The Dolphin Head

[Stephane]

Hey folks,

It's been a while, but I am pleased to share my latest image. My Astroworx scope is still undergoing repairs, so this was acquired with a 6 inch GSO, f/5. I must say that those cheap Newtonians are great value for money.

Anyway, please feel free to critique as usual. Thanks for looking.

Bigger version & acquisition details here (https://www.astrobin.com/w2mq9e/).

Clear skies,
Stéphane

[Startrek]

Stephane,
A superb image I must say and nothing wrong with 6” newts ( used one for 5 years )
Excellent detail and colour , stars are spot on
Well done indeed !!

Glad you scored some clear skies too in Melbourne, Sydney has been lean so far this year , only about 6 clear nights
Any reason why Sidereal are taking forever to repair your Newt ? I recall you talking about this late last year ? Availability of parts ?

Were most of your subs captured through new moon as the Oiii filters tend to be affected by LP and moon glare to some degree

Cheers
Martin

[RobF]

Wow, that really is amazing. Go the Newt!!! :)

[Stephane]

Thanks Rob!
Thanks Martin!

Martin, we’ve been trying for about a year to work out what issue is causing an unwanted artefact. We think we’ve worked out the issue, so hopefully it’ll be operational soon. I’m really looking forward to imaging with it.

Correct, I only collected OIII and RGB when the moon wasn’t out. Ha is more forgiving but still tried to keep at least 60 degrees away from the moon.

How have you been going with your mono journey?

[Startrek]

My Mono journey has been great , still loads to learn but the biggest factor is clear nights. It’s been pretty lean on the mid to south east coast NSW since late October last year , I think only about 10 or 12 decent clear nights in 4 months
I’m using the Antlia 3nm Pro narrowband filters and so far they are performing just as advertised ( no halos on mid to large stars )
These filters are magic under Sydney’s Bortle 8 skies

Hope your Astroworx Newt issue gets resolved soon, Diego is the Newt wizard on these scopes

Cheers
Martin

[Mickoid]

Not more I can add to what has already been said, a fantastic result, no need to rush the repairs on your Astroworx scope when you can get an image this good with your GSO! Your processing is very good too. The RGB star colours add to it's appeal. :thumbsup:

[floyd_2]

That's a smashing shot Stéphane. Love the star colours too. I've been wondering what had become of you mate. I'll look forward to being spoiled with more of your shots now that you're back on the boil and even have some clear skies to take advantage of.

[Anth10]

Stephane,
Remarkable shot of the Dolphin mate! I am glued to this in its splendour- diffraction spikes let you know it’s from a newt alright which is something I love to see, but notably your processing is picture perfect and the colours trick.

Well done mate/ that 6” newt packs an almighty punch- gives us Newtonian owners a renewed hope!

Anth

[strongmanmike]

A really nice shot of this perennial favourite Stephane, quite amazing that it was captured with a mere 6" Newt too :thumbsup: as they say, size is less important, it's how you use it that makes the difference :)

Mike

[Stephane]

Thank you gentlemen.

Yeah, the 6” GSO really pulls its weight. There’s a bit of movement inside the focuser, but the OAG limits the damage with that. I used to struggle with that with my old 8” where I used a guide scope.

I’m half decided on my next target. Decisions, decisions…

All I can say is that it’s good to be imaging again. You guys understand :)

[Dave882]

Excellent work Stephane. Just perfectly processed throughout. The colour and detail is just exquisite!

[Peter Ward]

Nick Outters (Royal Greenwich APOTY winner 2016...so no slouch) did and 89 hour exposure on this object with a TEC160

Suffice to say the TEC160 has 38% more collection area, no central obstruction and a significantly higher Strehl than a GSO 6" Newt.

see http://outters.fr/wp/?p=7060


Yet your GSO image… taken from Melbourne…despite having less aperture and half the exposure time….has PGC field galaxies that are significantly deeper and better resolved (similar to a 24” CDK) and you’ve managed to capture fainter and tighter field stars.

Quite a remarkable feat.

I for one would like to know what your process is.

[Stephane]

Wow, thanks for the compliment Peter :)

I have no doubt Nick collected way better Ha and OIII data with an outstanding scope and integration time. His image is outstanding. Perhaps 5h of RGB at f/7 wasn’t enough though to get a deep background. I did over 10h of RGB at a 2x faster f/5.

Regarding resolution, I only selected my best subs with low HFR & Eccentricity. Stars are also tight due to short 90s subs (Nick’s were 300s).

Regarding processing, I apply continuum subtraction as described here (http://www.arciereceleste.it/tutorial-pixinsight/cat-tutorial-eng/85-enhance-galaxy-ha-eng). I stretch the stars separately to the nebula with a hyperbolic & arcsin combo. I nuked hydrogen with noise reduction as there’s little detail to gain in the background gases, thus allowing me to add a lot of it without introducing much additional noise. Other than that, just the usual processes of curves work, sharpening, a bit of BlurX & noiseX, etc.

Hope that helps! Happy to go further & share more details upon request.

[Nikolas]

This is excellent, the detail, the coloration of the stars,just everything!!!!
Great job and great processing!

[rubberbudgie]

Wow that's amazing!!