"M46 and NGC 2368 Puppis re-imaged 6x21 sec"
Everything was going so well. Great weather report, transparent skies, little if any wind. So how did my session go...terrible, cause as the title says, Murphy's Law struck yet again. Mount was misbehaving after 30 minutes (remember that I did not image that long the last session so batteries were still pretty fresh!), the Meade DSI I C keep on freezing and to top that off the laptop decided to do a software update right in the middle of my session and that drained the batteries. Least to say I was not pleased at all. It also got really cold despite the warm sunny day we had earlier. Was totally not dressed to handle the cold least to say. Good thing I had my beanie and gloves with me (I never leave home without them!). Definately not one of my better sessions, but I guess as they say better to be out there than not at all! So I am just not going to write heaps other than the fact I had planned to image the following and failed miserably:
"M53 Coma Berenices 6x15sec, dark subtracted"
M3 Globular Bootes
M53 Globular Coma Berenices
NGC 2359 (Thor's Helmet) Puppis
NGC 1514 Planetary Nebula Taurus
NGC 2903 Galaxy Leo
M63 Galaxy Canes Venatici
M101 Ursa Major
"M65 Leo 6x21sec, dark subtracted"
Due to problems with the mount, the DSI and focusing (farted around for a while to get the focusing right and that is why I imaged M46....and just when I was ready, NGC 2359 and NGC 1514 were going behind some trees!), and with me getting there at about 10.30pm (Orion and the rest of the winter constellations were slowly sinking behind the canyon walls and trees to the west), I ended up doing the following:
"M66 Leo 6x21sec, dark subtracted"
M65/66 Galaxies Leo Reimaged
NGC3628 Galaxy Leo
M53 Globular Coma Berenices
M46 and NGC 2368 Puppis Reimaged
"NGC 3628 Leo, the third member of the M65/66 trio 6x21sec, dark subtracted"
I did do some visual stargazing with the Astroscan/13T6 Nagler and the NexStar 102GT but that did not last very long as I was not dressed for the cold. I looked at a couple of galaxies, M104; the Sombrero Galaxy in Corvus, NGC 3242; Ghost of Jupiter Planetary in Hydra, galaxy duo M81/82 and the Owl Planetary; M97 in Ursa Major, galaxy trios M65/M66/NGC 3628 and M95/M96/M105 in Leo, as well as NGC 2903 and of course the Markarian chain M84/M86 and the rest of the Virgo cluster. One of the fave things I used to like doing is start at M59/60 and then meander down the Markarian's chain with my 10" f/5 dob. This this tonight with less aperture! Also took a quick peek at M51; the Whirlpool Galaxy and M64; the Blackeye Galaxy with the Astroscan before the cold go the better of me. Hopefully I get another of such a night, but with everything going well before I head home for the hols at the equator.
Coming next: Imaging with wider fields, testing the Orion SSDSI II replacement (yes i sold it off as I could not get used to the software or the camera!), the Meade DSI II OSC
Spent a lot of time exploring the Markarian chain with the 100mm SkyScanner at Solstice Canyon back in 2011. Need to revisit again with the 4.5" Powerseeker 114 and pick up some new galaxies that the previous scope couldn't detect.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of the SkyScanner, Skywatcher has finally put out the scope in Europe as the Heritage 100p. Exactly identical, but with a 25mm Kellner instead of the 20mm one, and a 2X Barlow thrown into the package as well. I posted it on Facebook a few days ago.
Just got the Meade 60AZ-T. Looks good, just a little bit off collimation out of the box. But might be OK for a F/5.8 scope, without the need to tweak. . Comes with 2 Kellners and a 2X Barlow. I couldn't unscrew the objective cell retaining ring, stuck in there so tight. Can't wait to test it out.
It was only matter of time. All scopes are made in the Orient eventually find their way in different guises. All they had to do was give it a new paintjob and a new name lol. These days there are not many "heirloom" quality scopes unless one goes into the APO or big dob realm....
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteActually the paintjob looks the same as the SkyScanner. I've been in contact with a few people in the UK who were curious about it and gave them as much info as I can about it (e.g. how to collimate it, the tripod thread at the bottom of the base, etc.).
ReplyDelete