Omega Centauri

[Ryderscope]

'twas a moonlit night and clear so I took the opportunity to run off a test project for my recently commissioned ZWO ASI2600 camera which I've now paired with my Tak TSA120 OTA. A nice bright target such as good old Omega Centauri fitted the bill nicely for this project.

I'm pleased with the results so far and am looking forward to getting my teeth into some new targets. I apologise in advance for the cloudy nights that will ensure now that I have a new camera on board :D

Link here to post on Astrobin. (https://astrob.in/full/v4i68y/0/)
Click on "Technical Card" at the top of the image post for acquisition details.

Clear skies,
Rodney

[gregbradley]

Very tight stars with good colour. No evidence of tilt.

A winning combo.

Greg.

[Startrek]

Rodney,
Perfect test target for your new 2600MM
Nice Omega with tight stars too
Well done !!
I imaged this huge glob a couple of weeks ago with my 8” Carbon Newt and 2600MM as well ( 30 sec subs ) although under B8 Sydney skies.
The 2600MM is an excellent camera ( as well as the 2600MC ) and you will enjoy its incredible performance.

Cheers
Martin

[Ryderscope]

Thanks Greg/Martin,

I did spend some time getting the set back distance correct and managing tilt issues. For managing the tilt, I have installed a Baader M68 tilt adjuster which has worked very well. The Baader unit has the adjustment screws around the outside of the tilt adjuster meaning that you can get to the screws without having to dismantle the image train. A must for saving one's sanity when attacking what can be a very tedious task.

[AlexN]

Beautifully done mate!
Star colour is sensational!!

[Dave882]

Love that! Stunning!!

[Ryderscope]

Thanks Dave/Alex. I was very restrained with this one to make sure that the star colours didn't get too saturated which is tempting to do.

[AlexN]

It's certainly a different game, producing an image where the stars are literally the whole point of the image! :) Its so unusual shooting a target like this after shooting nebulae and galaxies...

There's a completely different mindset required from exposure to processing.

I'll be doing Omega Centauri this year... and a couple of other star clusters hopefully - they've never been targets I've focused on, but I think, what better way to learn to properly process star colours without blowing them out, than to process images where they are the 'star' of the show!

[Retrograde]

Looks great Rodney - congratulations on the new camera!
The high res version is nice & Sharp with excellent star colours. :thumbsup:

[Ryderscope]

You do raise some good points Alex that when taking images of clusters be they open clusters or globulars, there is a different focus (no pun intended) required particularly with star profiles and colours. I guess when reviewing images of clusters there is no nebula around to divert the attention either.

[Ryderscope]

Thanks Pete.

[Atmos]

Excellent job Rodney, the 120mm is really pushing above its weight in resolving the core! Very nice star colours too.

[strongmanmike]

A fine Omega Cen Rod, very nice Mooned quicky :thumbsup:

Mike

[Ryderscope]

Thanks Colin/Mike, it was nice being able to make a quick data grab on a clear “moony” night. I can’t help but notice now though that the clouds are appearing as we slide into the new moon period < SIGH >