Other images
Mizar and Alcor RGB
Something to image in the strong moonlight. Mizar (Zeta Ursae Majoris) has 2 partners: the brighter one you can see is 14 arcsecs away at mag 4 but there’s also one at 0.04 arcsecs separation and mag. 2 that we can’t see separately. Alcor is a binary too with an 8th magnitude red dwarf companion, 1 arcsec away from the primary.
| Object ID | Mizar, Alcor |
| Details | 2020-04-06 21:03:20UT |
| Telescope | 250mm f4.8 Newtonian |
| Camera | Atik 460EX @-15C Baader RGB filters |
| Exposure(s) | 3x30s ea RGB 1×1 |
| Capture | APT |
| Processing | APP, Photoshop |
Vesta occultation of HIP 14439
Well I didn’t manage the occultation because of really bad weather – very windy and sleet blowing into the dome and telescope tube.
Got an image just before occultation.
2020-02-11 21:45:13
2s exposure 1×1 TR filter
Supernova SN 2020ue in NGC 4636
| Object ID | SN 2020ue NGC 4636 |
| Details | 2020-01-19 01:12:57 UT Muniwin gives mag. as 12.56 RA = 12 42 47 DEC = +2 39 35 FWHM = 2.77 pxl Sky = 1708.31 ADU Sky dev. = 50.19 ADU Net intensity = 94384.6 ADU Noise = 271.5 ADU S/N ratio = -25.4 dB Brightness = 12.5627 mag Error = 0.0031 mag |
| Telescope | 250mm f4.8 OO Newtonian |
| Camera | Atik 460EX @-15C |
| Exposure(s) | 5x120s 2×2 TR |
| Capture | APT |
| Processing | Nebulosity, Muniwin |
Wide angle Milky Way shots from the Languedoc
So – because there’s no night in Scotland from May to August, I went south to the Languedoc hills. Sainte-Polycarpe in the Aude region to be precise. First real use of my Skywatcher Star Adventurer mount. Great fun, still a lot to learn, but got some decent images. Also made a fun little video story of my holiday in a beautiful region of France.
Summer Solstice Noctilucent Clouds
23:15 UT 21 June 2019
Samsung S8 mobile camera
Supernova 2018 ivc in M77
First supernova for me.
| Object ID | SN 2018 ivc in M77 Type II supernova |
| Details | 2018-12-03 22:10 – 22:39 UT |
| Telescope | 250mm f4.8 Newtonian, MPCC, IDAS P2 |
| Camera | Atik 460EX at -20C |
| Exposure(s) | L 10x90s 1×1 |
| Capture | APT |
| Processing | Nebulosity, Photoshop |
Albireo – now it’s officially NOT a binary
Everyone’s favourite double star is now officially not a binary system according to the latest GAIA data release. This is just to show that I don’t care – it’s still the best.
| Object ID | Albireo, Beta 1,2 Cygni |
| Details | 2018-08-23 20:57 – 21:00 UT |
| Telescope | 200mm Newtonian f5 |
| Camera | ZWO ASI290MC, IR/UV block |
| Exposure(s) | 21 x 5s with 5s delay between |
| Capture | SharpCap 3.1 |
| Processing | Nebulosity 3, Photoshop |
Amazing NLC display over Edinburgh
One of the best I’ve seen. Almost overhead too.
| Object ID | Noctilucent Clouds |
| Details | 2018-06-18 23:12 UT |
| Telescope | – |
| Camera | Canon 600D |
| Exposure(s) | 1.6s @ f3.5 ISO 400 |
| Capture | In camera |
| Processing | Lightroom |
Noctilucent Clouds
First sighting this year and one of the very earliest to appear on Twitter.
Venus at the bottom with Castor and Pollux above. ß Aurigae (Menkalinan) to the upper right.
| Object ID | Noctilucent Clouds |
| Details | 2018-06-01 22:52 UT, 22:53 UT |
| Telescope | Kit lens 27mm at f4 Fixed tripod |
| Camera | Canon 600D |
| Exposure(s) | ISO 400 1.6s |
| Capture | In Camera |
| Processing | Lightroom |
Testing RC8 and 460EX on Mizar and Alcor
Just for test purposes but quite fun. Focus not spot on though.
| Object ID | Mizar and Alcor |
| Details | Double star(s) Ursa Major |
| Telescope | RC8 at f/8 |
| Camera | Atik 460EX (-15C) and SX filter wheel IDAS P2 LPR filter |
| Exposure(s) | RGB 6x10s each 2×2 darks, no flats or bias |
| Capture | APT, no guiding |
| Processing | Stacked in Nebulosity, processed in Photoshop |
Jupiter and Mars conjunction 2018-01-7
A very close conjunction.
| Object ID | Jupiter and Mars in conjunction |
| Details | A very close conjunction, less than 14′ between the two planets. Poor seeing and very low altitude <15degrees |
| Date/Time | 2018-01-7 05:47UT, Inset 06:03UT |
| Telescope | C80ED @ f7.5 |
| Camera | Canon 600D |
| Exposure(s) | 30s, inset 0.6s no darks, flats or bias |
| Capture | APT unguided |
| Processing | Processed in Photoshop |
Perseid near Cygnus and Lyra
2018-08-12 23:23UT
Taken in the hills along the Thieves Road near West Linton.
Canon 600D
Single 25s image RAW ISO 800 18mm f9
Wide angle test – Orion
DIY wide angle mount using old ETX90EC mount. Horrible vignetting caused by IDAS filter in front of lens, but could be removed with flats. Proves the drive works though. Using an old fixed 135mm film lens (approx. 80mm equivalent).
2017-02-01 18:50UT
Canon EOS 600D, ISO 1600
5 x 25s, auto darks
135mm film lens – very cheap and old
2″ IDAS P2 LPR filter in front of lens
Processed in Nebulosity, PhotoShop and Lightroom.
Wide angle shots from the Pentlands
Just processed these from 14/10/2015
Canon EOS 600D unguided
Various exposures 8 – 20 seconds
Processed in Adobe Lightroom CC
Nova Delphinus 2013
Mag 6+?
2013-08-30 21:28 UT
200mm f5 newtonian, unguided
4×30s ISO 800, darks
Canon EOS 350D modded, Astronomik CLS
Captured in APT, Processed in Nebulosity, PS CS5
Discovered 14 Aug 2013 by Koichi Itagaki of Yamagata, peaked at mag. 4.5.
It’s about 13,000 light years away. Was originally quite blue but is now much redder – this is what sometimes happens as novae evolve.
From Sky & TelescopeThe nova was discovered by Koichi Itagaki of Yamagata, Japan, in an image taken at 14hhUniversal Time (2 p.m. EDT) on August 14th. It was not present in a photo that he took the previous day. Here is the announcement from the IAU’s Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams. The star was apparently 17th magnitude before erupting, so it brightened roughly 100,000-fold to its peak on August 16th.
A classical nova happens in a special kind of tightly-orbiting binary star system: one where a relatively normal star pours a stream of hydrogen onto the surface of a companion white dwarf. When the layer of fresh hydrogen on the white dwarf’s surface grows thick and dense enough, the bottom of the layer explodes in a runaway hydrogen-fusion reaction — a hydrogen bomb in the shape of a thin shell roughly the size of Earth. The underlying white dwarf remains intact, and as new hydrogen builds up, the process may repeat in a few years to tens of thousands of years.
Widefield Plough
2011-07-27
Canon 350D
F=18mm, f/3.5
1x20s ISO 200
No dark frame or filters
Fixed tripod
Still not dark enough for normal astrophotography so trying some widefield images.
Aurora 2003-11-20
20-11-2003
Olympus fixed lens camera
This was an aurora that covered an amazing amount of the sky. This image is looking south-east! Pity about the light pollution and the passing car headlights.
Planetary Conjunction 2008-11-30
30-11-2008
Canon EOS 350D
An interesting conjunction of Jupiter, Venus, the Moon and a plane.