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Behold, The Lagoon Nebula! 4-10-14 | |
Dr. Astro Senior Forum Moderator  User ID: 4211721  United States04/09/2014 04:44 PM  Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I finally solved my new CCD's frosting issue this weekend. It looks like the weather will be good tonight, so I'm going to give it another run. I still need to get a new focal reducer to use it with the 8" LX200, but in the meantime I'm going to shoot another widefield image. I haven't made a definite decision on the target yet but I have a few possibilities in mind. I'll setup a webcast showing the individual raw frames as they come in. I'm not sure exactly what time I'll start it up (depends on how long it takes me to polar align) and as always it's weather dependent, but I'm aiming for about *scratch that, make it 4:30am* eastern time start time. I'll embed the video here when it starts, both in this post and on the latest page of this thread. *Due to high wind speeds at the observing site I'm re-targeting for early morning hours before dawn tomorrow, 4:30am eastern, in order to optimize the chance of acceptable weather. Running a few minutes early today, here's the webcast: Stacked image: :lagoonnarrowband: Last Edited by Astromut on 04/10/2014 02:39 PM  |
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| Dr. Astro (OP) Senior Forum Moderator User ID: 55240075 United States04/09/2014 05:43 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Dr. Astro, I've been meaning to ask you - do you know anything about the raw data from Hubble being first sent to White Sands? Quoting: WinterWx Conspiracy or no? Conspiracy? More like normal TDRS operations. The tracking and data relay satellites that were originally used to relay communications from the space shuttle are also used to relay data from Hubble (and were originally launched by the space shuttle itself but are now launched on unmanned rockets). The primary and secondary ground receiving stations for TDRS are located in White Sands. TDRS allows NASA to communicate with Hubble for the majority of its orbit around the earth while only needing a single site on the ground to which communications are relayed using the satellites (a second receiver site in Guam can also provide coverage for the "zone of exclusion" where originally communications would always drop out because a single ground site could not maintain line of sight to a satellite in geosync orbit capable of covering that region). |
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| Dr. Astro (OP) Senior Forum Moderator User ID: 55240075 United States04/09/2014 06:00 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | That was the plan, but I'm about to change the plan I'm afraid. Wind speed at the observing site is currently too high and that concerns me. If it's as high as it currently is and is projected to be for the next few hours, it'll be too high for the telescope to track without being shaken. The image will be smeared by the wind. Wind speeds are projected to die down to half the current value by early morning hours. As a result I'm going to retarget for the early morning hours. I know that won't be convenient viewing for most people :(. But the good news is that it will open up the opportunity to view some beautiful objects deep in the middle of the milky way, and the video (and image or images) will be available to view even after the webcast. I'll still webcast it for whoever is up at that hour. Think of it as a practice session for next week's early morning lunar eclipse :). 4:30 am is the new start time. Ugly, I know, but I'm the one who has to get up early to set up the equipment ;). Last Edited by Astromut on 04/09/2014 06:03 PM |
| Reality420 User ID: 9986288 United States04/09/2014 06:21 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I finally solved my new CCD's frosting issue this weekend. It looks like the weather will be good tonight, so I'm going to give it another run. I still need to get a new focal reducer to use it with the 8" LX200, but in the meantime I'm going to shoot another widefield image. I haven't made a definite decision on the target yet but I have a few possibilities in mind. Quoting: Dr. Astro That's good news. Hopefully something simple like baking out your dessicant canister? Something like 325° for 3hrs? Like baking a ham. Wondering what you've got in mind... Have fun. R. |
| Dr. Astro (OP) Senior Forum Moderator User ID: 55240075 United States04/09/2014 06:23 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | I finally solved my new CCD's frosting issue this weekend. It looks like the weather will be good tonight, so I'm going to give it another run. I still need to get a new focal reducer to use it with the 8" LX200, but in the meantime I'm going to shoot another widefield image. I haven't made a definite decision on the target yet but I have a few possibilities in mind. Quoting: Dr. Astro That's good news. Hopefully something simple like baking out your dessicant canister? Something like 325° for 3hrs? Like baking a ham. Wondering what you've got in mind... Have fun. R. Yeah, I swapped the desiccant plug for the one that was in the dead ST-7. Baked it beforehand of course, worked like a charm. For some reason the desiccant plug that came with the newer ST-2000 was just not doing the trick. Either that or it really just needed one more baking cycle (I had already baked the ST-2000's plug 2 or 3 times). In any case I'm just happy that it's working now. Since they share a common body and therefore have identical seals, the ST-7 is a parts camera now. Last Edited by Astromut on 04/09/2014 06:24 PM |
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| Anonymous Coward User ID: 9986288 United States04/09/2014 06:31 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Wondering what you've got in mind... Quoting: Reality420Have fun. R. Yeah, I swapped the desiccant plug for the one that was in the dead ST-7. Baked it beforehand of course, worked like a charm. For some reason the desiccant plug that came with the newer ST-2000 was just not doing the trick. Either that or it really just needed one more baking cycle (I had already baked the ST-2000's plug 2 or 3 times). In any case I'm just happy that it's working now. Since they share a common body and therefore have identical seals, the ST-7 is a parts camera now. That a good piece of luck. Now you have 2. In a pinch you'd be surprised what a NAPA Auto has in the line of O-rings should the need arise. A lot of small fine gauge rings that may do in an emergency if you happen to pinch the original badly. Cheap, and just down the street. What is the window made of? Quartz? R. |
| Dr. Astro (OP) Senior Forum Moderator User ID: 55240075 United States04/09/2014 06:34 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Wondering what you've got in mind... Quoting: Reality420Have fun. R. Yeah, I swapped the desiccant plug for the one that was in the dead ST-7. Baked it beforehand of course, worked like a charm. For some reason the desiccant plug that came with the newer ST-2000 was just not doing the trick. Either that or it really just needed one more baking cycle (I had already baked the ST-2000's plug 2 or 3 times). In any case I'm just happy that it's working now. Since they share a common body and therefore have identical seals, the ST-7 is a parts camera now. That a good piece of luck. Now you have 2. In a pinch you'd be surprised what a NAPA Auto has in the line of O-rings should the need arise. A lot of small fine gauge rings that may do in an emergency if you happen to pinch the original badly. Cheap, and just down the street. What is the window made of? Quartz? R. Probably, I'm not sure. I'd have to look in the manual again, but I do know that the front plate with the window is also completely swappable between the two cameras. |
| R420 User ID: 9986288 United States04/09/2014 06:52 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Probably, I'm not sure. I'd have to look in the manual again, but I do know that the front plate with the window is also completely swappable between the two cameras. Quoting: R420Being an SBIG is probably is. Pretty much transparent from 200-2500nm. If it should ever get a milky haze from environmental smoke/exhaust/fumes that won't come off with CH3OH or Iso you can polish it off with a damp cotton ball and a dab of Bon Ami. It'll scare the hell out of you, but quartz can take it no problem. That's not to say any MgF2 transmission coating will survive but an instrument quartz window usually doesn't get coated. Just something to store in the back of your brain. Still wondering what you've in mind for targets... Have fun. R. |
| Phennommennonn Forum Administrator 04/09/2014 07:16 PM  Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | we will plug ur livestream during the man cave hour show dr astro political correctness is a doctrine.... fostered by a delusional, illogical minority...... and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media; which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end. |
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| Dr. Astro (OP) Senior Forum Moderator User ID: 55240075 United States04/09/2014 08:01 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | |
| Dr. Astro (OP) Senior Forum Moderator User ID: 55240075 United States04/09/2014 08:09 PM Report Abusive Post Report Copyright Violation | Probably, I'm not sure. I'd have to look in the manual again, but I do know that the front plate with the window is also completely swappable between the two cameras. Quoting: R420Being an SBIG is probably is. Pretty much transparent from 200-2500nm. If it should ever get a milky haze from environmental smoke/exhaust/fumes that won't come off with CH3OH or Iso you can polish it off with a damp cotton ball and a dab of Bon Ami. It'll scare the hell out of you, but quartz can take it no problem. That's not to say any MgF2 transmission coating will survive but an instrument quartz window usually doesn't get coated. Just something to store in the back of your brain. Still wondering what you've in mind for targets... Have fun. R. Good info, I'll keep it in mind (though I hear it's considerably less effective against stained organ keys). :) [link to www.itats.org] |
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| 1 | Who's coming from Lagoon Nebula | 01/10/12 |
