101 replies to this topic

[Infiniumguy]

I received my Vespara 2 just a few days ago and finally got clear skies while visiting a friend in Albuquerque. First light is a real delight. I chose the Horsehead and Flame nebula. I used a mosaic to increase the FOV, but frankly I may not have needed it. I'm still learning how large the native FOV is on the Vespara 2. 

 

I started this thread in the hope that others with Vespara 2's will join in. When trying to decide which telescope to move up to, I struggled to find enough on the Vespara 2. Numerous threads with great info, but spread among numerous postings. 

 

I'd hope to see V2 owners join in. Post pics, discuss challenges and delights, share experiences. Anything and everything related to the Vespara 2. 

 

My first light experience: 610 subs. I think they were 15 secs, but I'm not sure., They may be 10 sec. subs. Something I need to clarify. Processed in PixInsight and then Photoshop. Kudos to Peter Zelinka for his Deep Space course. I learned a lot about using PI and PS because of his course. Still learning. 

 

The Vespara 2 is a VERY capable smart telescope!

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[Infiniumguy]

Where do I find the astrometric information in the files for an imaging session?

 

I did not choose to generate FIT files, I'm just using the stacked .TIFF at the end of the run. 

 

PI is saying: Error: The image has no valid astrometric solution: _610

[chrisecurtis]

Where do I find the astrometric information in the files for an imaging session?

 

I did not choose to generate FIT files, I'm just using the stacked .TIFF at the end of the run. 

 

PI is saying: Error: The image has no valid astrometric solution: _610

There is no astrometric information in the tif file (nor in the fits files saved by the Vespera2). You have to "solve" the image in PI. You will then be able to do such things as spectrophotometric color calibration or image annotation.

 

The image solver is in scripts -> astrometry.

 

To use it you will have to tell it the focal length (250mm) and pixel size (2.39 microns) as well as the date/time of the image and then search for the target name. That will give it a starting RA and Dec. 

 

Pix Insight's astrometry solver is good if all the parameters are set correctly, but it gives unhelpful errors (i.e. not telling you what to fix) if they are wrong. For some strange reason, I find I sometimes have to use a focal length of 239mm to get it to work.

 

Once the image has an astrometric solution, it will be "remembered" unless you do something to make it invalid (e.g. crop or rotate it). Tif images can't contain an astrometric solution so I f you need to keep it, save the image as a fit or in PI's preferred format (xcsf).

[Infiniumguy]

There is no astrometric information in the tif file (nor in the fits files saved by the Vespera2). You have to "solve" the image in PI. You will then be able to do such things as spectrophotometric color calibration or image annotation.

 

The image solver is in scripts -> astrometry.

 

To use it you will have to tell it the focal length (250mm) and pixel size (2.39 microns) as well as the date/time of the image and then search for the target name. That will give it a starting RA and Dec. 

 

Pix Insight's astrometry solver is good if all the parameters are set correctly, but it gives unhelpful errors (i.e. not telling you what to fix) if they are wrong. For some strange reason, I find I sometimes have to use a focal length of 239mm to get it to work.

 

Once the image has an astrometric solution, it will be "remembered" unless you do something to make it invalid (e.g. crop or rotate it). Tif images can't contain an astrometric solution so I f you need to keep it, save the image as a fit or in PI's preferred format (xcsf).

Thank you Chris. I figured there was something along those lines and now I can go right to it. Surprisingly this was much easier using the FIT files from the Dwarf 3, but I now do understand TIFF files contain no asometric info. Much appreciated!

[jameslew]

Thanks for creating this thread. Currently my Vespera 2 is sitting next to all the other astro kit that goes into hibernation in the winter in the pacific northwest. It's an amazing device - single handedly responsible for getting me back into astronomy and astrophotography and has led to other gear as well.

 

Mostly I was finding that my older eyes/glasses were frustrating when I was doing astronomy, and I discovered EAA up here on the forums. Vespera 2 was my choice over the seestar just to get the wider field of view.

[Infiniumguy]

Good luck James. I too have older eyes but still in awe of what I can see now with the Vespara 2. Good luck finding new targets.

[Infiniumguy]

Question. Can one plan a mosaic imaging session? It appears I cannot. I can pick a target and plan that. I want to do a multi-night mosaic of the Heart and Soul Nebulas. Cannot find a way to do that in a plan. I can see how to do it as a Mosaic regular capture. Ideas? Thanks in advance. Love the V2.

[Infiniumguy]

My latest run at the M-42, Orion Nebula and NGC 1977, Running Man Nebula. 861 - 10 sec subs. Cropped Mosaic. Bortle 4.5. Stacked .TIFF out of the V2. Processed in PI, PS and a little in LRC. Still learning how to deal with the colors and nebulosity. Very impressed with the detail that the Vespara 2 captures and it's just so darn easy. 

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[JOSM]

I just received an e-mail by VAONIS saying that dithering now is available for Vespera, Vespera II and Vespera Passengers. I think many of us have been waiting for that. 

 

https://support.vaon...h-february-2025

Edited by JOSM, 25 February 2025 - 12:11 PM.

[Infiniumguy]

My colors in the M-42 image above are way too red. I'm going to take another run at it in PS. At some level it is art and I guess we can do what we want, but I'd like to try and end up with images that are more like the standard of Hubble and other serious astro folks.  

[jayscheuerle]

My colors in the M-42 image above are way too red. I'm going to take another run at it in PS. At some level it is art and I guess we can do what we want, but I'd like to try and end up with images that are more like the standard of Hubble and other serious astro folks.  

Once you touch it, it becomes an art, an interpretation. The same data set gives me a different result every time I touch it...

[sgnow1]

I just received an e-mail by VAONIS saying that dithering now is available for Vespera, Vespera II and Vespera Passengers. I think many of us have been waiting for that. 

 

https://support.vaon...h-february-2025

Yay... I can confirm for my Vespera II that it just did an update and dithering is now in the options (on by default).  Great telescope just gets better and better.  

[bradhaak]

It shouldn't do anything in CovaLENS (mosaic) mode (hopefully), but very welcome for regular shots.

[Infiniumguy]

It occurred to me today that a way to estimate the visibility of DSO's on my property is to use the PS Polar Pro app. on the iPhone in Daytime mode. I can visualize the Altitude and Azimuth from Stellarium of tonight's target. I'm partially surrounded by 80' tall pine trees with some openings here and there. The app gives me a nice compass heading and if I tilt the iPhone I can at least somewhat see where objects are visible and perhaps when they will be obscured by trees. Anyone else using this app or do you have a better method?

 

I've moved to the VII from the Dwarf 3 and loving the upgrade.

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Edited by Infiniumguy, 25 February 2025 - 06:40 PM.

[Infiniumguy]

Vespara II. Almost 8 hour session last night of IC 1805, Heart and Soul Nebula. 1896-10 sec. Subs. Finished around 1:40 am this morning. Processed in PI, PS and LRC. Pretty cool I could capture it. I added a small canvas expansion in PS. The VII mosaic FOV was tight, but did cover the target.

 

One of the amazing discoveries is the Vespara II wifi reached our kitchen from about 180’ away. I am very pleasantly surprised. This is with no connection to my home wifi since the VII does not have a STA mode. I could check progress, request a .TIFF and confirm operation through the entire session well into the night and early morning. I finally went to bed and it finished around 1:40 am. It automatically shut off and returned the telescope arm to the home position. That also was a surprise for me. I was unsure what it would do once the target went behind trees and it could no longer stack. 

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[Infiniumguy]

I did a 2+ hour session last night. It ultimately failed when Andromeda, M-31 dropped below the trees to the west. It’s also blown out in the center which I do not like. Really clear, dark skies last night. No moon. New moon. I chose multi-night so I plan to add to it tonight to see if I can improve it further. There are many fun challenges with Astrophotography. First time I've had the Vespara II on M-31 which is  pretty low in western sky so a lot of atmosphere that reduces seeing even though it was very dark and clear, 

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[Infiniumguy]

I processed the same image again today and used the Generalized Hyperbolic Stretch (GHS) in PI. Much better for calming down the center core of the galaxy. Tonight I hope to add another couple hours to the same stack using the V II Multi-Night feature and improve detail. The new moon sky is particularly clear right now. 

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Edited by Infiniumguy, 28 February 2025 - 06:50 PM.

[Which one is Polaris]

Here is NGC2264 Cone Nebula with my Vespera II.

I used the Standard (non-mosaic) mode to see how the new Dither function behaves in v. 2.33
Previously I would have used Mosaic mode with the smallest box.

1,173 x 10s subs (3h 15m Integration) in 4h total elapsed time, approx. 81% efficiency.  

All FITS files were present and I stacked them all.  87 of the JPEGS were rejected during live stacking = 7.4%.
It was clear, not windy, new moon (not near the target), countryside Bortle 4 skies, around 3° C, 74% humidity.

Usually I process the end of session TIFF and don't save individual FITS any more.  The TIFF is usually excellent and I don't run out of storage.  However, the last session in the same spot on the same target a few nights earlier had a few aeroplane and satellite tracks and clouds every now and then baked in. This gave an unwanted 'steamy window psychedelic effect'.
So this time I saved the FITS and processed all of them in Siril until stretched, then final tweaks in Affinity.

I think the Standard images with v. 2.33 firmware are now very good.  Walking noise and hot pixels seem to be gone.  Great.

I am really happy with the ease of use, reliability and image quality from this telescope.

 

 

Edited by Which one is Polaris, 06 March 2025 - 04:40 AM.

[Infiniumguy]

Very nice. Good to hear the new software rev is working successfully. The Cone Nebula is very impressive. A future target for sure. 

[Infiniumguy]

Ah. Now I know what to look for with the Running Man Nebula. Discovered on the street today in Salina KS. 

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[Infiniumguy]

M51 Whirlpool Galaxy, 4h 34m, 1199 stacked images, Bortle 6, Seeing Average to poor. Vespera 2, no filter. Processed in Pixinsight, Photoshop and some minor final adjustments in LrC. On the one hand I'm blown away at capturing this galaxy. It's pretty faint and not large in the sky. I wish for more detail, but it is my first attempt and I'll work on improving in the future. I'm thinking winter with better seeing will help. Last night the moon didn't rise until late, so for most of this session it was not visible. 

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[Infiniumguy]

My first attempt at M78, Casper the Friendly Ghost Galaxy. 1hr, 52mins total time. 672 10 sec. subs. Bortle 4.5, Vespera 2. Processed in PixInsight, Photoshop and final adjustments in LrC. Very challenging. Limited sky view due to trees and the azimuth of the target. Fun though. A start.

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[Infiniumguy]

M44. Beehive Cluster. High in the sky last night so I took advantage of the great visibility. Approx. 2 hours of integration. I seem to have lost the details of number of subs and total time. A bit underwhelming as a target, but it is nonetheless interesting and a known object for many centuries. 

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[Infiniumguy]

M63, Sunflower Galaxy, A second target early this morning. Approx 3 hours of integration. It's becoming more clear to me that a 250mm focal length telescope, smart or otherwise, is not the best for capturing far off galaxies that appear small in the sky. However, it did do a reasonable job given the limitations IMHO. A start and something to build upon in the future. 

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[astronewbster]

Hello fellow V2 owner!  I have loved using my V2 I got last year.  Your images of the soul nebula look nice! 

 

Here's an effort that I did last May of the Rosette Nebula (mosaic mode).  Hope you like the image.  It was processed in PixInsight software and some purchased plugins. Details are below the image.

 

https://www.cloudyni...-hoo-vespera-2/

 

NGC 2237/2244 Rosette Nebula - Vespera II
mosaic 2.5 degrees x 1.8 degrees (resolution 3840 x 2714)
taken 3/9/2024 from a bortle 3 location
Vaonis Dual band filter used
852 stacked over 2 hours and 22 minutes of 10 second exposures
The gain was 26db (the High Gain Conversion mode for the IMX585 camera sensor)
This was taken on a new moon (0%) night to acquire more photons during the session. Temp was 54 degrees and dew was 68%. Clear sky for the night.
This image was post processed with PixInsight using RC Astro Xterminator scripts. The HOO color balancing, sharpening, curves and etc were also done in PixInsight.

 

 

Enjoy your V2.  It is a very nice smart scope.

 

Clear skies!

Edited by astronewbster, 23 March 2025 - 04:05 PM.