Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1276
Loc: Belgium
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here's a sketch done this morning using my 12" dob. seeing was fair but Mars was showing it's 'boring' side.
not very much recorded, Mare Cimmerium was the only dark feature i could see across the globe. the area south of Mare Cimmerium (Eridiani & Ausonia i believe) was a brighter yellow in color than the more orange dessert on the northern hemisphere (Elysia-um & Aetheria?).
i could however for the first time clearly see the north polar hood, it even had a faint bluish/grey teint.
two bright patches of haze or limb brightening were also seen at the edge of the disk.
i used no filters, but during the whole observation i made use of an apodizing mask, this has worked miracles on Jupiter and, to a lesser extent, improves the view of mars as well!
good luck with your observations!
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid 
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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dweller25
sage
Reged: 08/30/07
Posts: 250
Loc: 53.6°N - UK
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Very nice Kris, well done.
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Be true to your teeth and they will never be false to you.
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Tommy5
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 03/28/04
Posts: 1821
Loc: Chicagoland
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Nice detail, i heard a lot of good things about the simple apodizing mask.
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JayinUT
I'm not Sleepy
Reged: 09/19/08
Posts: 944
Loc: Utah
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Kris,
Your making me want to study Mars in detail. Thanks for sharing and pipping my interest in this planet.
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Jay in Utah
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Location: Lat: 40.514N Long: -112.032W
Mortal as I am, I know that I am born for a day. But when I follow at my pleasure the serried multitude of the stars in their circular course, my feet no longer touch the earth.
— Ptolemy, c.150 AD
My Blog
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mike bacanin
professor emeritus
Reged: 03/19/07
Posts: 638
Loc: united kingdom
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Kris,
That is a beautiful rendering of Mars.
Mike
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frank5817
Post Laureate
Reged: 06/13/06
Posts: 4084
Loc: Illinois
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Kris,
Your Mars sketch is beautiful. With Mars still a long way off you are creating some nice sketches and this is the best one yet. 
Frank 
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my gallery
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kraterkid
Post Laureate
Reged: 03/07/05
Posts: 4550
Loc: Jacumba, California
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Kris your Mars sketches are simply top notch! Very subtle and atmospheric limb glow and terminator. Wonderful color over the entire Martian disc. Lovely albedo!
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Rich
My CN Gallery
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Dee
professor emeritus
Reged: 03/12/06
Posts: 738
Loc: Ireland
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That is really really cool, it is so difficult to sketch Mars >
I got up very early this morning to sketch the Moon and Mars close to each other , but a million clouds prevented that happening.
Lucky you
Dee
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Shannon s
super member
Reged: 06/21/09
Posts: 138
Loc: Bartow FL.
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Very nice Kris. Very faint detail caught.
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4.5" & 12" Reflectors
5" Maksutov
Astroview mount
Orion SSDSI
7x50 Binos
A box of Eps
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phxbird
super member
Reged: 12/24/07
Posts: 116
Loc: New Mexico, USA
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I have not even tried to sketch Mars lately. Since it is only 5" I did not think I could see enough to sketch. Now I will have to rethink this philosophy! Very nice work. What medium did you use? Very good coloring and reproduces the subtle features you see through the eyepiece very well!
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Celestron 6" Refractor
Celestron AS-GT Mount
"The Bargain Bucket" 8" Dob
Meade ETX 90 EC
Orion ST 80mm
SAC-7b Imager
SBIG ST-7E Imager
Temple Research Observatory
AAVSO Member
Society of Astronomical Sciences Member
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Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1276
Loc: Belgium
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thanks for the comments guys!
Jay, i'm looking forward to your observations!
Dee, i'm sorry to hear bad weather prevented you from sketching this morning, it has happened to me quite a few times as well 
phxbird, i use color pencils on standard white copy paper. i then scan the sketch in and sometimes adjust the brightness and/or contrast levels a bit. this sketch needed no adjustement.
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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phxbird
super member
Reged: 12/24/07
Posts: 116
Loc: New Mexico, USA
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That's what I thought. I am borrowing my wifes colored pencils and will give it a shot soon!
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Celestron 6" Refractor
Celestron AS-GT Mount
"The Bargain Bucket" 8" Dob
Meade ETX 90 EC
Orion ST 80mm
SAC-7b Imager
SBIG ST-7E Imager
Temple Research Observatory
AAVSO Member
Society of Astronomical Sciences Member
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Jef De Wit
super member
Reged: 03/06/09
Posts: 123
Loc: Hove, Belgium
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Hello Kris
Nice sketch! And thanks for your support to try to see some detail in Mars with my 7 cm refractor. But it didn't work... I will tell you my first try with my 30 cm dobson.
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Clear skies, Jef De Wit
7x50 bino, Meade ETX-70 & Orion Optics UK 12" Dobson
"Bright skies aren't empty skies" (James Mallaney)
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Special Ed
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/18/03
Posts: 4296
Loc: Greenbrier Co., WV 38N, 80W
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Really fine sketch, Kris! You do a great job rendering Mars with those color pencil--very subtle and realistic. Keep up the good work.
Your sketch reminded me of one of the earliest Mars sketches, done by Cassini's nephew Giocomo Maraldi. See any resemblance? [The sketch is from the book, The Exploration of Mars by Werner von Braun and Chesley Bonestell]
More on Marldi here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giacomo_F._Maraldi
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Michael Rosolina
8" f/10 Orange Tube SCT
4.25" f/4.2 Astroscan Reflector
SVP 3.6" f/13.6 CA Reflector
40mm PST f/10
APM Germany HD 15x70 binoculars
Canon 12x36 IS II binoculars
Mark I Eyeball
My CN Gallery
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Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1276
Loc: Belgium
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Thanks Michael, yes indeed there is a resemblance 
i doubt Maraldi was watching the same side of mars, too bad we'll never know what he saw (or is there software able to go back a few centuries  ).
to me it looks a bit like one of Huyghens' sketches of Syrtis Major, take a look at his right sketch here. perhaps maraldi failed to see Syrtis Major extending further north, or there was haze obscuring it, or perhaps that feature was not as dark as it is now... 
i find those old planet sketches fascinating!
i looked the book you mentioned up on amazon.com, "perhaps i'll buy it", i thought. seems they're selling from $50 up to $663 
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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Special Ed
Post Laureate
Reged: 05/18/03
Posts: 4296
Loc: Greenbrier Co., WV 38N, 80W
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Quote:
Thanks Michael, yes indeed there is a resemblance
i doubt Maraldi was watching the same side of mars, too bad we'll never know what he saw (or is there software able to go back a few centuries ).
Kris,
Most programs like Starry Night will let you go back or forward a couple of thousand years (or more). I took Mars Previewer II back to the date on Maraldi's sketch, August 19th, 1719. Unfortunately, since we don't know the time of Maraldi's observation I couldn't pinpoint the features that he sketched, but when I entered the time that Mars would have been at maximum altitude for Maraldi (36°), the CM came up 223°.
Quote:
to me it looks a bit like one of Huyghens' sketches of Syrtis Major, take a look at his right sketch here. perhaps maraldi failed to see Syrtis Major extending further north, or there was haze obscuring it, or perhaps that feature was not as dark as it is now...
Huyghens is credited with being the first to see and sketch Syrtis Major. Those two sketches of his you linked to were done many years before Maraldi. The one on the left was done on November 28th, 1659 and I believe is the first drawing of Syrtis Major. The one on the right was made on August 13th, 1672 at 10:30PM. I plugged those numbers into MPII and came up with Syrtis Major on the CM. Mars had an apparent diameter of 22.7 arcsecs on that date. Btw, this is the first sketch to clearly show the Martian South Polar Cap.
You're right--there is a resemblance to Huyghens's 1672 sketch. but I still think Maraldi sketched Mare Cimmerium--it just looks too much like your sketch. (Mars had an angular diameter of 24.8 arcsecs at the time of Maraldi's sketch)
I found another sketch that Maraldi did later in the year 1719--I think it shows that he knows what SM looks like. By this time, Mars had shrunk to 17 arcsecs.
Quote:
i find those old planet sketches fascinating!
Me, too! 
Quote:
i looked the book you mentioned up on amazon.com, "perhaps i'll buy it", i thought. seems they're selling from $50 up to $663
Yes, it's a collectors item. I was fortunate to borrow a copy from a friend for a little while back in 2003. It no doubt contributed greatly to my Mars Mania. 
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Michael Rosolina
8" f/10 Orange Tube SCT
4.25" f/4.2 Astroscan Reflector
SVP 3.6" f/13.6 CA Reflector
40mm PST f/10
APM Germany HD 15x70 binoculars
Canon 12x36 IS II binoculars
Mark I Eyeball
My CN Gallery
Edited by Special Ed (08/19/09 12:48 PM)
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Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1276
Loc: Belgium
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Michael, thanks for your digging work
amazing coincidence that the suspected cm for maraldi could also have been 223°
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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JimPie
sage
Reged: 11/10/07
Posts: 229
Loc: S.E.Michigan
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Kris
What a great sketch. It not only makes me want to view mars more, It also makes me want to build one of those apodizing mask.
Jim
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Jim
12.5",f=4.8 truss dob
EQ platform,24mm pan,14mm radian, vixen LVs
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Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1276
Loc: Belgium
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thanks Jim, give making such a mask a try, it's well worth it imo.
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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rolandlinda3
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/24/06
Posts: 2233
Loc: Crozet VA 22932
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Very nice, Kris. And, now that you have had time with it, still love that 12 inches of aperture with sketching?? ...and how about the binoviewers??
Clear skies.
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Roland
Sketches in members galleries: rolandlinda3
Inspirational stories/sketches at:
www.christworksministries.org
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Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1276
Loc: Belgium
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it's definitely an improvement for deepsky (spent a night hunting globulars and nebulae this week, everything looks so much better!).
on jupiter i can see more easily the same levels of detail (and more) than with my 8".
i haven't looked at saturn, but i guess that'l be the same as with Jup.
on mars, i can't really tell, i still have to do a side by side comparison with the 8 incher. i also have no experience with observing mars at 5" with the other scope. but it's almost sure to be a step up from the 8". still have to compare the mirror quality though i think that's all right.
the binoviewer is an all different story. in fact i'm not happy with it. i bought it exclusively for high power planetary observing, but whatever i do, i just can merge the image(s) of mars. i can almost merge the views of jupiter, but in both cases the image is really bad, when i see loads of detail in mono-mode, i can see *none* with the BV. i had a quick look at some deepsky objects with it, and M13 was truly breathtaking with it. but that's not where i bought the thing for! no one told me, and i didn't search well enough, that you best avoid using eyepieces of 10mm focal lenght or less... that's too bad cause i also acquired a second set of orthos ranging from 4mm to 12.5mm with which i always do my planetary observing & sketching!
i don't really know what to do with the binoviewer, fact is i can't use it with my orthos. only thing i can still try if i want to use the bv is sell the second set of orthos and buy some ep's between 25 and 10mm and use the bv in high power modus so i can still achieve reasonable powers with it to observe the planets. but that means buying 4, 6 or even 8 new eyepieces ! 
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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CarlosEH
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/19/05
Posts: 4138
Loc: Pembroke Pines, Broward County...
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Kris,
I am sorry that I have not responded to your excellent observation of Mars sooner but I wanted to be able to identify the albedo features for you. Your were able to view a good amount of detail over Mars. Thank you for sharing it with us all.
As Michael points out, your observation reminds us of the observation made by the French-Italian astronomer and mathematician Giacomo Filippo Maraldi (1665-1729) in 1719. This observation points out the permanence of the major Martian albedo features over time with intermittent changes in certain regions of the planet over time.
I look forward to your future observations of Mars.
Carlos
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rolandlinda3
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 01/24/06
Posts: 2233
Loc: Crozet VA 22932
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Kris, sorry I did not get back to you on your reply. That is good news on your new scope. ON THE BINOVIEWERS: If you bought them new from Denkmeier, he is really nice about returns. Some people have a real issue with merging images, so you are not the first. I have a reduced problem with binoviewers but it is not bad enough to warrant drastic action. So, you might check about returning them. But if they do not work, by all means opt for something else and sell them. They retain good value because they really are a good product. The best to you....
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Roland
Sketches in members galleries: rolandlinda3
Inspirational stories/sketches at:
www.christworksministries.org
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Sol Robbins
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 12/01/03
Posts: 1609
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Kris,
I have the same problem with all binoviewers. I didn't understand why till a little while ago when I had my eyes checked. It turns out that one of my eyes is 7 degrees off from the other, therefore I can't easily merge images.
It doesn't affect everyday life but it can be a problem with binoculars and binoviewers.
Best,
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S.R.
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Kris.
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 09/16/04
Posts: 1276
Loc: Belgium
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thanks for labeling the sketch carlos i really appreciate that
Roland & Sol, it's good to hear from fellow sketchers that i'm not the only one having some problems with a binoviewer!
do you think i could solve the merging issue by using longer focal lengths ep's? (in the bv high power modus)
i'm guessing it should be a little easier to look through two ep's with larger eye lenses simultaneously than 2 ortho-peepholes?
on the other hand, it hink the exit pupil will be the same if i use the same powers, so it won't do nothing to help?
i'm willing to give this a shot, and if that doesn't work, i will sell it, i'll ask but i don't think returning will be easy since it would have to be shipped over again. i can always try to sell it here in belgium and europe though.
thanks for the info!
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Kris
To be old & wise, you first gotta be young & stupid
8" dob
AstroTech 66ED/APO
TAL 120 newt.
my CN sketch & picture gallery
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