M 42 and The Warm Room

The skies cleared and the weather was a little warmer last night so I worked on setting up my "warm room" next to my observatory.

A "warm room" isn't really very warm but it keeps the extreme cold of night from settling in on oneself. It is only 4' x 6' in size, just enough space for two people, if needed. From it I can control the telescope (in the actual observatory) and the camera taking images. In it I can have a small heater which provides just enough heat to keep me from freezing. I also have a security camera that lets me see inside the observatory, even in total darkness, due to the fact that the security camera images in infrared and has an infrared lights. This will help me to see if the scope is moving properly or if it needs attention.

So by the time I got it all set up I only had enough energy to do a brief exposure of M 27, the "Dumbell Nebula". This is about 7 minutes worth of exposure. Not the best I've done but it did serve as a "proof of concept" for working the telescope from the warm room.

M 27 - The Dumbell Nebula - October 15, 2017

Meade LX200GPS 8" Telescope

Canon T3i - ISO 6400 - about 7 minutes exposure (stacked)

Rising early Monday morning I was able to capture The Great Orion Nebula.

This image is the "raw" image before post-processing...

And this is the "final" image after much post-processing.

Note: the image has been rotated 180 degrees from what it would look like through binoculars.

           I think it just looks better this way!

The image was created from various exposures from 10 seconds up to 30 seconds each.

Stacked with DeepSkyStacker to create about a 12+ minute exposure.

Amateur vs Professional Astronomer?

Astronomy (the branch of science that deals with celestial objects, space, and the physical universe as a whole) has always been the dominion of both professional and amateur astronomers.
Through the centuries the balance of astronomical discoveries (both optically and mathematically) has shifted back and forth between both groups of astronomers.

As of late the balance has shifted decidedly to professionals due to the creation of larger and larger telescopes and those being located in more and more remote locations around the world.

Someone might say to an amateur astronomer in his/her backyard, "What's the point? Why spend the money and the time doing imaging and viewing on your own? Go online and you will find more information and better (by far) images of objects in the night sky than you will ever produce!"

True. But even the word "amateur" explains why!

Amateur comes from the Latin word "amare", which means, “to love.” An amateur does it for the love of it, the beauty of it, the opportunity to be part of it, for personal enjoyment, reflection  and to share that love with others... even if the telescope or the images produced are not  up to the grade of being "professional".

And as of late, the tools the amateur uses, though on a much smaller scale than the pros have, have allowed the amateur to produce night sky images superior to what the pros were producing 20+ years ago!

And all is not lost for the amateur astronomer!

Amateurs are still making surprising discoveries even before the pros know about it! And if it were not for the interests, the love of it, there would likely be less support for what the pros do in government.

So go ahead, get outside at night!
Look up!
Even without a telescope there is beauty and more to be seen that cannot be had by looking online!

Do it for the love of it!

God created it to be seen, enjoyed and more!

Review of the Rigel Systems Quick Finder 1X Finder R-CRS

The telescope that came with the Citizen CATE Experiment (2017 solar imaging project in conjunction with the National Solar Observatory) did not have a finder scope, though it did have a solar finder as part of the equipment.
The lack of a nighttime finder made the scope barely useful for night sky observation.

I contacted Daystar (the manufacturer of the scope) about this but received a useless response, as if someone didn't bother to read my email.

I wanted something like a Telrad finder but the footprint of that finder was far too large for the body of the Daystar scope.

So after doing some internet searching I found the Rigel Systems Quick Finder 1X Finder R-CRS.

It comes with two bases so that one can have a base on two different telescopes and move the finder from one telescope to another without a problem.

It is "tall" which means it is easier to get your head in a good position to see through the finder and locate the object of your choice.

The LED "heads up" display has two concentric circles and a knob that you can use to adjust the brightness of them. There is another knob that allows you to control the "flashing" rate of the circles, it gets them out of the way briefly so you can see your target easier.

The three white knobs are to adjust the angle of the circles to your scope.
The process is an easy one:
* find some object far away that you can see easily with your scope (I used the Moon)
* turn on the finder.
* adjust the brightness and flashing rate.
* then using the three knobs bring the circles to center on your object.

Done!

By the way, ALWAYS turn off the finder to preserve the replaceable internal battery of the finder.
It is a good idea to keep a few of the 3 volt button batteries on hand (found at almost all stores).

Post-CATE Experiment Google Groups Created

Now that the Citizen CATE Experiment (2017 solar eclipse imaging for the National Solar Observatory) is over, I created a Google Group for those who want to extend their use of the telescope and setup for other personal astronomical observations and imaging.

This is the "home" group that will point one to a more specific interest in using the CATE equipment
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/post-cate-project

Actually I set up several Google Groups:

One group is for continued solar imaging/observing:
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/post-cate-solar-imaging

Another group is for lunar and planetary imaging/observing:
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/post-cate-lunar--planetary-imaging

And finally there is a group for deep sky imaging/observing:
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/post-cate-deep-sky-imaging

Still another group is for modifying the Arduino unit code and its use:
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/post-cate-arduino-project

I will likely create another Google Group should someone come up with a good reason to do so.

So if you are one of those who participated in the Citizen CATE project and want to learn more and connect with fellow users of the CATE equipment please feel free to ask to join the groups of your choice!

M 27 The Dumbbell Nebula

Sunday's evening in the observatory (first in nearly two months) due to forest fire smoke and just plain a lot of cloudy nights: 

The Dumbbell Nebula (M 27)

Taken with the Meade 8" LX200GPS scope at prime focus, modified Canon XS, ISO 1600, 17 minutes (stack of 34 - 30 sec exposures with Deep Sky Stacker).

Nice article on how the Internet has helped amateur astronomy

This is so true for myself, as the growth of the internet has revitalized my interest in astronomy. How about you?

https://www.theringer.com/platform/amp/tech/2017/9/12/16294132/space-week-astronomy-internet

TOTALITY ! With the Citizen CATE Experiment near Mitchell, Oregon

Monday morning, August 21, 2017, dawned at my CATE site (near Mitchell, Oregon) clear and sparkling.

We finalized the setup of our CATE equipment as well as set up two telescope mounts for personal digital color photography.

 

We then gathered a small crowd of about 25+ people for a short talk about why a solar eclipse and what to look for, listen for, and feel during the partial and total phases of this eclipse.

  

We distributed solar eclipse glasses to everyone and trained them on their use, and when and when not to use binoculars.

Then it was on to the serious work of final scope alignment and gathering of essential data for the CATE experiment. Meanwhile the crescents in the shadows due to the crescent Sun/Moon was interesting...

Poking holes in cardboard and then letting the sunlight fall on white paper was fun!

As the partial phases progressed my wife was taking temperature reading for the GLOBE project, to help track the temperature changes, as well as taking some video and still shots.

As totality neared trouble appeared in the sky... smoke from a forest fire to the south-west of our location (about 30+ miles away). This was disheartening as we wanted the pristine skies we had experienced since the had arrived on the Wednesday prior.

As the partial portion of the eclipse progressed, we felt a slight breeze and a definite cooling down, mostly due to the loss of the Sun's heat. But regardless of the conditions we were going to have a totality
event all the same. Here are some images of the progress of the Moon over the Sun.

 

I was able to image the sunspot group AR2671, which by then had crossed the center line of the Sun's surface. Here you will see the Moon cover up the sunspots over a period of about 15 minutes (I think)

As totality neared I had to give 100% of my attention to the CATE project and do my best to center the Moon/Sun given the little sliver of light that remained.
The first big event just before totality is called the "Diamond Ring" effect, as just a very small sliver of sunlight stubbornly holds out. Awesome!

Then so quickly came the "Bailey's Beads" effect, where the Sun's light is broken up by the mountain peaks on the Moon. Sweet ! One is stunned by the swiftness of the brief time between the "diamond ring" and "Bailey's Beads" effects... only a second or so!

 

Then, there it was...TOTALITY !

The Moon had completely covered the Sun and the Sun's corona began to shine in all of its glory! This next image is a quick HDR result of the CATE project's software...

In post processing some detail can be drawn out...

 Here a prominence in normal light and then negative:

Here are some close-ups (in black and white) of a few of the prominences around the Sun

And just as there was the "Baily's Beads" and the "Diamond Ring" event on the frontside of totality, so there is the same on the backside

UPDATE: A brief video of our experience at totality is ready for viewing!

And just so quickly the Sun re-emerges from the Moon's blockage! (The red flare is an artifact of the camera lens, not what was actually visible)

This was my wife and mine's second total solar eclipse since we got married in 1977. We feel like this time we were well prepared and enjoyed it so much more!

My Super Totality Wonder Woman!

To our surprise, the predicted crowds did not show up en mass and the result was that we were able to head home to La Pine later on Monday. So we packed up and hit the road. We want to thank our hosts, Pat and Myrna for letting us stay the past 5 days !

We are still in awe of God's unique creations, both above the Earth and on it as we headed home...

On the road home via Mitchell, Oregon...

We made it through Prineville at normal speed (we encountered long delays on our way to Mitchell). But our enthusiasm was dimmed by the spread of the forest fire's smoke that blocked much of the light of the Sun (a second solar eclipse in one day?).

And the closer we got to Bend, Oregon the thicker the clouds became, turning the Sun into some kind of weird Jupiter!

But in the end we made it home and were happy to sleep in our own bed, no mosquitos and no flies!

Now, whose up for Round 3 in April, 2024 ?