AstroMuni

You could try using an RPi4. That has plenty of grunt for imaging and controlling the mount etc. I use that powered by Astroberry which is a pre-built image that includes relevant software for Astro. But I agree to do the processing of large images you would be better off getting a laptop. I too have Affinity on my ipad but use Siril on an old laptop that cant run windows but can run linux 🙂

Welcome! Great perseverance and good first attempt. As others have said adding a tracker will definitely help. I would also recommend you learn a processing software like Siril or Affinity Photo. GIMP is a great tool but these have specific functions to help in AP. Whats the budget that you have? Good luck

At gain 0 your read noise would be quite high compared to at 100.

Lovely detail in M63.

As I dont have a dome, I dismantle and reattach for every imaging session and notice that my camera orientation sometimes alters a bit (even though I leave the camera attached to scope). 😞 Good luck and look forward to seeing more DSO images from you now.

And Affinity now supports stacking too. I havent tried the stacking aspect of it though. Is there a reason you prefer DSS?

Once you have read up about the basic workflow of processing, pick a software (try out a few until you are comfortable) and then learn the features and how best to use them. You might decide to use multiple software - eg. one to stack and another to post process. Thats perfectly normal. Here are a few to consider: - Siril - FREE - DSS (DeepSky Stacker) - FREE - APP (Astro pixel processor) - StarTools - Affinity Photo - PixInsight (the big brother of all)

You could collect 2hrs (or whatever is the battery capacity) at a time and stack the stacks to get the same result. You just need to be mindful to retain as close as possible to the original orientation to minimise rotational stacking issues.

Wow, that looks amazing. Love it. The histogram looks clipped but that maybe just the image thats been uploaded.

Looks like you really enjoyed this great experience and your writeup made it feel like reading a thriller and I felt I was there sharing your moments!

I love this revised version. Exquisite detail and amazing skills to bring these out! Definitely a candidate for NASA apod

I especially like the Bubble Nebula. Nicely done

I use Kstars/Ekos and in the application you can set the camera sensor and scope details. When you do a platesolve the software orients the FOV correctly in the skymap and tells you the orientation. Looking quickly at the Aladin documentation it says .... It is possible to define one's own instrument fields in the form of an XML file. The syntax description and some examples can be found at http://aladin.u-strasbg.fr/java/FAQ.htx#FoV So it looks like you might be able achieve the same functionality as Ekos. Good luck.

Wow. Thats a great improvement. Love it.

Lots of us use platesolving with Windows or Mac/Linux/RPi based software and if you start a topic giving details of the issues you are facing, I am sure you will get lots of good advice right here in this forum.

Thats a great attempt! I think there is a lot more data than whats visible in this at the moment. Feel free to post your stacked raw image here and folk will tell you the art of the possible. 🙂 And that will tell you where to focus - better equipment or mastering the processing software

What software do you use to manage the mount etc.?

Awesome images, worth submitting to magazines for getting published !

Take a look at this site and change the parameters to the equipment you have and you should get a rough idea of what to expect. As others have said there are many factors that impact what you can see. https://www.stelvision.com/astro/telescope-simulator/

Good spot. As the OP said Coma corrector, I didnt bother to look properly at the images. 🙂

As you are using a Coma corrector and not a focal reducer, you may not need the spacers.

Amazing image Carole. Its got lots of detail and I as a beginner could get this view playing around in Preview on Mac. So if you spend more time with the processing I am sure you can leverage a lot more from the original data.

Amazing detail. Beautiful.

They seem to be in the same position relative to each other. Do they appear in your flats or darks? Do these appear only in certain images taken when scope is pointing in certain direction? This could indicate that its being affected by some external light sources.

Beautiful image. Love the detail ! Perhaps running the Remove Green noise would help get the stars looking less green