NGC 5128 Centaurus A Galaxy

[Startrek]

Captured NGC 5128 Centaurus A Galaxy at my weekender on Friday night under superb conditions , not a cloud all night and good transparency and seeing

8” f5 newt on an EQ6-R Mount
Canon 600D stock with a Baader coma corrector
ISO 800
Sensor electronics running at 23deg C
45 x 4 minute dithered guided subs
30 x darks
Manual meridian flip
PHD2 guiding around 1 arc sec error total
Goto and tracking EQMOD, StellariumScope and Stellarium
Frame focus and capture BYEOS
Stacked in DSS
Processed in Startools V1.5 linear data set

Comments most welcome

[Mickoid]

Another great result Martin. You must really love going down to your weekender when you get nights like that, just shows the difference in data quality when shooting under dark skies. Lovely detail.

[xelasnave]

Excellent effort Martin you nailed it for sure.
How do you do a manual meridian flip?
Alex

[Startrek]

Alex
Thanks for your kind comment
“Manual Meridian Flip” means that it’s “not totally automated” to flip and re acquire and exactly reframe the object on the other side of the meridian and continue to capture
I use EQMOD for tracking and Goto so when the object passes the meridian by a few degrees, EQMOD senses it’s position and stops the tracking then sends the mount back to home position. I then have to Goto the object on the other side using my normal method of navigating by syncing Stars and leap frog across to the object again. Only takes a couple of minutes to “manually” re acquire the object again , frame it up and start the capture again. I suppose it’s semi automatic not totally “manual”
Hope the above makes sense ??

[Startrek]

Thanks Mick
Conditions were dark and pristine, makes all the difference
Could never get anywhere near the result in Sydney even with more data
This 8” f5 newt ( focal length 1000mm ) and the EQ6-R Mount is a great all round rig , I enjoy pushing it to its limits especially on the dimmer galaxies like the Bubble Galaxy a couple of weeks back.
Cheers
Martin

[Sunfish]

What a great galaxy shot. That takes a bit of effort to get that bright.

[Startrek]

Ray
Thanks for your kind comment
I use a very simple rig to image with , an f5 newt with an old DSLR ( progressing to a OSC later this year ) I have to make sure all the little things are done to the best of my ability to achieve a good result. Of course atmospheric conditions play a huge part in your final image
Thanks again !

[mynameiscd]

Very nice Martin
Even though its simple setup you get very good images.
Cheers
Andy

[Astronovice]

Another great image Martin and by the way thanks for the PHD tips in your other post. Your images and helpful comments are a great inspiration to me as a newcomer to astronomy.

[Scorpius51]

That is stunning! I’ve viewed this galaxy through my 8” f/5 Newt, but not like that. Well done.

[Startrek]

Thanks Andy , Calvin and John
It proves that you don’t have to spend big dollars to get decent images , just time , patience , long nights and a little experience goes a long way. I’m only just going into my 4th year in this hobby at age 60 ( both Visual observing and Astrophotography)
Ill always keep saying that the 8” f5 newt is a great all round telescope for Astrophotography
Thanks again
Cheers

[LostInSp_ce]

Martin, the amount of detail captured in this is amazing. Can't fault it. Well done!. :2thumbs:

[Startrek]

Thanks LIS
Appreciate your comments

[Fernando]

Such a clean and beatiful image. I just finished imaging Centaurus A a couple of days ago. Hope that after processing, I get one as beautiful, clean and nice as yours!!!

[Startrek]

Thanks Fernando
Appreciate the kind comments
Yes this Cent A is one of my best results from the old DSLR
Cheers