Cats Paw and Lobster

[strongmanmike]

Using the FSQ106EDX4 - FLI 16803 combo, I got 2hrs of Ha collected last visit to the observatory, this popular pair of nebs fit nicely within the big 4deg X 4deg field of this rig.

Hope to get some more data and the colour over the next couple of months, Guiding with the new mount was exceptional :)

Due to the fairly low amount of data, I didn't push the processing too hard

Cats Paw and Lobster (https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongman/46923206684/in/dateposted-public/) (Click on image and use your cursor to scroll around)

You can surf the full resolution image HERE (https://pbase.com/strongmanmike2002/image/169081545)

Mike

[DJT]

Very Noice. I want to know what dark arts you are whispering to that mount to get those guiding results

Looking forward to seeing how the image progresses

[multiweb]

Very cool! Massive fov. :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

[codemonkey]

Niiiice, Mike! I'm jealous of those beautiful, corner to corner small round stars. Looks like that's going to be a cracker once you get some colour and more data.

[strongmanmike]

He he nothing Dave, like this straight out'a the box, guide speed set at 0.5X sidereal, guide calibrated in Astroart5 guide interface and voila :)



Indeed, quite useful for many fields Marc :)



Yes, after stuffing around for a couple'a hours with the AG12 collimation and seeing various imperfect star images come down :rolleyes: :tasdevil: when I switch to the FSQ-FLI I certainly muttered Hallelujah :prey: :prey2: :lol:

Mike

[John Hothersall]

The FSQ and the big sensor are just made for each other, great Scorpius vista. That guiding must warm your heart Mike after that big AP1600 investment.

John.

[Camelopardalis]

Nice lobster paw Mike :thumbsup:

But c’mon, you’re just teasing us....even my AVX would give round stars with those monster pixels at that focal length :P

[tornado33]

Nice detail in the nebulas!

[strongmanmike]

Cheers John, yes it is nice to see it performing so well in this department but having said that, my NJP mount was pretty similar at autoguiding, so no revelation there, it was however not as fast and slick around the sky or as responsive doing dithering and image centering etc.



Thanks and yer probably right about the AVX there Dunk :thumbsup:...of course, it's the ave guide errors that counts though, and at +/- about 0.3 arc sec, thaaat would actually give round stars out to several 1000's of mm of focal length ;) :D The guiding while imaging with the AG12 at a focal length of 1120mm and image scale of 0.83"/pix was the same quality ie +/- 0.3" and evenly in both axis too, so no backlash.



Thanks Scott, hopefully I can complete a full colour image of it, haven't completed one of those since late Sept last year :question: :sadeyes:

Mike

[Camelopardalis]

Indeed, look forward to seeing what comes next :thumbsup:

The AVX might be lucky to get 0.3” error...on a hot pixel :lol:

[Geoff45]

Interesting wide field Mike. Shows up a lot of stuff that is easy to miss with more conventional sized fields—proximity of the two objects and the long tail on the lobster.

[strongmanmike]

Hi Geoff, yes they make a nice pair with enough FOV :)

Mike

[Andy01]

Good test for the new mount & widefield kit :thumbsup:

Not a fan of the composition though - these two dso's fight for attention when in the same frame - my eye is drawn from one object to the other with no-where to rest comfortably.

Would love to see that gear used on the dark tower/prawn/wolf loop in Scorpius though :D

[strongmanmike]

Aaaah, such easily confused eyes Andy! ;) :lol:...ah bunkum, I recon they make a beaut pairing :love2: :cheers:



I almost did that last year (https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongman/44516556112/) I could fit all those three in but they were all on the edges, so I just went with two...but I didn't got the colour :sadeyes:

Mike

[gregbradley]

A fabulous image there Mike. The AP1600 is a gem.

Greg.

[Atmos]

What you could do is complete this field and then crop both objects so that they both look good independently and then not worry about framing ;)

It’s coming together nicely so far Mike :)

[strongmanmike]

Cheers Greg, yes I get that impression :)



Ha ha ha...yeah true Col but then I'd lose what makes this killer scope and big chip so good..the beautiful wide field they deliver together :love: I love the pairing of these two nebs in the one image :shrug: :thumbsup:

Mike

[Stevec35]

Looks very good Mike. Obviously some great images are going to be happening with your new toy.

Steve

[strongmanmike]

Cheers Steve, hope so...I'm feeling a bit rusty though :question:

Mike

[RobF]

Fantastic vista Mike - and awesome guiding!

[topheart]

Hi Mike,
Awesome !
The new mount seems like a winner with almost no PE at all?? Does it have absolute encoders?? How long did you have to wait for it?

I look forward to seeing your images with this.

Cheers,
Tim

[strongmanmike]

Hi Tim, no AE's and I have the pre installed factory PEC recording turned off, while polar alignment was just done via the new AP right angled polar scope using my own knowledge of where the exact SCP is.

I ordered the AP1600 from OPT as they had some in stock, so once my other ordered bits came in, it was only a short wait before the shipment arrived but sadly a couple of pieces were missing including the counterweight shaft, lost in transit...so I had to wait another three months for AP to make a new one and OPT to get it to me, plus I also had a wrong dovetail sent to me :sadeyes: sooo, it has been 6 months since deciding to get a new mount and actually having it up and running...better late than never :)

Mike

[Placidus]

A most enjoyable image.

We often learn that things that counted as say 3 or 4 NGC objects as seen visually through an ancient scope are, on a beautifull CCD in H-alpha, really part of the one giant star-forming region, with lots of interconnecting material.

Here, you've shown that these two really are quite independent of each other, with very different dynamics causing very different structures.

Lovely work. Great to see you back at the helm.

Best,
MnT

[gregbradley]

I'd love to see the colour version of this. The Ha is sensational and makes me want to buy another FSQ!

Colour on this one will be a little bit tricky though.

I also imaged this recently and not really happy with the colour yet. I concluded HaRGB images sometimes win and sometimes lack. Luminance adds some sparkle to an image and offsets heavy colour with detail. Ha blends often do not show the detail in the Ha very well at all and in the process of being colourised lose detail. Adding some back in through a luminance layer usually wrecks the colour. A processing problem.

Greg.

[strongmanmike]

Thanks a lot guys :thumbsup:

True M&T while they are often imaged individually or in really wide MW shots, it is relatively uncommon to see these two nebs framed together like this :)

I agree Greg, this was really kind of a "just shoot something!" Momment :lol: I am not sure what I will compose yet :question: I'll prob grab some colour and Lum later in the season..? Hmm?

Mike

[strongmanmike]

Cheers Rob:thumbsup: the guiding last night sat constantly between +/- 0.03 and 0.04 pix which is around 0.2 arc sec average errors...I'm happy with this aspect of the new mount 😁

Mike