M83 and Jewel Box

[multiweb]

Another couple of pics from last new moon week-end at Ilford. I was really looking forward to use the C11 and I had already made my list of targets.
During setup and unpacking I realised I had forgot the extra counterweight for the big scope.... 250km later :doh: So in an outburst of rage :mad2: I barlowed the ED80 and went for it :lol: Flexure is the name of the game ... :whistle:

Not top shots but I spent so much time trying to process them I thought I'd post them anyway. Next month I won't forget my counterweights :sadeyes:

M83 is 15x600s - ED80 - 2xbarlow
NGC4755 is 10x180s - ED80 - 2Xbarlow

[richardo]

Jeeezzzz ,don't you hate that!

Should have searched for a rock and hung it off the mount...
Heard of a few people doing this before.

Any way looks like a good recovery Marc...

At least you got something down to justify why you went all that way.


Go the trusty ED80..

Cheers
Rich

[strongmanmike]

Mate, I'm sure I speak for all on this forum when I say bloody great effort :thumbsup:. To have that bit of bad luck and then come up with an alternative requiring a major rework of your equipemnt setup, under what I am sure was a sizable amount of duress and out right anger, only to defy the odds and come away with two quite decent images....is nothing short of inspirational! Give the man a medal! (and a New)

AMEN!

Mike

[troypiggo]

Yeah, well done on all counts.

[multiweb]

Thanks guys :thumbsup: Comments like that soothe the pain :lol:

[gregbradley]

Been there, done that in fact a few times:lol:

Nice recovery.

Great shot of M83.

Greg.

[marc4darkskies]

Given your tribulations, a top effort Marc. :thumbsup: An "A" for perseverance as well... hats off to you!!

Cheers, Marcus

[RB]

Have to agree with Strongman (too scared not too :scared: :lol:), thats a great effort mate.
Having forgotten the c/w would have driven me bonkers.

At least you made the most of it and got these lovely shots.

:thumbsup:

[Garyh]

Nice results Marc! Least the clouds didn`t ruin the evening for you..
PS..if you forget you counterweight next time just grab a old brick, rock or even a shopping bag full of dirt might get you out of trouble!
cheers Gary

[telecasterguru]

Great images, Marc. I was looking for M83 last night before the clouds rolled in. Just shows once again that the ED80 is a great all round go to scope.
Frank

[Bassnut]

"Mate, I'm sure I speak for all on this forum when I say bloody great effort :thumbsup:"

Maybe not Mike.

Comon Marc, can do better, no excuses, Ive seen you do much better, colour is a bit washed out too.

[strongmanmike]

Ah ya hardass, narrow field, wonky star, minimum filter using, always way too close to take-in properly imager you :whistle:....give him a break...although he probably should have hung a rock on the dec shaft..?...yeh what a loser, Marc your a wimp!

:lol:

Mike

[Bassnut]

:D. get a refractionator up your fat bit you wide field woose punk :D

Ive had a quiet few, this should get me deleted :D.

Enough sucking, Marc does better, and can handle flack, this time he deserves it :P.

Im feeling stroppy, dont speak on behaf of the whole ugly bunch here again, or I brake yr neck, OK, get it, punk :D ...................:help:

[multiweb]

:rofl:Ok I asked for it. I'll be back next month with good shots. :thumbsup:
You're only as good as you last shot hey? :whistle:

[atalas]

Hi Marc

Well,M83 turned out real nice mate! I remember last year heading off to Coonabarabran,getting half way and realized I forgot to grab a scope!

[multiweb]

Thanks Louie. I want to nail it at f/10 next new moon. It should fill the C11 field nicely. Getting sharps stars? :whistle:... well that's the plan. :lol:

[Tamtarn]

Considering all your troubles it's a terrific effort with the barlow Marc :thumbsup:

[bluescope]

Hi Marc

I think the skill of this astrophotography game is quite often recovering from a stuff up of one thing or another ... you did well to get these images.
There was some sort of glow in the centre of the pics and quite a bit of green noise that I have tweaked a bit ... hope you don't mind ... just bored.

Here they are ........

:thumbsup:

[jase]

Indeed, given the circumstances, very good effort Marc. Not you're best work, but its always gratifying to walk away from an imaging session with data to work on. Look forward to seeing more when you get it together (the gear that is) ;)

[multiweb]

Thanks Steve. You got the colors spot on mate :thumbsup: It was indeed green. Probably went color blind while spending hours trying to fix all those eggy stars :lol: I just figured out yesterday that I'm also getting a little dew spot on the outside of the camera glass. It's not inside the camera but on the outside of the glass and it's tiny. Never noticed it before. That's the little red halo on the jewel box in the center... and I thought I captured some Ha nebulosity :screwy::rofl:

[multiweb]

Thanks Jase. Yeah that was the whole point. Driving home with something in the box. Not great but still something. :thumbsup: Live and learn. :)

[multiweb]

Thanks for the kind comment guys. :thumbsup: Really looking forward to see some more of your C9.25 imaging. Will keep a close look. :)

[kinetic]

Marc,

great stuff!

That M83 outer halo is where my setup falls down...I can't get it.
Colour looks fine to me, but I'm hardly qualified to comment.

Nice job

Steve

[multiweb]

Thanks for the heads up Steve. :thumbsup: About the halo might be high humidity and dew in my shot so don't despair. :) That shot of M83 is what really knocks my socks off. Check it out: http://www.eso.org/gallery/d/65346-2/M83_WFI.jpg

[kinetic]

No mate, you definitely got halo....if you squint at the ESO shot you see
roughly what inner spiral structure I get...your shot gets it all.

Steve

[bluescope]

No worries Marc ....... ;)

:thumbsup:

[Hagar]

Wonderful attempt and result with an ED80. Well done.

[multiweb]

Thanks Doug. Glad you liked them :thumbsup:

[spearo]

hahahahaha
yes good save
you'd be kicking yourself!
You have to be like a "Marine" in the field: improvise and adapt! you did that very well :thumbsup:
good work!
frank

[Prickly]

Awesome shot for an ED80. Were you using a DSLR or a CCD? Also any particular barlow and did you need an extension unit to reach focus?

Really great shots - thanks for posting.

Cheers
David

[multiweb]

Thanks Frank. Driving that far... :driving: Regardless, GOT TO come home with something, anything :)


Thanks David. Yeah the set-up looked a bit like a fishing rod.:scared: The ED80 tube itself was probably the shortest bit of it all :whistle:. I had two 2" GSO extenders (50mm and 180mm), the focuser racked out almost completely (150mm), about 50mm worth of spacer + the MPCC and the camera nose piece. I took the barlow cell out of the barlow adapter and screwed it inside one of the GSO extension tube (same threads) to minimise the weight. It was a 2" GSO barlow lens.

[Tilt]

Nice shots Marc.

I tried to use a GSO 2" barlow with my ED80 without success. I was using a 0.8x WO FR/FF directly into the 2x GSO barlow however I couldn't reach focus. I more than likely require an extension tube to reach focus.

Michael