Eta & Orion

[alpal]

I finally took some subframes last night after 15 months of nothing -
both 2 old favorites - to get the back into the swing of things.
Large versions with more details here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/24719437@N03/32410047712
& here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/24719437@N03/31755581923/


Equipment:
10" f4 Carbon fiber Newt. with ONTC mirror from Teleskop service.
Motorised 2" TS 2" UNC V-Power Newton Crayford Focuser.
QHY9 mono camera working at -30 degrees C. , Lodestar guide camera.
TS9 9mm wide OAG & Baader MPCC,
Astronomic 2" CLS-CCD filter in front of all other filters.
EQ6 Pro modified mount.
Software:
Easycap for QHY9, PHD guiding, DSS, NASA FITS Liberator, Photoshop CS5, Fitswork4.



cheers
Allan

[alan meehan]

A couple of of really good shots Allan good to see you have got back into it after such a big break ,the colours in orion look great
ALAN

[atalas]

Now doesn't that feel better Alan...you've done a very fine job on both as well:thumbsup:

[alpal]

Thanks Alan & Louie,
I could have done more subframes of Orion but I had guiding problems
caused by a broken tab on the guide cable from the lodestar to the mount.
A bit of masking tape was needed to hold it in place.
That plus the fact that Orion was disappearing into a brown haze over Melbourne made me switch targets.
Eta was very good late at night - my guiding went to 0.19 rms at times
& some of the subframes had below 3 arc seconds FWHM.
However the 30 minute subframe in Ha of Eta showed rotation of the stars
at the bottom of the frame on the opposite side away from the OAG.
The cause - my mount had shifted on the backyard ground & was no longer level.
I need a concrete slab or even better a pier mount.
It seems that every night of imaging is quite an adventure.:)

cheers
Allan

[strongmanmike]

An image is an image Al, gotta take what ya can get :thumbsup:. I feel for you guys that seem to be continually fighting your equipment :( I salute your tenacity, stick with it, it is all part of the (frustrating) hobby :face: :bashcomp:.....

Eta neb looks nice but the trap area is not right, it looks like a hole in the nebula, try a re blend, it will look much better

Mike

[alpal]

Thanks Mike,
I processed those pics fast.

The Eta pic is suffering from use of the Ha in the Red channel.
That's because the 30 minute subframe of Ha shows
elongated stars especially at the bottom of the pic.
That was caused by the unlevel mount.( on ground not concrete )
I need to do just an LRGB pic & also boost the blue level.
All other pics were at 5 minutes exposure so the elongation problem is not so obvious.
The black level is also not correct - too bright.

The Orion pic could do with some rework - as you say -
& is in need of flats - which I didn't do yet.
I actually needed far more data but as I said -
I had to switch targets as Orion was disappearing in a cloud of brown haze over Melbourne.

It looks like some re-processing is in order.

Also - I finally fixed that bleed line problem:
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=130615
So yes - I had to fix lots of problems to get where I am.

cheers
Allan

[alpal]

I re-processed.
LRGB version of Eta Carinae.


High res version here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/24719437@N03/32567390966


cheers
Allan

[Stevec35]

Doesn't look too bad to me Allan although as I mentioned before I would like to see a bit more blue in the brighter parts of Eta.

Cheers

Steve

[alpal]

Hi Steve,
really? - I boosted the blue quite a bit.
There was much less Red without the added Ha
which somehow boosted the Blue as well.
Actually I just checked the histogram & it's got a purple caste.
I might have to adjust it again.

cheers
Allan

[Stevec35]

Hi Allan

On looking at it again I see more blue so you're pretty close I think. I was looking at it on my iPad before.

[alpal]

Thanks Steve,
I changed it slightly again.
No more purple caste & a few other adjustments.
It seems that you can keep on adjusting these photos forever. :)

full size here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/24719437@N03/31782635104

small version here:

[alpal]

The Keyhole Nebula - 20 minutes of the best data.


I selected the 4 best 5 minute LRGB frames & stacked them with 3 x drizzle & reprocessed for just the Keyhole area.
Of course the result is more noisy but I can get away with it because the nebula is so bright in this area.
The FWHM was approaching 3 arc seconds for many stars.
Link to larger version here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/24719437@N03/32652610636

cheers
Allan

[alpal]

Have I been having some processing fun!
After 15 months of nothing I finally have some of my own data to play with.

This time I took another crop
but vertical & using 3 x Drizzle - but used every frame
not just the 4 best ones.

see here for a larger size:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/24719437@N03/31856870354

[alpal]

A slight re-process:
fixed damaged stars, brightened background & gave it slightly more blue.
Is this better?

Larger version here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/24719437@N03/32759728116

[Atmos]

The detail is really nice :)

[Shiraz]

two very tidy sharp images Allan - looks like the scope is well sorted.

[alpal]

Thanks Colin & Ray,
the detail from this new telescope is very sharp.
The 3 x drizzle seemed to make it even sharper.
I wish I could do drizzle on the whole picture
but DSS only allows for a small crop.

It was quite a thrill to be back in the driving seat after 15 months of nothing.
I don't get much time these days so I'll just have to make time.

cheers
Allan

[RobF]

Now you're cooking with gas! :)
Great image.