More experimental work with the e2v sensor

[budski]

This has been a long and protracted test program on account of the abysmal weather. I did manage to get two nights this week when the sky was clear for long enough - but the turbulence was such that sometimes it defied all attempts to get things in focus.

On the upside, however, I was able to test the sensor's 16 bit, Raw and Roling Shutter capabilities which despite the poor seeing was able to discern a number of subtle variations in Jupiters cloud features depite the lack of seeing clarity. Having now established which settings work best, I believe this camera will show it's true mettle when the weather finally settles down. It's extremely good at reproducing what it sees (i.e. rubbish in, rubbish out) and it's not been a 'Plug&Play' experience. I've only managed to get this far with the aid of Torsten Edelmann's FireCapture v2.2 beta (which supports this camera) as the bundled IDS software is not astro-friendly.

The first image was taken at f10 and the second at f20.

Regards

Bud

C11, CGEM DX, SX FilterWheel, Astronomik parfocal LRGB's

PS: If you're interested ... an article regarding my set-up is in the current (November) issue of Astronomy Now.

[sologuitarist61]

They are great images Bud, especially the first showing the three moons (I almost said four moons until I realised the smallest one was a bit of fluff on the screen )

[budski]

.... I remember a time when "a bit of fluff" meant something entirely different!

This has got to be an insane pastime - thousands of £'s ($'s & Euro's) sitting there - doing nothing while we hope for a break in the clouds.

[neil phillips]

.... I remember a time when "a bit of fluff" meant something entirely different!

This has got to be an insane pastime - thousands of £'s ($'s & Euro's) sitting there - doing nothing while we hope for a break in the clouds.

I remember those times too Bud, showing our age i think Have you a imaging source camera to compare on the same night, i would be interested in a direct comparison.

[budski]

Hi Neil, yes I have a DMK21.618 (modded) and will do a proper side-by-side comparison now that I've got the hang of the IDS e2v. I did try this a month or so ago but the weather killed it off before I had a chance to get any useful images. The only general impression I had was that the DMK seemed more contrasty on the Red but the IDS was streets ahead on the blue Filter. Anyway, I'll post something as soon as I have it.

Cheers for now.

Bud

[neil phillips]

Hi Neil, yes I have a DMK21.618 (modded) and will do a proper side-by-side comparison now that I've got the hang of the IDS e2v. I did try this a month or so ago but the weather killed it off before I had a chance to get any useful images. The only general impression I had was that the DMK seemed more contrasty on the Red but the IDS was streets ahead on the blue Filter. Anyway, I'll post something as soon as I have it.

Cheers for now.

Bud

Ok cheers Bud, look foward to the comparison