M77 - A galaxy in the constellation of Cetus

M77, October 20, 2017
EdgeHD-11, f/7
39x180sec at -20C  QHY10 Camera

Messier 77 (also known as NGC 1068) is a barred spiral galaxy about 47 million light-years away in the constellation Cetus. Messier 77 was discovered by Pierre Méchain in 1780, who originally described it as a nebula. Méchain then communicated his discovery to Charles Messier, who subsequently listed the object in his catalog.^[5] Both Messier and William Herschel described this galaxy as a star cluster.^[5] Today, however, the object is known to be a galaxy.

Wikipedia

New Images - The Crab and Dumbell Nebulae

With the string of nice clear nights recently, I finally got a chance to spent a good amount of time repairing both my mounts and then imaging some popular DSOs (Deep Space Objects).

First, the iOptron replacement mount was delivered last Friday from the manufacturer and the new mount (they finally agreed to replace the mount rather than try to fix it for the third time) now operates flawlessly. I was actually able to take a few 3 minute subs without autoguiding! Still need to do a few more tests, but it does look encouraging.

Now the main mount (CGEM) has been giving me trouble for the past 10 months, and I finally got around to readjusting the gear meshing. Then I reloaded the software that controls the mount. Alas, I finally got the mount to operate within specs once again. It seems like the combination of some mechanical adjustment and resetting the software parameters got it back to working order.

With the CGEM now able to track well enough for imaging at near prime focus, I was off to photographing a bunch of objects while the skies remained clear and the moon out of the picture.

So here are the first two objects of the five I imaged that I have processed.

M1 - October 21, 2017 - EdgeHD-11
40x180sec, f/7, -20C
QHY10 Camera

M1, the Crab Nebula, is a supernova remnant in the constellation of Taurus. Recorded by Chinese astronomers in 1054, the nebula was observed later by English astronomer John Bevis in 1731. The nebula was the first astronomical object identified with a historical supernova explosion. At an apparent magnitude of 8.4, comparable to that of Saturn's moon Titan, it is not visible to the naked eye but can be made out using binoculars under favourable conditions. The nebula lies in the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way galaxy, at a distance of about 2.0 kiloparsecs (6,500 ly) from Earth. It has a diameter of 3.4 parsecs (11 ly), corresponding to an apparent diameter of some 7 arcminutes, and is expanding at a rate of about 1,500 kilometres per second (930 mi/s), or 0.5% of the speed of light.

M27 - October 19, 2017 - EdgeHD-11
26x180sec, f/7, -20C
QHY10 camera

M27, the Dumbell Nebula, is a planetary nebula in the constellation Vulpecula, at a distance of about 1,360 light-years. This object was the first planetary nebula to be discovered; by Charles Messier in 1764. At its brightness of visual magnitude 7.5 and its diameter of about 8 arcminutes, it is easily visible in binoculars, and a popular observing target in amateur telescopes.

Can It Be?

I've been watching the local weather forecast and the 'Clear Outside' forecast for a couple of days, and ... is it possible ... clear, cool, transparent skies, without the moon, for 5 days??!!   Yikes.  Got to plan my imaging runs :)

Cassini: End of an era

End of an era: the Cassini craft is due to plunge into Saturn on 15 September 2017.

Artists’s impression of the Cassini craft around Saturn. (Courtesy: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Flying closer to Saturn than ever before, the Cassini spacecraft has spent the last few months diving between the planet and its rings, collecting new and unique data ahead of its suicidal plunge into the planet on 15 September.  Full story at:  Physics World

Check out the NYTimes link at: NYTimes Cassini   for a fantastic animation of the history of Cassini.  Well worth the effort to check out.

Asteroid Florence Makes a Close Approach to Earth

3122 Florence is a stony trinary asteroid of the Amor group. It is classified as a near-Earth object (NEO) and potentially hazardous object (PHO). It measures approximately 3 miles in diameter. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 93 – 232 million miles once every 2 years and 4 months (859 days). 

On the 1st of September, 2017, Florence passed at a distance of 4,391,000 miles from Earth (approximately eighteen times the average distance of the Moon). This is the asteroid's closest approach since 1890 and the closest until after 2500.

On September 3rd I was able to image Florence through my 4" William Optics Apo Refractor.  Here are two images: one is a time lapse movie showing the movement of Florence against the star field. This sequence is sped up to show the asteroid's relative motion (Florence's actual movement rate across the sky was about 0.336 degrees per hour - a pretty hefty clip).

Florence's relative motion in the sky
Rate is 120x actual

 The second image shows the asteroid's position every 60 seconds of time.

Annotated Chart showing Florence's march from south (bottom) to north (top)
Chart spans 1.0 x 1.2 degrees

Solar Eclipse Sequence

Here is a sequence image showing the partial phases before and after totality.  Photos from my Canon 70D operating with a Phottix Aion Wireless Timer and Shutter Release taking a photo every 10 minutes. The total phase image was inserted into the sequence after all photos were taken.  The third from last image is missing due to cloud cover at that time.

High Detail HDR of Corona

Here is a re-process of the eclipse image set with an emphasis on getting the fine detailed structure of the corona more visible.  The brightness is decreased in this process as well as the extent of the corona.

HDR Enhanced Photo of the Sun's Corona

Here is my first HDR (High Dynamic Range) image of the eclipse.  This image  was a 9 exposure bracketed run of images ranging from 1/4 sec to 1/1000 sec at ISO200 designed to bring out the subtlety of the sun's corona (shows approximately what the human eye was able to see).

All images were taken with a Canon 50D attached to a William Optics 102mm APO refractor mounted on an iOptron iEQ30 mount.  The processing was accomplished with PixInsight and Paint Shop Pro.

Eclipse (HDR Image)
August 21, 2017
Canon 50D on WO GT102 at f/5.5

Complete details, for those interested, will be in a future blog.

Total Eclipse 2017 - Initial Photo from Salem, SC

Well, I finally got to see my first total eclipse of the sun, and WOW ... fantastic.  Words can't describe the images of the sun blacked out, the diamond ring was awesome - photos don't do it justice.

I'll post more info on the effect later, but here is the first single exposure, unprocessed image of the eclipse about 20 sec or so past mid-eclipse.  Later I'll explain why I don't have images when it started!!

Efficient Hydrogen Fuel Cells May Be Possible Afterall

Science Photo/Adobe Stock

The promise of cheap energy via the Hydrogen Fuel Cell has just become more of a reality thanks to a serendipitous discovery!  Researchers at the US Army Aberdeen Proving Ground Research Laboratory were developing a high-strength aluminum alloy when they made a startling discovery - water poured over its surface started bubbling and producing hydrogen gas. And it kept producing gas contrary to the typical reaction where aluminum exposed to water oxidizes, creating a protective barrier to prevent further reactions from occurring.

See the complete story at:  Science Alert

Are you ready for the Solar Eclipse?

Unless you've been completely out of touch with news of any kind you should be aware that there is going to be an eclipse of the sun on Monday, August 21, 2017.  Much of the US will experience a Total Eclipse as the map below shows.

Sky and Telescope

For those fortunate enough to be in the eclipse's path, you are in for a real treat.  There is nothing that matches a total solar eclipse. I have yet to see one - but this year I'm expecting to, weather permitting.

There are lots of internet sites that will explain the whole story about eclipses, so I'm not going to spend time here explaining it. Just Google "Eclipse 2017" and I'm sure you'll get a boatload.  I've added a link to Sky And Telescope which has a lot of good info.

If you are staying in the Maryland area, around Baltimore/Washington you will see a partial eclipse, reaching about 80% at the peak.  Times are:

Start:            1:18 PM
Maximum:   2:42 PM
End:             4:01 PM

Remember to use eye protection during the eclipse.

Sky and Telescope Magazine has a lot of good information on the eclipse.

I'll post images after the event.