TenChain Hill at it again/still

[pmrid]

I hesitate to say too much but there does seem to be a better-than-even chance of clearing weather approaching the new moon.
Stay tuned - and hopeful!

Peter

[RickS]

I had better blow the cobwebs off the gear!

[ozstronomer]

Sounds good Peter, fingers crossed

[RobF]

The clouds, the clouds. I remember seeing pin pricks of bright light in the sky once, many moons ago. The clouds, the clouds......
(wanders off to the fridge to have another drink to dull the pain)

[jjjnettie]

I could do with a dose of clear skies and a clear horizon.
Keep us updated if the gates will be open on Saturday night. :)

[pmrid]

G'day Jeanette. Itlooks like Sat the 21st will be the best bet. It would be a pleasure to see you again. Its been toooooo long.
Peter

[pmrid]

We don't have moonrise until after midnight tonight and Skippy also gives us clear skies.
So anyone wanting to grab the chance of shome photons is more than welcome. Who knows what next weekend will bring? Grab it while you can.

Peter

[RickS]

Thanks, Peter. I would come up but I'm in Sydney this weekend.

[pmrid]

Well Skippy delivered as promised. Lovely night limited only by moonlight after midnight. But until then, clear, cool, stable and good seeing all 'round. Probably the first decent night this year though.
Here's hoping the weather holds to this pattern for next weekend.
Peter

[ozstronomer]

Sorry Peter just saw this post.

I managed 4 hours in the backyard, was a very nice night. Quite still with good seeing.

Lets hope it's the same for this weekend as well :)

Cheers Geoff

[DavidTrap]

Hopefully the start of a good season. Been a long time between drinks...

DT

[RobF]

Was thinking the same thing David. The monsoonal Lows starting to break down and cooler nights.

Fingers crossed. Has been a long hot, humid, cloudy summer :violin:

[pmrid]

:lol::lol:

Not up this way! Here, the time between drinks has diminished sharply - and in a direct linear relationship with the number of clear nights.

Perhaps I have read your posting too literally!! :rofl::rofl:

Peter

[Tandum]

Pete's back on the piss. Might have to buy a a telescope to get in on the act :)

Met some old friends at the Power House on Sunday arvo. $7 a beer and $11 for a shiraz.

No wonder I stay home :)

[RobF]

Bit early to be calling it, but Sat is looking like a heart-breaker, Fri possibly ok. Should be more obvious in a couple of days....

Robin, at those price, get yourself another Tak and come and drink cheap wine with us :)

[pmrid]

Guys, Friday is on if the weather holds. Glad to see you all either night but as Rob says, Sat's looking a bit suss.
Peter

[Spookyer]

Hi Peter, looks promising, I might finally get back in the saddle if the weather holds. Hope to see everyone there.

Brett

[RickS]

Hi Peter,

Friday night is still looking OK so long as there isn't a storm :) I'll head up tomorrow afternoon unless the forecast deteriorates.

Cheers,
Rick.

[RobF]

I'm planning to get up late tomorrow with interested workmate.
Hope to catch up then.

[RickS]

Look forward to it, Rob!

[ozstronomer]

Peter, I can't make it up this weekend, I hope the weather holds for a good night.

Hope to catch up next New Moon

Geoff

[RobF]

What was it like last night Peter?
Heavy cloud early morning and today in Brissie.

[pmrid]

It was quite good last night. Because of the heat during the day, I'd more or less written the night off but it turned out much better than I expected - but by then it was too late - the red wine damage had been done.

There is fog around this morning though - but I expect that'll lift in th next hour or so.

I'll post an update about lunch and see what's what then.


Peter

[RickS]

How's it looking, Peter?

[pmrid]

I can see some scattered cloud out to sea but it's as clear as a bell out here.
Start your engines.
Peter

[Spookyer]

I will try and get away from work and setup before dark.

Brett

[pmrid]

Well guys, it was good while it lasted.
Brandy has asked me to apologize for snatching Tim's Fernvale Bakery pie but says it was delicious anyway.
We won't be here for April new moon but hope we can schedule something for May.
cheers
Peter

[RickS]

At least we got a few hours of starlight before the fog rolled in, Peter. Thanks for your hospitality again.

Here's a quick & dirty process of my meagre three hours of M83. At full res the detail is quite nice but I really need a few more hours on it...

Cheers,
Rick.

[RobF]

Nice going Rick. At least you got data for all filters on something. M83 showing fantastic promise.

Thanks again Peter for your hospitality. Was great to get out under the stars with good company.

[ozstronomer]

Nice work Rick, the sky was clear here until 4 ish last night.
Good to see you were able to capture a few subs on M83.
Sorry I couldn't make it, will catch everyone next time.

Geoff

[pmrid]

Strewth! That's quick & dirty? Imagine what you could do with a proper scope.

Rick, here's a some links for/to that observatory/hotel in the french pyrenees. Looks great.

http://www.go-pyrenees.com/spend-a-night-on-the-top-of-the-pyrenees-at-the-pic-du-midi/
http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/pic-du-midi-observatory


Peter

[RickS]

Thanks, Peter.

[pmrid]

By way of contrast (or is it comic relief) here's the same object, from the same night and same site - but instead of that piece of Italian rubbish, this is from 5 inches of raw Chinese power - I know there is just no comparison, but don't tell Rick! OK.
Peter

[whzzz28]

I'll try and remember to get out there in May.
Been so long since i have setup a scope, wonder if i still remember how to :shrug:

One day i will win the lottery and be able to buy a camera, one day.

[RickS]

Still quite a respectable M83, Peter. A little processing magic could tart it up too. Perhaps next trip up?

BTW, Peter Ceravolo is Canadian :)

Cheers,
Rick.

[pmrid]

Canadian? Gawd how much egg can you fit on one face!
My apologies to all Canadians!
Peter

[SpaceBug]

Thanks a lot for having me along and all the help getting things going.

In the end I actually ended up with some terrible photos but it sure was fun.

And I think Brandy may have got more enjoyment from the pie than I ever could so it went to a better home.

Now to start the collecting of more parts for my setup........

Tim.

[RickS]

Nice to meet you, Tim, and pleased you got a recognizable image of the Keyhole!

Cheers,
Rick.

[pmrid]

Hi Tim. You will be welcome back any time you like.
That image actually shows some good things. Polar alignment and guiding are the clear winners. A computer interface from your guide camera will make it easy to do drift alignment and that'll get your polar alignment sorted within 10-15 minutes.
You'll need to download the program PHD guiding by Craig Stark. It's a freebie. And I'll give you some hard-to-forget instructions next time you're here. Easy.

Guiding also requires a computer interface and once again, PHD will do the job for you.

Assuming you've got your scope reasonably well balanced, that will give you round stars and get you going with longer exposures and better results.

The good thing about the image is that the camera is clearly going to give you good colour balance even though it may be a bit light in the red zone - but most DSLRs are the same.

As I said to you, my advice is to put your good camera aside for a while, get hold of a simple Canon DSLR and grab a copy of one of the programs written specifically for the DSLR users - like Backyard EOS. A power supply for your camera would also be a good idea - to free you up from the annoying need to change batteries - which usually happens at the most inopportune time.

A Bahtinov mask for your telescope makes focusing a breeze too. If you have a mask, you don't need to rely on using your camera's live-view system. You focus via the laptop running Bayckyard EOS.

When you've made yourself copmpfortable with the computer interface to your scope/camera, you can later consider putting a motor on your focuser but for now, that should take a back step to getting used to drift alignment and using Backyard EOS.

Oh yes, you'll need to download the latest ASCOM drivers and EQMOD. And you'll need to get hold of a suitable cable to connect your EQ6 to your laptop. Bintel is the place for that.

You'll also need to get the ASCOM drivers for your guide camera. I didn't notice what you were using but if it's a QHY5 or similar, there is no problem with drivers.

Hope that helps.

Peter

[RobF]

Agreed - pretty amazing shots for first efforts Tim, considering unguided etc.
Some of the star smearing is coma - you can see the stars in the outer corners have a radial "warp drive" effect that would be cured by an MPCC.

Congrats! :thumbsup: :)