Peter_D

I generally do any AP on my Celestron 6SE because of its tracking but the last few sessions I've been trying with my Meade 2080 SCT on an unpowered GP mount. I had a reasonable result with Saturn last time out but Mars was a lot harder to capture this time. It was quite frustrating and I only had the image centred briefly - I used a x2 barlow in front of my flip mirror. In the end, I was going to bin the data - I only had 330 frames and not great focusing. Here's the result using 50% of the best frames. Meade 2080; Vixen GP Mount; Canon EOS 6D. Time of capture: 1:30 CET

Here's Saturn from last evening. I had scanned the twilight sky with binoculars and captured it just as it was getting dark. Equipment: Meade 2080 SCT, Canon 60D EOS, unpowered Vixen GP mount. No barlow used. 7000 frames, best 20% used.

How about a 90mm Mak? You could confirm collimation and then you would hardly ever need to worry about it again. Great for Moon, good on planets and brighter DSOs. Orion have a model that uses a table top (unpowered) mount - I am almost sure you can screw in on to a photo tripod (I use a used heavy duty Slik tripod that I bought on eBay with my C90). The Mak could be used as a long distance spotting scope during the day. For fainter DSOs, I would use binoculars - maybe your grandson could get a pair from another relative for his birthday.

First time capturing Mars in a month - I'm getting a bit more surface detail using my Celestron 6SE and Canon Eos 6D. Still not great though. The polar cap is noticeably smaller since last month. (Time: 04:00 CET, 2000 images, best 15% used)

Many thanks for the quick response, appreciate it!

Hi, I want to fit Skywatcher motors from a Skywatcher Eq5 upgrade kit on to my GP mount. I don't need Goto. I see there are two versions of Eq5 upgrade kits (non-Goto): a older model with a black control box and an enhanced model with a red control box. I have read the older black box model can be fitted on a GP mount - can the enhanced model? https://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p399_Skywatcher-Dual-Axis-Stepper-Motor-Drive-System-for-EQ5.html https://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p7293_Skywatcher-Dual-Axis-Motor-Drive-Set-for-EQ5-Mount-with-Autoguider-Interface.html CS Peter

Hi, Use an app like Light Pollution Map to find your nearest dark sites - just looked and the best area in Illinois would be out west around Macomb. CS Peter

Yes, you'd have to factor in their profit in the asking price so it would be higher - I should have made that point.

I see somewhere like ENS Optical in Birmingham often have second hand Meade and Celestron SCTs for sale - this should give you a good pointer in coming up with what your scope is worth.

Yesterday, I tried my luck trying to image Mars with my 6SE and Canon 6D - really only managed to capture the polar cap and brown shading so it was a bit of a disappointment. At least the Moon was up too and the crater Theophilus looked super at the eyepiece. Here's a processed image of my view.

My Goto experience is with a SE mount. I'm sure someone will confirm for the HEQ5 but one initial part of the SE setup that helps achieve success is to make sure the mount is perfectly level - use a small triangular spirit level. Another tip is to input the exact time (to the second). Finally, by all means use a lower power ep but use progressively higher power eps to really get the allignment stars in the dead centre. HTH

Re. used scopes - I've only been back in to astronomy for the last couple of years. I'm not sure about the UK but here in Germany, I've really noticed excellent value on many used scopes that are *not* ED/APO refractors. A lot of people switching over to them and so really good deals to be had on achros, SCs, Maks, Newts and so on. Just try and ensure the seller is reputable - you can usually tell if they are serious about the hobby or not (e.g. what else are they selling) - if the former, usually the gear has been well looked after.

Hi, I had a look at the video settings on the 60D - there is no option to record video in ALL-I or Raw mode. I did a Google search and it seems people used Magic Lantern to create Raw video - I'll have to research this further. Thanks again Peter

Hi, No, the two images are from last lunar cycle - am looking forward to using your advice, thanks again! CS Peter

Thanks for the tip and the comments! I haven't had too many opportunities to use the camera recently - but I was able to capture Copernicus and Clavius. The seeing was excellent for the latter.

Glad to hear the RDF issue is resolved and you were able to align it ok. What I can't get over is the cost of a new 150mm reflector - sub 200 pounds is amazing value, especially when you think how much 6 inch reflectors cost in the past.

Sorry to go off topic but please could you tell me the name of this App?

Personally speaking, I wouldn't be happy having a non-standard looking element on my new scope - it'll be something that could potentially affect its resale value (even if it is only cosmetic). Really frustrating to send it back too but better to be 100 percent satisfied with a new purchase imho.

I bought a used Canon 60D and I had a quick session with it last night: A Celestron C6 on a unpowered Vixen GP mount. I was really impressed with the clarity in the video crop mode even though the sky was still quite bright with intermittent wispy cloud. Focusing on the crater Arzachel, I took a short video (14 seconds), sat down today and worked with it using PIPP and Registax 6. I know the results look pretty bad compared to the images I have seen in this section so far but for me, the Canon is an absolute game changer - I was imaging with a smartphone up until now. I've included a grab from the video and the processed image. Thanks for looking!

Set up my Celestron 6SE on my balcony and managed to see a very thin Venus..Mercury is currently higher and I observed it for the first time (thank you goto!). Photos from my smartphone aren't very impressive unfortunately.

Hi, Firstly, sorry for the rather basic question. I have a Celestron 1.25 inch 7-21mm zoom that I just discovered has external threads! I have a Canon t-ring and dslr - I'm just not sure which adapter goes between the zoom eyepiece and t-ring/camera. (I don't want to make a mistake ordering the wrong part.) Any guidance gratefully received! Peter PS: I see that you can buy Barlow lenses with these external t-threads also. Presumably the same adapter will work on these too? Peter

Well last evening was frustrating - a classic case of having wrong tool for the job! I had wanted to observe Venus in daylight and with a marvellous blue sky slowly turning to twilight and the sun safely behind the cherry tree, I was all set. Picked up Venus in my 8x30s - then things began to turn pear shaped, pardon the pun. Try as I might, I just could not see Venus with the naked eye (to line up with the RDF) even though it was plainly visible in the bins. I was getting more and more frustrated - even tried resting the bins on top of the C6 SE to use as finder. No luck. Top of my shopping list will be a bracket to attach a traditional finderscope to the OTA. I was able to observe Venus later on - surprised how much thinner its crescent is. It really has been a wonderful sight for the last few months - is it common that a planet stays visible for this length of time?

I reckon the crater you have circled is crater Wurzelbauer

Hi Stefann, Really enjoyed reading your first light report! Btw, there is an app called 'Moons of Jupiter' that you can use to identify where the 4 largest moons are positioned at a certain time or date. I observed a transit last year and was able to use the app to identify the moon as being Io. Peter

Video taken with Celestron 6SE using a Huawei P9, Vixen LV 5mm. Video processed with Pipp and image stack processed with RegiStax6.