Swansea Astronomical Society Blog
Monday, May 20, 2013
67% Waxing, gibbous Moon
An Opticstar Pl-130M monochrome, CMOS camera, set to 640 x 480 mode was placed at the prime focus of an f/10, 127mm Maksutov and seven overlapping areas of the Moon were captured as AVIs. The AVIs were stacked in registax with only slight adjustment of the top wavelet slider, and the resulting images combined in Microsoft ICE. Click on the image to get a larger view:
High resolution detail in the terminator.
4 overlapping 6 min AVIs were captured at 8 fps and Processed in Registax, on average, using the best 1500 frames from each AVI. Thr resulting images were combined in Microsoft ICE. Click on the image to get a much larger view:
Steve Wainwright
The Moon with a Philips SPC900 webcam
A Philips SPC900NC camera was used with an f/10, 6" SCT to mosaic the Moon with overlapping AVIs. The AVIs were stacked in Registax and combined in Microsoft ICE:
Colin Miles
Sunday, May 19, 2013
The Sun in different parts of the spectrum and a transit
An Opticstar PL-130M monochrome CMOS camera was used with three different scopes today to image the Sun at Prime focus. Whilst imaging in H-alpha with a Solarmnax ll 60 BF 15, an interesting transit took place at about 11-56am:
The transit took about 5 seconds to complete.
The PL-130M was fitted with a ND filter plus a Schuler IR pass filter and the Sun was imaged in IR light at wavelengths above 850nm. In all cases, 6min AVIs were captured:
The Sun in IR
The Sun was then imaged in H-alpha light using a Solarmax ll 60 BF15, H-alpha scope. Two AVIs were captured, one exposed for the disk and the other exposed to show the prominences. The two images were combined:
H-alpha light
The Sun was imaged in Ca K-line light using a CaK PST solar scope:
Ca K-line light
The two images were then blended to produce an image showing all the structures that are revealed in both H-alpha and Ca K-line light
H-alpha + Ca K-line light
Steve Wainwright
Saturday, May 18, 2013
57% waxing, gibbous Moon
An Opticstar PL-130M monochrome, CMOS camera, fitted with a Schuler 850nm IR pass filter was placed at the prime focus of an f/5, 150mm Newtonian. Two overlapping, 6min AVIs were captured at 10fps. The AVIs were processed in Registax 5 and stitched together with Microsoft ICE. Click on the image to get a larger view:
A Pentax K-x DSLR was placed at the prime focus of the same telescope by direct camera connection. The Live View was set so that the Moon was not over saturated and by zooming in on the live image, focus could be optimised. Ten RAW images were captured, white balanced, saved as .tiff files and stacked in Registax 5:
Steve Wainwright
47% waxing crescent Moon
A Pentax K-x DSLR was placed at the prime focus of an f/5, 80mm ED refractor. 10 images were captured in RAW format through a hazy sky. The images were stacked in Registax:
Steve Wainwright
Thursday, May 16, 2013
The Moon imaged in Infrared
This imaging was done in broad daylight. An Opticstar PL 130M, 1.3Mp CMOS, monochrome camera fitted with a Schuler IR filter with a starting transmission wavelength of 850nm was placed at the prime focus of an f/5, 6" Newtonian reflector. Two overlapping regions of the crescent Moon were imaged with 3000 frame AVIs at 10fps at a full resolution of 1280 x 1024. The AVIs were stacked in Registax 5 and merged in Microsoft ICE. The visible spectrum leis between 390nm and 700nm. The photons captured to produce this image are all invisible to the human eye. Click on the image to get a larger view:
Steve Wainwright
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Saturn with a webcam
A Philips SPC900NC camera with a 2x Televue Barlow, stacked with a Williams Optics 1.6 x Barlow was attached to an f/10, 6" SCT. The captured AVI was stacked in Registax using the Dyadic wavelet scheme:
Colin Miles
Friday, May 10, 2013
Dave Powell MBE talks on John Goodricke
Last night, Dave Powell MBE, Secretary and founder member of Cardiff Astronomical Society gave a fascinating talk on John Goodricke, (1764-1786).
Dave with his MBE
Dave delivering his lecture
John Goodricke could neither hear nor speak and yet managed to get a good education. Dave explained that using only his eyes, he observed and recorded the variation of the variable star Algol, also discovering the variation in delta Cephei and others. Moreover, he even suggested the correct explanation for some variables periodicity, and calculated accurate variable periods. Dave told us that at the age of 21 John Goodricke was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. Sadly, a year later, he died of pneumonia, possibly as a result of observing inadequately dressed, in very cold winter conditions, we shall never know. Goodricke is Dave Powell`s hero (Dave is also a variable star observer), and certainly laid the foundations of modern cosmological theories. Thank you Dave for an interesting and inspiring talk.
Steve Wainwright
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Sunspots prominences and blending narrowband solar images
A DMK21AS camera fitted with a 2.5x Barlow was attached to a Solarmax ll 60 BF15 H-alpha scope.
Sunspot AR1734 was imaged along with a nearby prominence:
In the image above, a flare was taking place close to the sunspot and had subsided by the time the image below was captured.
An Opticstar PL-130M 1.3 MP monochrome, CMOS camera was placed at the prime focus of a Solarmax ll BF 15 H-alpha solar scope and a 6 minute AVI was captured at 8fps, exposed for the solar disk. The process was repeated exposed for the prominences. Then the process was repeated with a Ca K-line CaK PST solar scope. The three resulting images were combined to produce an image showing the features revealed by H-alpha and Ca K-line:
H-alpha disk and prominences combined:
Ca K-line image
H-alpha and Ca K-line combined
Steve Wainwright
A Philips SPC900 camera fitted with a 2 x Barlow was used with an f/10, 6" SCT to image Saturn. The AVI was Stacked in AutoStakkert 2 and wavelet processed in Registax:
Colin Miles
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Saturn
A Philips SPC900NC camera, fitted with a 2x Barlow was used with a 6", f/10 SCT to capture an AVI, using wxAstrocapture software. The AVI was stacked in Astrostakkert 2 and wavelet processed in Registax:
Colin Miles
Friday, May 3, 2013
A Card for the Chairman
At the Swansea Astronomical Society committee meeting last night, Brian Stokes, the Chairman was presented with a beautiful card made by the children at Cwmrhydyceirw Primary School.
The card was in appreciation of a visit made by Brian to the year 4 pupils to talk to them about astronomy.
The Card
Well done Brian and well done Cwmrhydyceirw Primary School Year 4 pupils and teachers.
Steve Wainwright
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Afocal Saturn
An afocal image was taken of Saturn through the 12" SCT at Fairwood common using a Casio compact camera:
Dave Evans and Colin Elphic
The Sun in H-alpha and Ca K-line light
An Opticstar PL-130M 1280 x 1024 monochrome CMOS camera was placed at the prime focus of a Solarmax ll 60 BF15, H-alpha scope and a Ca K-line PST scope. Two ND filters were stacked on the adapter for the H-alpha imaging. 6 min AVIs were captured at each wavelength of the full solar disk. The AVIs were stacked in Registax and the resulting images coloured Red for H-alpha and blue for Ca K-line:
H-alpha
Ca K-line
The two images were blended 50% each to show the structures revealed in both wavelengths. The image was coloured mauve
An animation of the three images shows them in turn
Anatomy of a sunspot in H-alpha light (AR1734)
A DMK21AS camera was used with the lens from a 2 x Barlow stacked with a 2.5 x Barlow. A 10,000 frame AVI was captured and stacked in Registax so that the minimum frame quality was 90%:
Steve Wainwright
A webcam Saturn through filters
A Philips SPC900NC camera was used with a 2x Barlow and a 6" SCT. Three AVIs were captured. The first was unfiltered. The second was using a yellow filter and the third was using a light-pollution filter. The AVIs were stacked in AutoStakkert 2 and wavelet processed in Registax.
Unfiltered
Yellow filter
Light-pollution filter
Colin Miles
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
The Sun in H-alpha light
An Opticstar PL-130M, monochrome, 1280 x 1024 CMOS camera was fitted with two ND13 filters to bring the light levels within the sensitivity range of the sensor. The camera has a 1/2" sensor, so, when placed at the prime focus of a Solarmax ll 60 BF15 H-alpha scope, the image of the entire disk falls on the chip. The camera was set to capture 5 minutes of AVI at 8fps. The data were stacked in Registax to produce the final image which has been colourised to represent the wavelength of light being used.
A DMK 21AS camera was placed at the prime focus of the Solarmax scope and 5000 frame AVIs were captured of 4 overlapping regions of the solar disk. The resulting images were stitched together to produce a single image:
The region of the solar disk containing the active regions AR 1732, AR1734 and AR1736 was imaged with a 2.5 x Barlow:
The region containing AR1731 was imaged and colourised:
Afocal image of a prominence with a hand-held Fuji compact camera
Steve Wainwright
The Sun in Ca K-line light, Saturn and Jupiter April 30
A DMK21AS camera was fitted with a short adapter, a focal reducer and a Baader Ca K-line filter. This filter gives a relatively wide bandpass of 9nm centred on the Ca K-line. Overlapping areas of the Sun were imaged with 5000 frame AVIs using a Helios, 6", f/5 refractor fitted with a Baader photographic grade solar filter. (note, this filter is not a visual filter and additional stacked, neutral density filters were required to make it safe for centering the Sun). The resulting images were stitched into a single image:
The camera setup
Full disk image of the Sun in Ca K-line light
Without the focal reducer, details of AR1731, 1730 and 1735 were captured:
The seeing was not as good as the previous night. An 8" SCT was used with a DFK21AS camera to capture a 5,000 frame AVI at 15fps and 1/15s:
Jupiter was very low in the western sky with poor seeing and detail was not resolved:
Steve Wainwright
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Saturn with a Philips webcam
A Philips SPC900 camera was used with a 6" SCT and a 2x Barlow and an AVI was captured. 1502 frames were stacked first in AutoStakkert!2 then wavelet processed in Registax:
The Seeliger, opposition effect is still very evident.
Colin Miles
Saturn
A DFK21AU AS camera fitted with a 2.5 x Barlow was placed in the focuser of an f/10, 5" Maksutov. A 10,000 frame AVI was captured of Saturn and the 5000 best frames were stacked. This gave a 71 fold increase in the signal to noise ratio and allowed more detail to be revealed:
Steve Wainwright
Monday, April 29, 2013
The Sun and an 84% waning, gibbous Moon
A Pentax K-x DSLR was fitted with a 300mm lens and mounted on a fixed tripod. 20 RAW images at ISO 800 were captured in rapid succession and stacked in Registax 5 to produce the final image. Click on an image to get a larger view.
A DMK21AS camera was used with a focal reducer and a short adapter and a Solarmax ll 60 BF15 H-alpha scope to capture the whole disk. The image was colourised to represent the wavelength used:
During imaging, an interesting transit occurred:
The focal reducer was removed and four overlapping areas of the Sun were imaged and stitched together into a final image:
Steve Wainwright
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