M31 with sharpening techniques.

Boy! you just can't leave it alone.
Using high Pass filtering technique from here.

M31 - 273 frames, 5 hours and 24 minutes, ISO 800.

Picture in Sky & Telescope.

I got a pciture in Sky & Telescope December issue.
Thanks to Sky & Telescope and a big thanks to Charles Wood.


Here's the original image.

Horsehead Nebula in Orion.

28 x 2 minute frames.
I need a lot more subs on this one.
I am actually amazed that anything came out on this, I couldn't even see this feature in the scope!

Below is a crop of an unprocessed single frame.

Here's the 32 bit tiff file straight out of DSS. If you fancy having a go at processing the image, be my guest. Let me know how you get on.
Beware: the file is over 95Mb.

M42 ... with a bit more data.

1 hr, 20 min, 76 frames.

M45 - 22nd Oct 2008

Double Cluster in Perseus - 21st Oct 2008

Another go at the double cluster. This time using my C9.25 and 6.3 focal reducer.
16 subs of 1 minute at 800 ISO, darks, flats & bias applied.

Re-processed Moretus from 20th Sept 2008

Here is the Moretus from 20th Sept re-processed using 48 x 64 MAP per image, 6 image mosaic.
Registax and CS3.

Another image published in Astronomy Now Magazine, Nov 2008 issue.

Big thanks to Astronomy Now.


Here's the image from September.

Reiner Gamma Formation.

C9.25, 2.5x TV Powermate, Red filter and DMK21AF04AS. best 300 frames from 1200.

Here's some info from The Moon Wikispaces.

Below is a Lunar Orbiter Mosaic from Map-a-Planet Explorer

A magnetic map of Reiner Gamma obtained by NASA's Lunar Prospector spacecraft in the 1990s

The peaks of Petavius 16th Oct 2008

The Moon 15th Oct 2008

Taken with a DMK21AF04AS and ED80 APO. 6 image mosaic.

Colour image taken with Canon EOS 400D.

DMK and Colour image layered.

Full Moon 14th Oct 2008

The Moon is so bright when viewed through a scope. That's another thing that is impossible to re-create with any camera.
The human eye is so good.

Silvery Moon in an inky sky 13th Oct 2008

This picture is really beginning to grow on me, (even though I do say so myself)
I like the way the clouds look as though they are behind the Moon, good trick eh?
But it gives a view of the Moon that I've been trying to capture for ages... the idea that the Moon is a ball suspended in space by a piece of string. That's the nearest that I can get to an explanation of the feeling. Oh well.
Haven't been drinking either, I've just been in the shed too much!!

Larger version here.

Airborne crew captures video of ATV re-entry.

Amazing video, click image below for video... I wonder what is was like on-board?? :-0

Moon 11th Oct 2008

The Moon taken through Ray's ED80 APO, prime focus. 10 images stacked in Registax.

With 2 x barlow.

2.5 x barlow.

The Great Orion Nebula & 'running man' (M42, NGC 1976, NGC 1977) 11th Oct 2008 - Work in progress

800 ISO, 26 min 30 Sec, 53 frames.

M45 - results from 3 nights. Two Versions.

NGC 281 - the Pacman Nebula - 8th Oct 2008

1600 ISO 1 hr 8 min exposures, 68 frames.

I didn't think I was going to get anything out of this. When I found the nebula you couldn't see anything through the scope, no nebulosity at all. I had to check on the net to find other peoples images and check the star formations to get it centred. Even after sending the images through DSS, there wasn't a lot to see.
I had to use a lot of curves and levels in CS3 to bring any detail out. Not bad for an unmodded camera though and 1 min subs.
I'll give it another go with my C9.25 and guiding, I should be able to get some longer duration subs with a bit more detail.

Double Cluster in Perseus

1600 ISO Exposure 22 min 30 s (45frames), flats, darks & bias.

Double Cluster in Perseus 7th Oct 2008 (Work in progress)

After watching "The Sky at Night" I thought I'd give the Double Cluster in Perseus a go. Here's 21 x 30 sec frames.
More to follow.

M45 - 1st and 6th Oct data combined

Some more data, 85 subs totalling 1 hr 25 min.

M33 re-processed.

M31 with 4 nights data - 3 hours, 27mins, 207 subs

I've had this book for years, and I've always wanted to get a shot like the front cover... getting close. I know it's not a very good scan though and it doesn't do the picture any justice.

M33 - 1st Oct 2008

51 x 1 minute subs @ 1600 ISO, darks, flats & bias.
Need more subs ;-)

M45 - Pleiades 1st Oct 2008

First light, quick process of M45 from last night. 25 x 1 minute subs @ 1600 ISO
It could do with a lot more data.

Yet another version of M31

I'm trying various techniques of sharpening without blowing the stars out too much, and also subtle colouring/noise reduction.

Here's the method in Photoshop:-
1) Duplicate the layer
2) Select - Colour Range - Click on a bright star
The higher the slider, the more stars, usually set around 20
3) Expand - Select - Modify - Expand, say 4 pixels
4) Feather - Select - Modify - Feather, 2/3 expansion value - 3 pixels
5) Curves - as in the chart below:-

6) Saturate - Adjust Hue/Sat to around 60%
7) Filter - Other, min - radius 1
8) Edit - Fade min 50%
9) Deselect... all done.

I also used this method in processing M13, it can produce nice globular stars.

M31 Central Core

A comparison of my earlier C9.25 shot of the central core and my latest image shot with the APO.

M31 with some more data from 27th Sept

I went again last night with Ray's APO and collected another hours worth of data.
The seeing was good like the night before, but the transparency was the same as well, not very good. So you need lots of short exposure shots to keep the light pollution at bay.
Another larger version using different settings in Deepskystacker and CS3.

M31 - 26th Sept 2008

Ray's APO with my Canon EOS 400D. 86 exposures of 60 sec (unguided). @ 800 & 1600 ISO. Flats, darks and bias. Processed in Deepskystacker and CS3.

Larger version here:- M31
Here's another version processed slightly different:-

Bingo!

Here's part of a single RAW frame, with an aircraft going straight through the middle!!!

Ray's APO

M31 rough, work in progress - 26th Sept 2008

Here's a very rough "work in progress" image. Using about 33% of the images captured so far. No flats, darks or bias. From Ray's APO.
... stay tuned.

Test shot with Ray's APO

Setting up my mate Ray's APO this evening. Here's a test shot of a parachutist (he was moving quite fast as well).
Fingers crossed, M31 tonight... hope the fog holds off.

Drygalski 20th Sept 2008