Mount repaired - back to imaging!

I finally got my mount issues resolved (at least most of the way).  I know for a fact that I am overloading my mount with equipment and that is the basic reason for its failure to track adequately at the prime focus focal lengths.

However, after rebuilding the mount and re-routing the cabling I am now able to use the wide field camera.  I anticipate getting the longer focal lengths to work as well, but having the wide field Hyperstar operational is a big plus.

So here is the first image since the mount starting having problems back in August:

IC 1805 - The Heart Nebula
EdgeHD11 w/Hyperstar;  QHY10 Camera
October 24, 2016  30x120sec

The Heart Nebula, IC 1805, Sharpless 2-190, lies some 7500 light years away from Earth and is located in the Perseus Arm of the Galaxy in the constellation Cassiopeia. This is an emission nebula showing glowing ionized hydrogen gas and darker dust lanes.

The very brightest part of this nebula (the knot at the top right) is separately classified as NGC 896, because it was the first part of this nebula to be discovered.

The nebula's intense red output and its configuration are driven by the radiation emanating from a small group of stars near the nebula's center. This open cluster of stars known as Melotte 15 contains a few bright stars nearly 50 times the mass of our Sun, and many more dim stars that are only a fraction of our Sun's mass.

Wikipedia

European Mars Lander's Crash Site Seen By NASA Probe

The european Mars lander, expected to soft land on Mars earlier this week, apparently crashed into Mars at a high rate of speed. An orbiting NASA spacecraft has spotted its grave, European Space Agency (ESA) officials said.

The lander, named Schiaparelli, stopped communicating with mission control about 1 minute before its planned touchdown on Mars Wednesday morning (Oct. 19). Newly released photos of the landing site by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) seem to confirm what ExoMars team members had suspected — that Schiaparelli died a violent death.

This comparison of before-and-after images by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows two features likely created during the Oct. 19, 2016 landing attempt of the ExoMars Schiaparelli lander. The small bright feature at bottom is probably Schiaparelli’s parachute, while the dark, fuzzy blob is likely the lander’s crash site.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Complete story at: Space.com

More Lunar Photos

Here are the remaining two moon photos I imaged on Oct 10,2016.

Hope you like them!

Copernicus Crater - October 10, 2016
EdgeHD11 Prime Focus
ASI120MC 400 frames of 2000

Plato and Vallis Alpes - October 10, 2016
EdgeHD11 Prime focus
ASI120MC 400 frames of 2000

Moon Images

Since the telescope mount is still not fixed I decided to not waste the clear skies and image our satellite, 'ol Luna.

These two image were taken with my ASI120MC planetary camera at the prime focus of the EdgeHD11 scope (2800mm).  Approximately 2000 frames of video were taken and then 20% (400 frames) of the best quality were used to stack and process.  Both were taken on October 10, 2016 at about 8:30PM.

Clavius Crater

Bullialdus crater in Mare Nubium

I have two more images that I took that night that I need to process.  I plan to post them within the next few days.

Just when you thought we knew ...

Credit:  NASA, ESA/Hubble

Astronomers using data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescopes and other telescopes have performed an accurate census of the number of galaxies in the Universe. The group came to the surprising conclusion that there are at least 10 times as many galaxies in the observable Universe as previously thought.

For the complete story head on over to PhysOrg

M17 - Omega Nebula

Another image from back in August.  The Omega Nebula.

M17 - Omega Nebula
EdgeHD11 w/Hyperstar Aug 27, 2016
12x300sec QHY10 Camera

The Omega Nebula, also known as the Swan Nebula, Checkmark Nebula, and the Horseshoe Nebula (catalogued as Messier 17 or M17) is an H II region in the constellation Sagittarius. It was discovered by Philippe Loys de Chéseaux in 1745. Charles Messier catalogued it in 1764. It is located in the rich starfields of the Sagittarius area of the Milky Way.

The Omega Nebula is between 5,000 and 6,000 light-years from Earth and it spans some 15 light-years in diameter. The cloud of interstellar matter of which this nebula is a part is roughly 40 light-years in diameter and has a mass of 30,000 solar masses. The total mass of the Omega Nebula is an estimated 800 solar masses.  (Wikipedia)

M11 - The Wild Duck Cluster

Finally got some time to process the remaining images I took back in August. Been busy with work, work around the house, church activities and, of course, rebuilding my telescope mount to see if I can repair the issue that has prevented any new imaging runs.

M11 - Wild Duck Cluster
EdgeHD-11 w/Hyperstar - Aug 26, 2016
10x300sec QHY10 Camera

The Wild Duck Cluster (also known as Messier 11, or NGC 6705) is an open cluster in the constellation Scutum. It was discovered by Gottfried Kirch in 1681. Charles Messier included it in his catalogue in 1764.

The Wild Duck Cluster is one of the richest and most compact of the known open clusters, containing about 2900 stars. Its age has been estimated to about 250 million years. Its name derives from the brighter stars forming a triangle which could resemble a flying flock of ducks (or, from other angles, one swimming duck).