Big Blue first light timelapse

[assouptro]

big blue firstlight 2hd timelapse.mp4Hi all

Well after a 550m round trip to bonnie Scotland I returned with Big Blue.

I had seen the scope fully assembled and had taken part in dismantling it whilst taking photographs to assist my memory when rebuilding it.

I had a go rebuilding it as soon as I got home but after the best part of 10 hours on the road and with it being late I didn't really get any viewing.

So incredibly we were in for a few nights of clear skies and I planned to build Big Blue during the day, however work/family commitments prevented this so I ended up building it as night fell. I have never used a laser collimator before and had purchased one from amazon to coincide with the arrival of the scope, which it did, and as I will have to build BB every time I use it I thought I had better own one.

I started building BB at about 10pm. I decided to photograph the construction and subsequent viewing session with the plan to put it together as a time-lapse sequence.

Building it for the first time, learning collimation and working out how the servocat system works pretty much took all night. I didn't get a great deal if viewing but what I did manage to see was breath-taking.

My garden is on 2 levels, I have a small lawn with an ornamental stone circular section which I used to use my tripod on when I first got my 12" lx200 before building a permanent pier on my higher decking section. BB is a heavy beast and as a result was going to be used on the lower section. There were a few things I hadn't thought through, the mirror in BB is near the floor, unlike a scope on a tripod and as a result an elevated viewing platform is an advantage. The few trees and bushes my lovely wife has planted and nurtured are surprisingly large and block a lot of the sky to the west and south, my house blocks the north view and 2 of my "lovely neighbours feel the need to illuminate their gardens from dusk till dawn in the east. I have grown a bamboo screen to block their light from my 12" but when stood at the top of an 8' ladder squinting through an eyepiece I am bathed in light pollution!

Despite these drawbacks I had a great and enjoyable first light, I was able to leave BB built for a few days as the forecast was good and eventually with help from my son dragged it up on to the decking!

I haven't seen any galaxies yet due to the LP and the moon which made an appearance but I was blown away at the way M13 just filled the EP with bright well defined stars, M57 was a delight and I could resolve the star in the centre. Jupiter was amazing! I have never seen such a definite red spot, I mean, it was red! as in really red! I also managed to see my first Galilean moon transit on the 5th of may as Io's shadow skipped across Jupiter's belted disc.

All in all I have now mastered the "build" and collimation and have been getting a great deal of pleasure from my new toy.

In the time-lapse you will see the tree problem and my lp issues, amd there is a brief visit from my neighbour (Tozza Hen) who is fairly new to astronomy but has been bitten by the AP bug and has recently purchased a HEQ6 pro. 

I have come to the conclusion I need to transport BB to a dark site to really appreciate its potential, fortunately I wont have to travel too far. I will be planning an overnight camping trip soon.

Anyway. That's my First Light report and you will find the time-lapse attached. Any comments welcome.

cheers and clear skies

Bryan

big blue firstlight 2hd timelapse.mp4

IMG_0740.mp4

 

[Mr niall]

I can't  make it work on my iPad... is it on YouTube?

[estwing]

Glad it's gone to a good home...a steal for the price of those views...the veil is gonna kill your eyes!....let's not even think about M42

[assouptro]

41 minutes ago, Mr niall said:

I can't  make it work on my iPad... is it on YouTube?

I've added a YouTube link

[niallk]

How cool is that! Congrats on a fine instrument and looking forward to hearing more reports!! Sounds amazing 

[Mr niall]

That's amazing thanks - fab video. What a monster! 

[Peter Drew]

Wow!, that was quick, looked like operating in a violent storm.    

[assouptro]

1 hour ago, estwing said:

Glad it's gone to a good home...a steal for the price of those views...the veil is gonna kill your eyes!....let's not even think about M42

I can't wait to actually see the veil, instead of photograph it! 

[FenlandPaul]

Congratulations and great video.  I think there are a few on here who were sorely tempted by that scope but couldn't make the logistics and practicalities work at the moment (me included!).  Really look forward to hearing your deep sky reports!!

Paul

[triton1]

Great first light report and to get the central star in m57 first go you must be well chuffed.

[Racey]

Fabulous video and a fantastic scope.

As was once said "there's a solution to every problem". Delighted to see you're not easily dissuaded. Many would have been defeated before even starting...

May your set up times get shorter and your viewing times longer. 

I'm sure that they will... 

[Tozza Hen]

I can indeed confirm it is a beast of a telescope and amazing to look through. Great vid Bryan. Shame I make an appearance in my dressing gown ?  If only I had known you were doing the time lapse before I jumped the fence...

[JOC]

17 hours ago, assouptro said:

brief visit from my neighbour (Tozza Hen) who is fairly new to astronomy 

That's almost sounds mean letting a newbie neighbour take a view through 'big blue'  - not that they won't now have a bad case of aperture envy!!  LOL  Sounds fabulous I hope you have a lot of fun with it.

[Tozza Hen]

26 minutes ago, JOC said:

That's almost sounds mean letting a newbie neighbour take a view through 'big blue'  - not that they won't now have a bad case of aperture envy!!  LOL  Sounds fabulous I hope you have a lot of fun with it.

Haha, yeah going from a 150p Newt to Big Blue was a bit of an eye opener - literally. I'm not too jealous though - I've had 6 months to come to terms with the fact that Bryan's is bigger (the telescope)! ?