Moon and Mars. 37 x 1/1000 sec, Gain 11, Offset 17, Astronomik L-3 UV/IR filter, QHY183c at -20C, TPO (Askar) 40mm, F/4.5, Atlas EQ-G.
Tiny Mars right below the full moon of Dec 2022. Here in Cajun Country, we saw a near miss of Mars being occulted. Further north and west was where you could see it go behind the Moon.
I used the smallest scope I have to take this (only 180mm of focal length) because it was ready to go and I didn’t have much time to prep. Sure wish I would have had my old C-8 for this instead. Oh, well…
This crop is at 100% of the camera’s native resolution.
AutoStakkert processing of 41 sub-images with the best 20 used for the moon. The background stars were processed in IRIS and all 41 sub-images were used. The two images were then composited together. Equipment: TPO (Askar) 180mm UltraWide Astrophotography Lens (40mm objective, F/4.5) and a QHY183c at -20C, gain 11, offset 17, exposures of 4 seconds each.
Enhanced version of above with harder push on star brightness.
10 sub-images added together in AutoStakkert with color and sharpening in PS. Astra Image Maximum Entropy Deconvolution PS plug-in filter used for final sharpening.
I woke up at about 3:00 am after just a few hours of sleep to catch this. I had setup the scope earlier that evening and was ready. I have images from throughout the event, but these were the better ones during totality.
Canon T3 with Astro-Tech AT60ED scope at F/4.8, 4 seconds at ISO 800.
Bonus: In addition to the eclipsed moon, in the wide angle crops or full-frame images, the planet Uranus and at least one of its moons are visible at the extreme left edge:
Lunar Eclipse – Totality. 1×4 sec, Astro-Tech AT60ED, QHY183c, UV/IR filter.Lunar Eclipse – Near End of Totality. Stacked image – 5×4 sec, Astro-Tech AT60ED, QHY183c, UV/IR filter.Lunar Eclipse – Totality. 1×8 sec, Astro-Tech AT60ED, QHY183c, UV/IR filter.May 15, 2022 Lunar Eclipse. Before totality. 2 sec @ Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY183c, UV/IR filter, AT60ED at F/4.8.
Clear to partly cloudy skies and a little humid, but good enough to get shots of most of the eclipse. The four images above were some of the better captures.
The Lunar Eclipse, Nov 19, 2021. 2 sec, QHY183c, Gain 18, Offset 50, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60D.The Lunar Eclipse, Nov 19, 2021. 2 sec, QHY183c, Gain 18, Offset 50, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60D.
The lunar eclipse of Nov 19, 2019 was pretty good, considering it was only partial. I started imaging at 1:00 and didn’t stop until dawn. The two best images are above. The sequence below is exactly how they came out live in the field, so to speak.
BONUS:
Two comets, C/2021 A1 and 67P, just a quick look to see their progress from the last time. 67P appears to have faded a little and C/2021 A1 has gotten brighter.
The Moon on Nov 13, 2021. QHY183c, AT60ED at F/4.8.The Pleiades. 35×180 sec, Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY183c at -20C, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8.The Andromeda Galaxy. 50×180 sec, Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY183c at -20C, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8.Comet 67P Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Star Streaks Version. 40×180 sec (comet, 20×180 sec background), Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY183c at -20C, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8.Comet 67P Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Star Freeze Version. 40×180 sec (comet, 20×180 sec background), Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY183c at -20C, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8.C/2021-A1 (Leonard). 24×180 sec, Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY183c at -20C, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8.C/2021-A1 (Leonard). 24×180 sec, Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY183c at -20C, UHC-S filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8. Star Freeze version.
Great weather and very transparent skies for this session. I started out with the goal of getting two comets, but since they didn’t get into position until later, I started off with the Moon, then M45 and M31. I also shot Pickering’s Triangle, part of the Veil Nebula complex, but didn’t get enough subs to do it any justice.
The comets were small, but interesting with long tails instead of being just puff balls. 67P has a really long tail in images taken by others. I was glad to get as much as I got shooting from the middle of town with all the LP.
Earthshine from the Moon on Nov 7, 2021. An overexposed thin crescent and Earthshine from a 2 to 3-days old moon. 2 sec at Gain 42, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8, QHY183c at -15C, Optolong L-eNhance filter.Witch’s Broom – 20 x 180 sec at Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY-183C at -15C, Optolong L-eNhance filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8.California Nebula – 51 x 180 sec at Gain 11, Offset 50, QHY-183C at -15C, Optolong L-eNhance filter, Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8.
From last night, Sunday, Nov 7, 2021 local time.
I stayed out till almost 1:00 AM shooting this image of the California Nebula. It is 2.55 hours of 3 minute sub-images (51×180 sec) calibrated and stacked in SharpCap 3.2 LiveStacking. Taken with a QHY183c camera at -15C cooling, an Astro-Tech AT60ED at F/4.8 and an Optolong L-eNhance filter. Metro area location under heavy light pollution, but clear and transparent skies.
At the beginning of the session, the moon was beautiful next to Venus, but I could not fit them in the same field of view. So, I decided to catch the Earthshine before it got too low.
The Witch’s Broom was taken to kill time while waiting for the California Nebula to get into position.
The Moon on Jun 17, 2021.M13 Globular Cluster. 20×180 sec, Gain 11, Offset 10, QHY183c at -10C, L-eNhance filter, AT60ED at F/4.8. Full field.M13 Globular Cluster. 20×180 sec, Gain 11, Offset 10, QHY183c at -10C, L-eNhance filter, AT60ED at F/4.8. Close-crop.
A quick outing before the weather got bad as a tropical storm hits from the Gulf. I wanted to test the new T-adapter fittings I got for the AT60ED to attach the camera instead of using the 1.25″ eyepiece adapter, like I had to do for the first light images.
