13091 replies to this topic

[Monel76]

Thanks! The equatorial mount is a game changer! Tonight I try 20 exposure of 1 minute guided.

Edited by Monel76, 11 September 2023 - 01:44 PM.

[Bob Campbell]

rapture91, on 09 Sept 2023 - 1:21 PM, said:

I was out imaging last Thursday under a waning moon (41 %). This was the first time I tested the new-to-me Nexus 0.75x coma corrector/focal reducer I received from Starizona about a week ago.

Apart from the increased field of view, I definitely noticed an improvement in details due to the 80 % boosted acquisition rate at f/3.75.

I noticed some halos around bright stars when using the L-eNhance. I suspect this might be due to the filter being screwed into the Nexus at the very end of the imaging train as opposed to closer to the sensor. Since I've moved the primary mirror forward since, I need to re-assess this and see it the problem still occurs.


Details: 10" f/5 dobson (transformed to f/3.75 w/ Starizona Nexus) over single-axis equatorial platform, uncooled ZWO ASI 533MC, filters used were either the Optolong L-eNhance or the Baader Neodymium M&SG,
gain 400, bin 2, blended offset, darks


I observed the following DSOs:
Caldwell 9, Cave Nebula, 86 x 8s, L-eNhance

C9_86x8s_Nexus.jpg


Caldwell 34, Western Veil Nebula, 61 x 8s, L-eNhance

Caldwell34_61x8s_Nexus.jpg


to be continued...

rapture91, on 09 Sept 2023 - 1:22 PM, said:

continuing...

IC1396A, Elephant's Trunk Nebula, 77 x 8s, L-eNhance

IC1396A_77x8s_Nexus.jpg

M33, Triangulum Galaxy, 51 x 8s, Neodymium M&SG

M33_51x8s_Nexus.jpg

rapture91, on 09 Sept 2023 - 1:24 PM, said:

continuing...

M57, Ring Nebula, 35 x 8s, L-eNhance

M57_35x8s_Nexus.jpg

M76, Little Dumbbell Nebula, 59 x 8s, L-eNhance

M76_59x8s_Nexus.jpg

rapture91, on 09 Sept 2023 - 1:26 PM, said:

continuing...

NGC 6888, Crescent Nebula, 82 x 8s, L-eNhance

NGC6888_82x8s_Nexus.jpg

NGC 7635, Bubble Nebula, 68 x 8s, L-eNhance

NGC7635_68x8s_Nexus.jpg

Somehow, I missed this fantastic sequence of yours. Bravo! You really have that dob of yours dialed in for stunning EAA. Please keep them coming.

Bob

[mklosterman1]

Is anyone else having trouble viewing the images from Bob? I only see a link and when I click the link Cloudy Nights asks me for my username and password even though I am already logged in....

[MarMax]

Very nice rapture91!

 

Looks like you've got that Nexus dialed in.

[rapture91]

Thanks so much for the kind words Bob & Mike!

You can call me Johannes, I‘m based in Germany like GazingOli

@Mike: I was able to move the primary forward by roughly 25 mm. The Nexus works like a charm now
Thanks again for your help!

[dave85374]

I can't see any photos either.  Ask me to sign in and I am already signed in.

[steveincolo]

Did some galaxy hunting. Also, noticed in my previous image posts I said the time was 5 minutes when it was actually 10 minutes! My first time out with my 3D printed fine focuser knob for my C8 and it worked great.

 

Links are to images in my Cloudy Nights gallery.

 

For all images:

Date: 10/9/23 (10th September 2023)

Scope: C8 SCT

Reducer: Celestron f/6.3 Reducer

Camera: ZWO ASI294MC Pro Camera cooled to 0° C

Filter: ZWO UV/IR Cut Filter

Mount: HEQ5 Pro

Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped

Time: 10 minutes

 

IC 4839 and IC 4837

 

 

 

 

 

NGC 55

 

 

 

 

 

NGC 253

 

 

 

 

 

NGC 300

 

 

 

 

 

NGC 1365

 

 

 

 

 

NGC 7424

 

Fantastic set!  I particularly like NGC 1365.  Are the dual images without and with flats?  That’s sort of how it looks.  

[steveincolo]

Thanks!

 

I do control my mount (RST-135) from Sharpcap, but SC's built-in catalog is pretty limited in that it only lists "standard" objects like NGC, Messier, some ICs (not all), and that's pretty much it.

For instance, the "Taffy" system is completely unknown to SC, so no annotation.

Around NGC 7331, Sharpcap finds some NGCs and...double stars

Stack_27frames_3240s_WithAnnotations.jpg

 

SC's author said this was a design choice and that users are always free to add custom catalogs (with a precise formatting, so that's not immediate). I'll probably look into that at some point, but for now, I'm using ASTAP to load a snapshot made by Sharpcap, which it can then platesolve an annotate with a much more comprehensive catalog (Hyperleda).

 

That said, there are tiny objects the Hyperleda catalog still doesn't know. I pointed some of them, but there are literally hundreds of unnamed galaxies in that single field.

NGC7331_annotated.jpg

 

Agreed, these are your typical faint fuzzies, but I'd sometimes like to know their name (and their distance, just for the gist of it). Usually, I end up using either a combination of Aladin Lite, Simbad and Vizier for the task, or just CartesDuCiel with custom catalogs (it's called "VO" in CdC)

 

In ASTAP, try using Online Query -> Simbad, Deep Sky Annotation.  A very cool feature is that you can select a small rectangle to query.

 

Edited by steveincolo, 12 September 2023 - 12:29 PM.

[BrentKnight]

Very cool!  I'll have to check this out...

[steveincolo]

I am trying to do some of the Minkowski objects, and here I am with one of it

 

 

Minkowski 1-79, a small PN in Cyg constellation

 

first the big picture showing it's postion relative to M 39 open cluster

 

Min1-79 EvogUVIR_3frames_48s_cropres1200annot.jpg

 

this was captured with the SW Evoguide 50 ED, piggypack on my Evo 8

and ASI 533 camera with UV/IR cut filter, darks, no flats

3 frames x 16 s, live stacked with SharpCap 4.0, image cropped and resized

 

and here is the 100 % crop of the same image

 

Min1-79 EvogUVIR_3frames_48s_cropkomp.jpg

 

 

and now the version with the Celestron Evo 8 on wedge with ASI 294 MC uncooled with UHC filter, darks, no flats

40 frames x 16 s, live stacked with SharpCap 4.0, image cropped at 100 % resolution

 

Min1-79 C8f10UHC_40frames_640s_cropkomp.jpg

 

Location Stuttgart, Germany

 

CS.Oli

It's like a tiny M27!

[Darth Riker]

Fantastic set! I particularly like NGC 1365. Are the dual images without and with flats? That’s sort of how it looks.

Thanks!

Still have a way to go with honing my skills around focussing and calibration frames but happy with my progress so far.

You're right in that the dual images are without and with flats. Doing it that way at the moment for my own learning so others let me know how I'm doing. Plus if it helps others then that's good too.

Your image results are excellent! Really like the way they are annotated as well.

[steveincolo]

Thanks!

Still have a way to go with honing my skills around focussing and calibration frames but happy with my progress so far.

You're right in that the dual images are without and with flats. Doing it that way at the moment for my own learning so others let me know how I'm doing. Plus if it helps others then that's good too.

Your image results are excellent! Really like the way they are annotated as well.

Thanks!  Your flats are working very nicely.

[Darth Riker]

Is anyone else having trouble viewing the images from Bob? I only see a link and when I click the link Cloudy Nights asks me for my username and password even though I am already logged in....

 

I can't see any photos either.  Ask me to sign in and I am already signed in.

 

The images are actually from Johannes (rapture91). The post was quoted by Bob. For whatever reason - going the links in the quote doesn't work. However, if you follow the link back to Johannes' original post - then you can see the images. Not sure what's happened there.

[dob45]

18" f/4,2  self-made dobson, ASI 178MM , Bortle 8 ,  resize, crop, no dark, no flat, bin 2.

 

ngc 7080 (81x4s=324 seconds)

 

 

 

Arp 86 - ngc 7752-53 (75x4s = 300 seconds)

 

 

 

ngc 7331 (120 x 4s = 480 seconds)

 

 

 

 

[TheWhistler]

The Optolong L-Extreme has been added to my collection. With it brought plenty of rain and clouds for the past week. There was only a slight clearing last night to test the filter. Of course, I forgot to take calibration frames beforehand, so these aren't the cleanest pictures. Maybe tomorrow I'll have some time to take calibration frames before heading into the dark. One thing I was a little worried about was the potential need for longer exposures which didn't seem necessary. I ran my usual of 10 second exposures for 5 minutes and could see plenty even with 2-3 stacked frames. It'll be fun to compare this to my L-Enhance. 

 

Date: 9/12/23
EAA Target: NGC 7635
Scope: AstroTech AT60ED
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Extreme
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 5 minutes

 

Date: 9/12/23
EAA Target: NGC 7380
Scope: AstroTech AT60ED
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Extreme
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 5 minutes

 

Toward the end of the night I wanted to change things up and scouted for interesting things that aren't marked as common targets. I found some nice nebulosity around SAO 33693. I'll have to revisit this once I have calibration frames to do it justice.

 

Date: 9/12/23
EAA Target: SAO 33693
Scope: AstroTech AT60ED
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Extreme
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 5 minutes

 

[gun4hire]

Night two of playing with my Askar107PHQ and CEM40EC. Good sky conditions. The Mount worked flawlessly for 90 second unguided captures. I grabbed some "common" DSOs to see how the Askar would work. Scope at f7/ZWO533MC/flats/darks/Optolong Ultimate filter. B3.5 ish to 4 skies.

 

I am pleased....

 

 

Crescent Nebula 14 frames 21 minutes.. I would say this is my BEST capture ever doing EAA.

 

 

M16 Eagle Nebula  18 frames 27 minutes

Edited by gun4hire, 14 September 2023 - 08:54 AM.

[steveincolo]

Night two of playing with my Askar107PHQ and CEM40EC. Good sky conditions. The Mount worked flawlessly for 90 second unguided captures. I grabbed some "common" DSOs to see how the Askar would work. Scope at f7/ZWO533MC/flats/darks/Optolong Ultimate filter. B3.5 ish to 4 skies.

 

I am pleased....

 

 

Crescent Nebula 14 frames 21 minutes.. I would say this is my BEST capture ever doing EAA.

 

 

M16 Eagle Nebula  18 frames 27 minutes

Very nice!  I don’t see any walking noise, are you using dither without guiding?

[Bob Campbell]

Night two of playing with my Askar107PHQ and CEM40EC. Good sky conditions. The Mount worked flawlessly for 90 second unguided captures. I grabbed some "common" DSOs to see how the Askar would work. Scope at f7/ZWO533MC/flats/darks/Optolong Ultimate filter. B3.5 ish to 4 skies.

 

I am pleased....

 

 

Crescent Nebula 14 frames 21 minutes.. I would say this is my BEST capture ever doing EAA.

 

 

M16 Eagle Nebula  18 frames 27 minutes

great results. seems like your setup is dialed in nicely. the bortle 3-4 skies can't hurt either.

 

Bob

[gun4hire]

Very nice!  I don’t see any walking noise, are you using dither without guiding?

I don't understand if I can do dithering in sharpcap without a guide scope?? Sooo.. technically I am not guiding or using dithering, just using the built-in encoder on the RA axis on the CEM40EC.

 

If I can use dithering in Sharpcap, I would appreciate a PM to explain how I can use it within sharpcap and no separate guide scope. r if so I can start a new topic on how to do it.

[BrentKnight]

I don't understand if I can do dithering in sharpcap without a guide scope?? Sooo.. technically I am not guiding or using dithering, just using the built-in encoder on the RA axis on the CEM40EC.

 

If I can use dithering in Sharpcap, I would appreciate a PM to explain how I can use it within sharpcap and no separate guide scope. r if so I can start a new topic on how to do it.

Dithering without guiding...

[Darth Riker]

Went and re-did my Master Flat. Revisited the galaxies from last time. Think the images have improved.
 
Links are to images in my Cloudy Nights gallery.
 
For all images:
Date: 13/9/23 (13th September 2023)
Scope: C8 SCT
Reducer: Celestron f/6.3 Reducer
Camera: ZWO ASI294MC Pro Camera cooled to 0° C
Filter: ZWO UV/IR Cut Filter
Mount: HEQ5 Pro
Calibration Files: Master Flat, Master Bias as Dark Flat/Flat Dark, and Master Dark

 

Master Flat used Stack 20, Exp 5.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C (images are one showing histogram from ASIStudio FITS Viewer and one without):
https://www.cloudyni...-avg-adu-27140/
https://www.cloudyni...-avg-adu-27140/

 

Master Bias as Dark Flat/Flat Dark either Stack 20, Exp 5.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C OR Stack 50, Exp 5.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C

 

Master Dark either Stack 20, Exp 10.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C OR Stack 20, Exp 30.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C
 
NGC 55
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 



 


 
Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 

 

NGC 253
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 


 


 
Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 

 

 
NGC 300
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 

Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes


 

 

 
NGC 1365
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 

Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped

Time: 10 minutes


 

 

 
NGC 6744
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 

Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

Edited by Darth Riker, 14 September 2023 - 01:24 PM.

[kevinrodgers22]

Went and re-did my Master Flat. Revisited the galaxies from last time. Think the images have improved.
 
Links are to images in my Cloudy Nights gallery.
 
For all images:
Date: 13/9/23 (13th September 2023)
Scope: C8 SCT
Reducer: Celestron f/6.3 Reducer
Camera: ZWO ASI294MC Pro Camera cooled to 0° C
Filter: ZWO UV/IR Cut Filter
Mount: HEQ5 Pro
Calibration Files: Master Flat, Master Bias as Dark Flat/Flat Dark, and Master Dark

 

Master Flat used Stack 20, Exp 5.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C (images are one showing histogram from ASIStudio FITS Viewer and one without):
https://www.cloudyni...-avg-adu-27140/
https://www.cloudyni...-avg-adu-27140/

 

Master Bias as Dark Flat/Flat Dark either Stack 20, Exp 5.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C OR Stack 50, Exp 5.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C

 

Master Dark either Stack 20, Exp 10.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C OR Stack 20, Exp 30.0s, Bin1, Gain121, cooled to 0°C
 
NGC 55
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 


 

 
Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 

 

NGC 253
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 

 

 
Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 

 

 
NGC 300
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 

 

 

Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 
NGC 1365
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 

 

 

Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped

Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 
NGC 6744
Exposure: 10 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes

 

 

 

 

 

Exposure: 30 seconds, Unguided, Uncropped
Time: 10 minutes
 

great shots man, is that horizontal banding interference from something? I started seeing something similar on my 294mc before I switched computers. 

[Darth Riker]

great shots man, is that horizontal banding interference from something? I started seeing something similar on my 294mc before I switched computers.

I'm not sure.

I'm wondering if it's a limitation of the ASIAIR Plus (32GB Raspberry Pi version) with the ASI294MC Pro in what it can manage with Live Stacking?

Limitations due to being unguided with the HEQ5 Pro?

Could it be due to smoke (back burning had been going on) or clouds?

Light coming from neighbours homes/ backyards?

Or if it's something I'm doing.... since calibration frames are meant to help with banding maybe it's the way I've taken them?

To be clear - I'm happy with what I've been able to achieve. Always open to learning more.

Edited by Darth Riker, 15 September 2023 - 05:33 PM.

[mklosterman1]

Managed to get Owl Cluster as first target of the night last night before going for the Sept EAA challenge objects. 8" Meade LX200 GPS in Alt-Az with #1220 De-Rotator. Used x.63 reducer/corrector and ASI 294MC Pro at -10deg C Darks but no Flats

Attached Thumbnails

• 

[TheWhistler]

Last night turned out to be cool and clear. It was a perfect night to test out the new L-Extreme filter and a new set of flats for the Evo 8. I somehow didn't even think to take flats for the FMA180 or AT60ED. At least, I know I can duplicate what I did with the Evo's flat since they worked well. 

 

First up is a widefield shot with the FMA180 Pro because why not?

 

Date: 9/14/23
EAA Target: Navi
Scope: Askar FMA180 Pro
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Pro
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 5 minutes

 

Up next was a visit to Andromeda and friends.

 

Date: 9/14/23
EAA Target: NGC 205
Scope: Celestron Evo 8 with 0.63X FR
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Pro
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 10 minutes

 

Date: 9/14/23
EAA Target: NGC 224
Scope: Askar FMA180 Pro
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Pro
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 10 minutes

 

Date: 9/14/23
EAA Target: NGC 224
Scope: Celestron Evo 8 with 0.63X FR
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Pro
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 10 minutes

 

Almost forgot to give the L-Extreme a test run. NGC 7635 seemed like a fun target to wrap up the night. 

 

Date: 9/14/23
EAA Target: NGC 7635
Scope: Celestron Evo 8 with 0.63X FR
Camera: ZWO 533MC
Filter: Optolong L-Extreme
Exposure: 10 seconds
Time: 10 minutes

 

I tried to stay out late enough to capture 103P. Ended up packing things up before it ventured closer to an unobstructed portion of the sky. I'll give it a shot this weekend. 

I also tried Celestron's CPWI for the first time to see if I could avoid continuing to waste excessive time waiting for the GPS syncing to the mount. No clue why I didn't try this sooner especially since I'm out there with a laptop every time. I felt unprepared being able to jump into alignment immediately as opposed to waiting for the GPS to sync, power cycling when it takes too long, power cycle again, and again...