Carina Vista

[Peter Ward]

Having resolved some tracking issues with my mount (...having it actually balanced was the fix ..duh..) I needed some test data as the seeing was not too shabby at all last night, but with a nearly full moon, what do you do :question:

It's Eta Carina season! :)

Two frame pano...I'm quite pleased with the results....might have to do some more frames. Then maybe some colour....

The link is here (http://www.atscope.com.au/BRO/gallery460.html)

[markas]

Very clean and sharp image, Peter. It would be nice to see some colour, but I also like the straight Ha image rendition - can't beat it for sharpness!:thumbsup::thumbsup:


Mark

[willik]

Very nice HA Image Peter but I still like the wider field :thumbsup:
Martin.

[Stevec35]

Ho Hum - Eta Carinae again. A seriously good Ha image of it though.

Steve

[Peter Ward]

Ta guys...OK I've done Eta maybe once... or perhaps twice before :whistle:

I'd already got colour data on the left side that was used for this rendition (http://www.atscope.com.au/BRO/gallery416.html) from a couple of years ago.

I rather like the "up close and personal" images....as they reveal so many interesting objects and structures that are only hinted at or lost in wide field renditions...hence the thought of a mega mosaic at 3400mm is gaining some traction with yours truly...

[Peter Ward]

Ta Steve....Yep... guilty as charged. I would have had four panes for the mosaic had I simply woken up to the cause of eggy stars in two of them earlier in the evening....:rolleyes:

[Andy01]

If you're going to image Carina and present it here on IIS, it's going to have to be ...

A) Very good
B) Something different
C) all of the above!

Fortunately, this image has ticked all the boxes above! :D

The detail is exquisite - the finger of God is sharp & clear, the tonal range is beautifully handled and there's lots of interesting bits for the eye to explore. :thumbsup:

[Peter Ward]

Ta Andy....agreed the subject is pretty vanilla....but at high resolution there is indeed much to explore. I’d also observe sub 2 arc second FWHM’s are testy little suckers...even the slightest error will stand out like Dog’s....err...like a dunny in the desert :).

Seeing differences also become apparent when you want to merge/mosaic data fields...Much can and does go wrong at this image scale...that said, it’s a challenge that I enjoy. :thumbsup:

[gregbradley]

A wonderful vista. The sharp detail on the neb is great but the sharpening is a bit too much for my taste on the stars. I suppose when you blend into colour those Ha stars won't matter.

Greg

[alpal]

Hi Peter,
that is as usual - just so sharp it's at another level.
That Alluna Optics RC16 was worth every penny.


cheers
Allan

[Peter Ward]

Ta Greg...the stars do indeed look a little crunchy, mainly due photoshp’s image reduction from the original 7000pixel wide data. I didn’t mind “the look” so kept it...


I consider myself to be very lucky to have such a well engineered ‘scope in my observatory, but it would be soooo much better still to have it at a dark site (admittedly with narrow band, no real advantage is to be had).

Perhaps the Zeitgeist in Oz will change and the penny will finally drop that wasteful urban light spill needs to be stopped.....but I’m not holding my breath.

[multiweb]

Pretty cool Peter. :thumbsup: I was expecting more details at that FL. What's your image scale?

[Peter Ward]

I think it's there, but down sampled for the web very fine stuff is lost ....original data is 0.54 arc sec per pixel....Attached is a 100% res crop.

[brucel]

Awesome!

[alpal]

Hi Peter,
A scope like yours really needs to be at Siding Springs
and set up as fully robotic.
As for light pollution it would nice if cities could have all
their lights turned off even for 1 hour
on some clear nights but it won't happen.


cheers
Allan.

[Peter Ward]

Actually, when I was an undergrad at UWA, circa late 1970’s , the city of Perth did indeed turn off many suburban street lights at around 2.00am...I moved to “the eastern states” in 1980....begging the question: do any Sandgropers on IIS know if they still do that environmentally friendly act?

[Placidus]

Stunning. One never gets tired of a good Eta Carinae, with so many familiar fine details like the HH jets. We love the way you handle the local contrast.

[alpal]

Peter,



I wish they would switch off all of Melbourne's lights one night -
plan it properly so there's no Moon, and a clear night.
For millions of people it would be the first time they saw the beauty of the Milky Way.


cheers
Allan

[Paul Haese]

Hmmm sharp but I think I have seen this object imaged by you a few times now. Nice but I think the image you did a few years back with this scope is more than enough and exceptional.