguiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider with a 60mm f/4 guide scope Any suggestions for what I should focus on upgrading first? Was thinking of getting a dedicated AP camera like a ASI1600 mono with filters but then thought of getting a small star tracker so I can still use my Canon for more wide angle shots (and more ease of transport) first. Also, I think I am coming up to the limits of my mount as my kit, though I've never weighed it, must be in excess of 20 lbs. As I understand it I should be able to sell the HEQ5 used for at least 75% of its original cost (it's in good condition besides some wear on the rubber feet of the tripod) and upgrade to an HEQ6. Then I also have to think about the fact that my scope is an f/9 and and takes a fair amount of time to collect data and it being a 6" limits its resolving power for anything I try to do with planets. Any suggestions or wisdom?