Saturn, Jupiter and M42 - A Comedy of Errors
Celestron NexStar
5i
127mm Aperture, 1250mm Focal Length, F10 telescope
Polar Aligned on a Wedge using both the EQ North routine and the new "Wedge
Align" routine of the Hand Control
Modified Vesta 675 SC Webcam
* Cheapie flip mirror in place of stock prism diagonal
01/12/2003
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Don't ask me about the blue color. I was trying to stack just a few of the best Saturns in Registax and I elected the 2X resampling. What I got was blue. The above is stacked but untouched otherwise. So, I changed it to Black & White mode and then did my levels modification to darken the background. No idea how to get the color back. So you want the height of stupidity? I had the 0.6 Mogg focal reducer in by accident while I was using the 2X Barlow. So what did I end up with? Something on the order of F12. I'm not really sure exactly anyway, because I started using a cheapie flip mirror so I gained some focal length but I've no idea exactly what it is.
Here's the same image with some wavelet processing, this time at the upper end (4,5 mostly) |
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Above : These two images (above and below) are two different takes on processing. The top was done to minimise the effects of those little dots which you can see on the bottom... because I also forgot to take a dark frame. Luckily, it was freezing out that night (20 degrees F) but that is no excuse. Here's my excuse, however : You see, I forgot about the new flip mirror and the camera being where it was, would no longer clear the base. So, I just about ran it into the base and then decided I should pack it in. Yeah, yeah, I know. If I would take dark frames as I'm imaging, this wouldn't have happened.
The bottom was an attempt to be a little sharper. I tend to like a very sharp image, but there is always the risk of graininess and worse, the little dark area around bright stars. For whatever reason, even though the above image has no sharpening done, it still has some of the darkening around the stars. It came out of Registax that way. I think it'd be a really nice image if I had a dark frame to subtract from it.
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Jupiter is on its way.