Andypeck101

Really usefull discussion as I'm trying to get a handle on planetary as well and I think I could get some siginificantly better results using the suggested settings. I'm curious though, @vlaiv Would the same 5ms rule still be true for a dimmer target such as Mars?

After fighting with alignment using CPWI last night (which has previously performed flawlessly, I managed to capture a Jupiter and Mars. Seeing was horrible and i was fighting to get things tracking nicely, but managed enough data for the below. I'm happy with Mars as it's the first time I've managed to get it. Jupiter is ok, just wish I could get a crisper image, but that's probably my fault not get crisp focus.

Managed to grab a few grainy pics of the eclipse. One at 10:27 and the other at almost peak coverage at 10:58. Managed to snap them with my mobile phone and a pice of welding glass that I use for other photography.

I finally have a dedicated laptop for imaging (and apparently clear skies shh!). I've had the "new" scope for nearly a year now and it hasn't seen much night sky with one thing and another but I have been adding bits and pieces here and there. Anyway last night seemed like a good time to try everything together, as well as CPWI on the nexstar evolution. So a lot of time was spent on alignment and it really shouldn't have, manual alignment with CPWI is a doddle and surpisingly accurate. Anyway had to go for a target that turned up early so Saturn it was. I think the end result is ok-ish, I was struggling with focus, and tbh I didn't really capture enough data, I think the below image is based on roughly 500 frames. Anyway, this was captured on a Nexstar Evolution 6, ZWO ASI 224mc, celestron Excel 2x Barlow, using CPWI for alignment and tracking. Any tips gratefully received. 2022-08-07-2236_1-Saturn_lapl5_ap5.tif

Thanks chaps. I think the next step is to try it with a barlow and see if that makes a difference to image size.

As per my other post I'm just getting into planetary imaging and towards the end of my session the other night Neptune was just climbing above the houses. I took a very short couple of captures, more to see if I could actually get it as it's a pretty small distant object. Well I did, it's not more than a blue dot really, but boy am I pleased to say I got it.

Hello all. I recently got back into astornomy after a long ish hiatus. And with a new scope (Nextstar Evo 6) came a new planetary imaging camera (ZWO ASI 224mc) and I finally got the chance this Wednesday past to have a go. After a bit of a faff sorting out alignment and tracking, things went well. I only had a short window to capture any footage, butthankfully the sky was clear, although seeing was terrible. Anyway I've just now had a first run through processing the footage and the results are not bad (I think) for a first attempt. I did use @MarkRadice youtube tutorial on processing Jupiter which I think has probably helped. So much more to learn but so excited to get better! Anyway, images. We have Jupiter with Ganymede and Io (left and right hand sides respectively) and Saturn with a hint of Cassini division. I think this lays a promising foundation, if and when I get some better seeing.

@vlaiv thank you for such a comprehensive reply, it's very much appreciated and gives me a good starting point to work from.

Good morning all, I've been a lapsed astronomer for a while and recently got back into things, I've refreshed my equipment going for a Celestron Nexstar Evo 6. Great scope and worth the added tracking makes following targets much easier (certainly compared to my old dob). I'm wondering now what I need to bring my planetary imaging A game. I used to have an old webcam but that seems to have gone walkabout, so thinking about ZWO 120 or 224 colour camera. But I'd there any thing I need to consider around extension tubes atmospheric disturbance filters or are they more of a nice to have. I'm also thinking about another diagonal, or would you image directly from the back of the scope? What about auto focusers and how do they work, presumably I need to hook this up to a laptop and use the feed from the camera to make adjustments? Is there anything else for consideration? Apologies for the barrage of questions. Andy

After a few years of lapsed astronomy, I'm returning the fold with a lovely new Celestron Nexstar Evo 6. Main goals for this are observational and planetary imaging once I've got the hang of it. Sorry for the cloudy weather since I ordered it.

Great post Mark, as a lapsed astronomer coming back to the fold with some new kit, this gives me a great starting point for processes and software to use 👍.

Yeah I've come to the conclusion I have false memories of no diffraction spikes. The view is otherwise very good with crisp stars and clear planets. Thanks all for making me realise I'm losing my marbles Andy

Thanks for the quick reply, I could swear I didn't have them before, but the telescope has been sat idle for a while so I might be misremembering.

I seem to be getting a cross pattern when observing stars and planets. The attached picture is an exaggerated version of what I see, it's much less prominent to the naked eye, but is distracting when observing. I did a much needed collimation this evening and everything is otherwise crisp but the Vanes gave been there a while. Any ideas on what I need to do to fix this? I should say this is on a skywatcher 150p dob. Cheers Andy