Camcorder Astronomy?!

[Kropster]

Has anyone experimented using a camcorder to observe / record the night sky?

I have been given an old miniDV camcorder....large zoom range and also a 'night shot' setting, which presume increases sensitivity.

I am just wondering if it is worth buying a power supply to power it up and have a go.

Any thoughts welcome.

Thanks.

[Peter Drew]

I've had a lot of success with planetary imaging with a Canon miniDV camcorder in conjunction with a 12" SCT. The real time images are better than seen with an eyepiece alone. I coupled it to a 15mm Plossl eyepiece and then zoomed with the optical zoom until the planet half filled the screen. Solar and Lunar imaging was OK but not so impressive, forget DSO's!

[laowho]

I'd like to hear more about this too...for rendering real-time color at outreach events. Too bad about the DSOs...figured (wrongly) that the camcorder's CCD would better pick up the light, unless this failing is due to limited mag/zoom?

[hoops86]

I'd like to hear more about this too...for rendering real-time color at outreach events. Too bad about the DSOs...figured (wrongly) that the camcorder's CCD would better pick up the light, unless this failing is due to limited mag/zoom?

Check out the Video astronomy section (down near the bottom) . Lots of info on how to use cheap modified CCTV cameras to achieve this. 

Cheers

Chris

[laowho]

Thanks Hoops,

Good info there. Oh boy...can't afford the Mallincam, so looks like the choice is between the Samsung SCB 2000 with 1/3" CCD for $100 or the SCB 4000 with 1/2" CCD for $350. Dunno squadoosh about photography but it seems a pretty straightforward proposition. Geez...just when I thought we had everything. But honestly, with the middle- and high school students, we're gonna need to be packing this kinda heat. Geez...unless we can convince another member to do it...but it's definitely gotta be available, though...Geez, then when they look thru the EP they're gonna be disappointed. Geez