Deep Sky / Long Exposure Photography

M81 and M82, Spiral Galaxies in Ursa Major

Tagged , , Leave a Comment on M81 and M82, Spiral Galaxies in Ursa Major

M81 and M82, Galaxies in Ursa Major Edge-on galaxy (Cigar-shaped) M82 and neighbor M81. First shots in awhile. Got some good weather all the way through December and into January, finally took […]

READ MORE

Deep Sky / Gear / Long Exposure Photography

M31, The Great Andromeda Galaxy

Tagged , , Leave a Comment on M31, The Great Andromeda Galaxy

Shot while up in Shingletown, CA during July 2005 and finally(!) processed and uploaded in August 2006… This image is in grayscale because the original had messed up colors from amp glow.

READ MORE

Deep Sky / Gear / Long Exposure Photography

M31, The Great Andromeda Galaxy

Tagged , , Leave a Comment on M31, The Great Andromeda Galaxy

Another treatment of the same data (Reprocessed March 18,2005): Film: E200 Camera: K-1000 Lens: ED80 (600mm f/7.5), prime focus Guiding: ST-4 Exposure: stack of 11 images, 7×20min, 4×45min Date: September 9, 2004

READ MORE

Techniques

Polar Alignment Calculations

Tagged Leave a Comment on Polar Alignment Calculations

Here’s a page that derives Polar Alignment Calculations. (update 5/2020: the original site is gone, so I found the text on Wayback and am inserting it below. This is by the original […]

READ MORE

Gear / Observatory / Telescope

Special Guest Star takes the mount at Hilltop O

Tagged , Leave a Comment on Special Guest Star takes the mount at Hilltop O

The Astro Jedi needed somewhere to store his light sab—- I mean, bucket, and I was only too happy to accommodate him. I have decided that I need to come to a […]

READ MORE

General / Maintenance / Observatory

Dome shutter is motorized again!

Tagged Leave a Comment on Dome shutter is motorized again!

I finally decided to bite the bullet and fix the shutter motor. Things went sideways last winter, and I’ve been opening the shutter manually (and tying it shut with rope, so we […]

READ MORE

ATM

Trixie 2017 – tube mods

Tagged Leave a Comment on Trixie 2017 – tube mods

I finally got around to cutting the MTA-UTA tubes to length; the only eyepiece that would come to focus with the focuser spacer in place is the Televue 55mm Plossl. If I […]

READ MORE