Mars @ 5.06".....

[Kokatha man]

I've only just stopped frenetic work commitments and missed out on a (possible) good imaging opportunity with Jove due to wall-to-wall clouds the other night out in The Mallee.....despite the predictions of superb transparency..!

But there's plenty of time even if it won't happen till I head up North nearer opposition...

But at least that lost opportunity fired me up to continue my imaging of Mars the following evening and the next night as it shrinks away to next-to-nothing size, being now over 276,000,000Km away and only 5.06 arcseconds in diameter....!

Focusing requires quite different application on such a tiny disk, not only because any details revealed are so minute but also because it has been very poor re the seeing here of late with the onscreen images fluctuating wildly in appearance and bouncing all around the screen in the gusty conditions.....and to top it all off my normally inflexible regime of allways collimating before imaging has been impossible to do - the onscreen patterns are so poor that it's not worth attempting any adjustments.....

Anyway, on both the 9th & 10th September we obtained quite plausible outcomes despite the conditions: the image here was shot with a 100Km jetsream overhead and although I had to lash the processing heavily to extract something reasonable I'm still pretty pleased to get such detail now.....hopefully in the not-too-distant future I can grab an image at around 45 degrees a bit earlier in the evening.....and with a bit of luck should wind up with a nice set of sequential images from oppsition to down well into the 4 arcsec range, which I'd be well-pleased to garner!

[DirkSteele]

Very impressive, especially considering the small angular diameter. I look forward to seeing all the images side by side with the project is complete.

Clear skies,

[Virgoman]

Those are lovely tight images, despite the elements conspiring against you! The detail on such a tiny image is remarkable. Superb.

[Kokatha man]

Thank you Dirk and Virgoman.....despite all the attention to Jupiter everywhere at present I'm limited atm in my imaging opportunities there untill much nearer opposition: continued Mars imaging has become my ongoing project and I'm enjoying the specific challenges successfully imaging such a difficult target presents in various ways!

What I'm hoping for in the ensuing month or so is a good seeing opportunity when Mars is well into the 4" sizing!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Impressive indeed. Amazing what detail the C14 pulls out of such a small disk.

[JamesF]

Indeed. Very nice. Interesting that the polar ice caps barely show up, too.

James

[Kokatha man]

Thanks Michael and James.....I'm fixed upon taking Mars images untill I can't anymore, probably when it's too low in the sky unless the weather has even more say than it does atm: I also have a new "super-sensitive" CMOS camera to test from a manufacturer that could be interesting.....if I can get one of the capture programs to run properly that is..!

[Space Cowboy]

Thats pretty crazy stuff lol

[si@nite]

Absolutely amazing images at that distance! i think im coming down with aperture fever.

[Kokatha man]

Absolutely amazing images at that distance! i think im coming down with aperture fever.

Heh-hee.....keep away from that disease mate....!