Friday, December 28, 2012

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Mars in M44 011011

As seen on BBC The Sky at Night.

M45 Re-process.

M45 Re-process. by Mick Hyde
M45 Re-process., a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Jupiter 051212 2316.jpg

Jupiter 051212 2316.jpg by Mick Hyde
Jupiter 051212 2316.jpg, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Monday, December 10, 2012

Thursday, December 06, 2012

Monday, December 03, 2012

Friday, November 30, 2012

The Moon 281112

The Moon 281112 by Mick Hyde
The Moon 281112, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

The Moon 231112

The Moon 231112 by Mick Hyde
The Moon 231112, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

The Moon 211112

The Moon 211112 by Mick Hyde
The Moon 211112, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Precise GoTo


Just some quick notes lifted from the Celestron manual on how to use 'Precise GoTo'

The Celestron mounts has a precise goto function that can assist in finding extremely faint objects and centring objects closer to the centre of the field of view for astrophotography and CCD imaging.

Precise Goto automatically searches out the closest bright star to the desired object and asks the user to carefully centre it in the eyepiece. The hand control then calculates the small difference between its goto position and its centred position. Using this offset, the telescope will then slew to the desired object with enhanced accuracy.

To use Precise Goto:

1. Press the MENU button and use the Up/Down keys to select Precise Goto

2. Choose Database to select the object that you want to observe from any of the database catalogs listed.

3. Choose RA/DEC to enter a set of celestial coordinates that you wish to slew to.

4. Once the desired object is selected, the hand control will search and display the closest bright star to your desired object. Press ENTER to slew to the bright alignment star.

5. Use the direction buttons to carefully centre the alignment star in the eyepiece/camera display

6. Use this star to get an exact focus.

Press ENTER to slew to the desired object and start capturing.

Later when the scope has cooled, you may need to re-focus the optics. Just go back to step 1. and it will remember your object. Focus on the reference star and then hit enter to carry on capturing :-)


Sunday, November 04, 2012

Sunday, October 28, 2012

The Moon - 271012

The Moon - 271012 by Mick Hyde
The Moon - 271012, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Kemble's Cascade, Camelopardalis - 161012

Part of The Moore Marathon No.17

M31 1hr52min ISO1600 1min subs

M31 1hr52min ISO1600 1min subs by Mick Hyde
M31 1hr52min ISO1600 1min subs, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.
Who can resist another crack at M31?

Tuesday, October 09, 2012

M33 - Close-up

M33 - Close-up by Mick Hyde
M33 - Close-up, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

NGC891 with spikes

NGC891 with spikes by Mick Hyde
NGC891 with spikes, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Thursday, October 04, 2012

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Harvest Moon - 290912

Harvest Moon - 290912 by Mick Hyde
Harvest Moon - 290912, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Friday, September 28, 2012

New Guitar



Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Sunday, September 16, 2012

M33 from 150912

M33 Version 3 by Mick Hyde
M33 Version 3, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Monday, September 10, 2012

Rover Wheels - MSL

Rover Wheels - MSL by Mick Hyde
Rover Wheels - MSL, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Sunday, September 09, 2012

Friday, September 07, 2012

Aristarchus - 070912

Aristarchus - 070912 by Mick Hyde
Aristarchus - 070912, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Pitatus - 070912

Pitatus - 070912 by Mick Hyde
Pitatus - 070912, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Mare Imbrium - 070912

Mare Imbrium - 070912 by Mick Hyde
Mare Imbrium - 070912, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Rima Hyginus - 070912

Rima Hyginus - 070912 by Mick Hyde
Rima Hyginus - 070912, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Moon prime focus - 070912

Moon prime focus - 070912 by Mick Hyde
Moon prime focus - 070912, a photo by Mick Hyde on Flickr.

Thursday, September 06, 2012