NGC3293 The Little Jewel Box and nebula IC2599 - 4/3/2012
This is a cropping of a wider field that contains the edge of the Eta Carina Nebula (see separate image) DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 85% of 22 Images ISO 800 120 Sec, 32 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient 18C. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M8 - NGC6523 - Lagoon Nebula and Cluster - 8/3/2011 (Processed single powermate test image)
The Lagoon Nebula is a giant interstellar cloud ~4100 LY away in the constellation Sagittarius. The pink/red glow is caused by ionised Hydrogen gas. The ionisation comes from extremely bright young stars with high Ultraviolet light output. M8 is just visible to the naked eye in dark skies and easily seen in binoculars. It spans 90' x 40' which is ~3 x 1 full moon diameters and at its distance equates to 110 x 50 LY. Imagine the energy required to light that up! DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 100% of 1 Images ISO 1600, 420 Sec, 32 DARK, 12 BIAS, 0 FLATS, post processed by Adobe Photshop CS5 Powermate testing on this and other objects is showing that doubing the focal ratio whilst doubling the image scale brings with it greater care over focus and centreing and that field flatness is more of an issue than I had imaginged it would be with an f/6 APO refractor. Note added 1/10/2012 - These initial disappoinging results caused me to leave the PowerMate for 18 months before I realised a couple of things. The Televue Powermate T-Ring adapter is optimised for 55mm backfocus which is room for a T-Adapter to DSLR and nothing else. I had been using several T-Extension tubes on the camera side instead of extension tubes on the telescope side to get focus! I also found the allen key head that adjusts the crayford focuser tightness. See 30/9/2012 results for a stark comparison. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Televue 2x 2" Powermate, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M23 - NGC6494 - Sagitarius Open Cluster - 1/4/2011 (Processed stack) DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 6 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M8 - NGC6523 - Gum 72 - Lagoon Nebula and Cluster- 1/4/2011 (Processed Cropped stack)
This version is a reprocessed one from late 2012. The Lagoon Nebula is a giant interstellar cloud ~4100 LY away in the constellation Sagittarius. The pink/red glow is caused by ionised Hydrogen gas. The ionisation comes from extremely bright young stars with high Ultraviolet light output. M8 is just visible to the naked eye in dark skies and easily seen in binoculars. It spans 90' x 40' which is ~3 x 1 full moon diameters and at its distance equates to 110 x 50 LY. Imagine the energy required to light that up! DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 21 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS4 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M16 - NGC6611 - Gum 83 - Eagle Nebula and Cluster - 1/4/2011 (Re-processed stack)
Reprocessed in late 2012. The Eagle Nebula is an emission nebula contained with a young (1-2 million years) open cluster of ~460 stars that is ~6,500 light-years away in the constellation Serpens. Its name derives from its shape that is thought to resemble an eagle. It is the subject of the famous "Pillars of Creation" photograph by the Hubble Space Telescope that shows pillars of star-forming gas and dust within the nebula. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 34 Images ISO 800, 180 Sec, 32 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient not noted... 19-17C assumed. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Being in dark skies near Wagin and not having captured a decent stack for this object I had a go despite it being too late in the year with this only 20-15 degrees above the western horizon. Whilst there is not much depth and detail to the nebula, it is far better than I can achieve in the city light. The nebula is ~5200 LY away and ~130LY in diameter and a star cluster within it consists of stars formed from the nebula. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 100% of 6 Images ISO 800 300 Sec, 32 DARK, 0 BIAS, 31 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, no filters, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient 13C. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 75% of 29 Images ISO 800 120 Sec, 6 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 An attempt to see if a long light gathering sequence would show this object up in my suburban skies. The nebular is certainly revealed but processing has been pushed to the limits with low contrast and high graininess. The lack of FLATS shows optical shadows and marks also. However, this is considerably better than my 'no show' image of 1/3/2011. Also compare to single shot in semi-dark skies at Perth Observatory 12/1/2011 and dark skies image at Wagin 4/3/2011. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Also see late 2012 reprocessed version. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 21 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS4 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M16 - NGC6611 - Eagle Nebula and Cluster, Messier M17 - NGC6618 - Eagle or Swan Nebula - 1/4/2011 (Processed stack) DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 100% of 1 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS4 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M44 - NGC2632 - Praesepe or Beehive Cluster - 4/4/2011 (Processed cropped stack) DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 7 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 11 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 A point of note is that the lack of flats shows the optical tain marks in mid lower left and right. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M46- NGC2437 and NGC2438 - 3/12/2010 A cropping of a wider field containing M46, M47 and Comet Hartley 2 (see separate uncropped image). Skyglow showing in background. Being near the edge of the field of the original image and having no field flattener, stars to the bottom left in particular are elongated. Star points created with electrical tape X in front of objective lens DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 9 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 10 DARK, 10 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA T-Adapter, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC (not recorded). Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
NGC3293 The Little Jewel Box and nebula IC2599 - 13/3/2011 (Processed cropped stack)
DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 100% of 2 Images ISO 800 120 Sec, 6 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 NGC3293 The Little Jewel Box in the centre but nebula IC2599 is near it. See also uncropped version and also 4/3/2012 for a shot that frames more of Eta Carina Nebula. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
This version is a reprocessed one from late 2012. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 21 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS4 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider
Messier M16 - NGC6611 - Eagle Nebula and Cluster - 1/4/2011 (Processed cropped stack) Also see late 2012 reprocessed version. The Eagle Nebula is an emission nebula contained with a young (1-2 million years) open cluster of ~460 stars that is ~6,500 light-years away in the constellation Serpens. Its name derives from its shape that is thought to resemble an eagle. It is the subject of the famous "Pillars of Creation" photograph by the Hubble Space Telescope that shows pillars of star-forming gas and dust within the nebula. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 34 Images ISO 800, 180 Sec, 32 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient not noted... 19-17C assumed. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M44 - NGC2632 - Praesepe or Beehive Cluster - 4/4/2011 (Processed stack) DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 7 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 11 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 A point of note is that the lack of flats shows the optical tain marks in mid lower left and right. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Comet 103P/Hartley 2 near M46 & M47 - 3/12/2010 (Processed stack)
Star points created with electrical tape X in front of objective lens DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 9 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 10 DARK, 10 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 See shot of this group 5 nights earlier on 28/11/2010 to see comet movement. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA T-Adapter, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC (not recorded). Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
NGC3293 The Little Jewel Box and nebula IC2599 - 13/3/2011 (Processed stack)
DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 100% of 2 Images ISO 800 120 Sec, 6 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 My target was NGC3293 The Little Jewel Box in the centre but nebula IC2599 is near it and the edge of the Eta Carina Nebula can be seen in the bottom right. See also cropped version and also 4/3/2012 for a shot that frames more of Eta Carina Nebula. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M8 - NGC6523 - Lagoon Nebula and Cluster- 1/4/2011 (Processed Cropped stack)
Also see late 2012 reprocessed version. The Lagoon Nebula is a giant interstellar cloud ~4100 LY away in the constellation Sagittarius. The pink/red glow is caused by ionised Hydrogen gas. The ionisation comes from extremely bright young stars with high Ultraviolet light output. M8 is just visible to the naked eye in dark skies and easily seen in binoculars. It spans 90' x 40' which is ~3 x 1 full moon diameters and at its distance equates to 110 x 50 LY. Imagine the energy required to light that up! DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 21 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS4 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M16 - NGC6611 - Eagle Nebula and Cluster - 1/4/2011 (Processed stack) Also see late 2012 reprocessed version. The Eagle Nebula is an emission nebula contained with a young (1-2 million years) open cluster of ~460 stars that is ~6,500 light-years away in the constellation Serpens. Its name derives from its shape that is thought to resemble an eagle. It is the subject of the famous "Pillars of Creation" photograph by the Hubble Space Telescope that shows pillars of star-forming gas and dust within the nebula. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 34 Images ISO 800, 180 Sec, 32 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient not noted... 19-17C assumed. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M8 - NGC6523 - Lagoon Nebula and Cluster, M20 - NGC6514 - Trifid Nebula - 7/5/2011 (Processed stack) DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 16 Images ISO 800 240 Sec, 20 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post processing by Adobe Photshop CS5 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, NO filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient 13C. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
A very large nebula with central star cluster. It is located ~5,200 LY away in the constallation Moncoeros. It spans ~80' and so is nearly three times the size of the full moon. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 100% of 2 Images ISO 800 480 and 900 Sec, 3 DARK at each ISO, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 A test shot at two different exposure durations to see what of the nebula would show up given my poor experiences in the Metro area (see 12/1/2011 and 1/3/2011). This was quite promising and I planned to attempt this on the second night, alas it clouded out :( Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, NO filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient ??C not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M23 - NGC6494 - Sagitarius Open Cluster- 1/4/2011 (Processed Cropped stack) DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 6 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS5 I initially thought I had focus problems, however the 'donut stars' are caused by DeepSkyStacker's cosmetic hot pixel removal feature ... which I stopped using a few months later when I saw a forum entry on this. Compare to mid-2012 re-processed image without this feature. Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M20 - NGC6514 - Gum 76 - Trifid Nebula- 1/4/2011 (Processed Cropped stack)
This version is a reprocessed one from late 2012 DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 21 Images ISO 800 180 Sec, 15 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS, Post-processed by Photoshop CS4 Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient xxC not noted. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
Messier M16 - NGC6611 - Gum 83 - Eagle Nebula and Cluster - 1/4/2011 (Re-processed cropped stack)
Reprocessed in late 2012. The Eagle Nebula is an emission nebula contained with a young (1-2 million years) open cluster of ~460 stars that is ~6,500 light-years away in the constellation Serpens. Its name derives from its shape that is thought to resemble an eagle. It is the subject of the famous "Pillars of Creation" photograph by the Hubble Space Telescope that shows pillars of star-forming gas and dust within the nebula. DeepSkyStacker 3.3.2 Stacked 80% of 34 Images ISO 800, 180 Sec, 32 DARK, 0 BIAS, 0 FLATS Telescope - Apogee OrthoStar LOMO 80/480 with Hotech SCA Field Flattener, Hutech IDAS LPS-P2 filter, Canon 400D DSLR, Ambient not noted... 19-17C assumed. Mount - Skywatcher NEQ6 Pro. Guidescope - Orion ShortTube 80 with Star Shoot Auto Guider.
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