M42 Final Render

[Outcast]

So, this is the result of my new found friend "Star Tools" & a very small amount of final processing in Affinity Photo...

The data was taken at a very high ISO so, I've had to soften it a bit to remove the harsh grain that was present, this has made things look a little fuzzy & my stars look a little vague & bloated..

This is my first go at DSS through my 8" SCT... I know there is room for massive improvement & once the deluge that is currently happening here in FNQ decides to move on... (that could be a while), I will attempt to capture this again at a much lower ISO...

Things planned for the future when funds allow will be a focal reducer & when I can find some decent plans, a homemade wedge to allow for longer exposure times & much, much lower ISO..

End of the day, I am very happy with the result

[RyanJones]

Good work Carlton. I used to use blur to hide the grain too. Once you have a good quantity of subs to significantly reduce the noise, you’ll be able to keep the sharpness too so your image will improve two fold. I’m looking forward to seeing your next post :thumbsup:

[Outcast]

Thanks Ryan,

Much to put into practice at the next shooting opportunity... if this rain ever stops!!

Cheers

[mental4astro]

Nice to see the Trapezium and the Fish Mouth so clearly here, Carlton :D M42 is so big that images showing the whole thing leave these burned out, or too small in scale to see. The Fish Mouth, that is the name of the dark pillar that points towards the Trapezium, has lots of subtle details. It is not a flat structure, but very much 3D and it does show its overall cylindrical shape and shading.

The Fish Mouth is also the easiest dark pillar to see, visible even in 2" aperture very easily! What a lot of people also don't know about dark pillars is they hide dozens of protostars deep within them! These are stars that are still forming and on the brink of kicking off their nuclear fires. It is the gravity of these protostars that holds this "dark" gas and dust tight around them, resisting the erosive power of the radiation blasting out of the surrounding active stars, in this case the cluster that forms the Trapezium. Once these protostars kick of their nuclear fires, M42 will look VERY different from what it does now! After M42, the next set of dark pillars that are easiest of see are those in Eta Carina, but these are smaller in size and require more aperture to spot. A dark sky helps, but I've seen them with an 8" scope here in Sydney.

Understand what you are looking at, and all of a sudden you begin to see "more"! :)

Alex.

[ChrisV]

Nice trapeIum. I imagine it's very difficult imaging at that focal length.

[Outcast]

Thanks Alex,

As always, I learn a lot from your comments & observations.



Thankyou,

I don't really know Chris... I have nothing to compare it with as yet...