Astro-Imaging of Star Clusters
December 10, 2013: With the weather clearing after dropping three more inches of snow to add to the seven we already got on Sunday, I decided to take the scope out to continue with my testing of the new software and the procedure of aligning the scope for long exposure astrophotography. Although the new software worked as expected, the frigid temperatures caused havoc on my computer and there were multiple communication drop outs and extreme sluggishness of computer response to commands. Now keep in mind that it never occurred to me that a laptop PC might have issues with being subjected to temperatures nearing single digits! Next project is to build an insulated containment box to hold the laptop while it's running the telescope mount and camera.However, the concept proved to be successful and I was able to setup the telescope, align it to the pole, attach the camera, get a good focus and then ... keep warm and comfortable inside the Rocket Barn while remotely operating the telescope via WiFi. Here are a few of the images I captured. All single exposures were limited to 30sec since moonlight was a problem and the scope alignment/drift issues are not totally resolved as yet.
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| M35 3x30sec ISO 3200 |
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| M37 - "Salt and Pepper" Cluster 8x30sec ISO 3200 |
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| M50 - "Heart Shaped Cluster" 4x30sec ISO 3200 |
Comet Lovejoy still visible
Comet Lovejoy continues on its path out of the solar system. And even with multiple computer failures preventing me from capturing the image until late in the morning with dawn lightening up the eastern horizon, I did manage to capture the comet. |
| Comet Lovejoy, December 11, 2013 6:20AM 6x10sec Exposures for 60sec total time |
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