First Jupiter with the SDM Dob

[stephenb]

I wouldn't mind some opinions on my Jupiter efforts for tonight

Image 1 - 16" f4.5 DBK21 Registax 4, 600 frames.

Image 2 - Same specs but saturation dropped slightly.

Image 3 - Same specs but saturation dropped slightly again.

GRS peeking around the limb, and is that the impact across the top?

[stephenb]

Oh, and that's with no tracking at all. One 20-sec avi video file as Jupiter crosses the field of view.

[orestis]

hi stephen,

nice images:).i like them.

you've got some great detail in them.great work and for only 20 seconds of waiting thats sweet.

:thumbsup:regards orestis.

[Lester]

Very nice Stephen, the 16" really resolves the detail. The last image is my pick, the others are a bit green/yellow.

Good on ya.

[stephenb]

Thanks orestis and Lester,

Yep, it's the third one for me also.

The SDM focuser is not setup for imaging (that's how I wanted it) but I'd thought I'd try it and I just got enough travel out of the focuser to acheive focus.

Pity the powermate wouldn't work.

Perhaps I need to start getting an imaging setup together?:whistle:

[byronpaul]

Ok, I'm confussed ..... how do you get this quality of image from a scope that doesn't have tracking:shrug::shrug::shrug:

Is it the Registax which has all the smarts to put the images together as the target had crossed the FOV????

Stephen - great shots by the way .... all 3 look pretty good to my newbie eyes :P:P:P

[stephenb]

Beat's me Paul, I didn't think it would work either, or at least, I didn't think Registax would like the avi file.

I spent a bit of time adjusting the camera setting on the laptop, all the time nudging the scope to keep Jupiter in the field.

Then I nudged Jupiter outside the field of view, started recording and allowed it to drift across the field, taking wbout 20-30 seconds.

Registax's alignment procedure kept it aligned nicely.

[Rigel003]

Terrific detail there. Begs for a bigger image scale and longer AVIs but I can understand the limitations if your scope isn't driven. The last one has the best colour treatment.

[Quark]

Hi Stephen,

Good effort with your images, especially with a Dob.

You have them orientated with North up and West to the left, thats ok but I am used to seeing them with South on top and West to the right, which is the IAU convention.

The elongated feature to the North is not the Wesley Impact. If you imaged the GRS right over on the Eastern limb then you would have the Wesley Impact remnant crossing the central meridian in the South Polar Region.

Regards
Trevor

[stephenb]

Thanks Trevor, I was only trying to work this out this afternoon with Jupiter and I was slowly coming to the same conclusion. And, yes that is not the the Wesley impact, as I have also realised. Thanks for pointing that out, I appreciate it. I had no deliberate intention of imaging any specific feature. The clouds cleared long enough to test the camera with the scope so I took advantage of it.



Ta for the comments Graeme, I would like to try a barlow or powermate, but I don't think I have enough travel in the focuser. But I would have like it to be another 25% larger.

[stephenb]

I tried the camera last night and it appears to have gone belly up - not generating an image whatsoever. I've tried different cables, re-installed the software, and tried a different computer. I think my DBK 21 has bitten the dust.

Just to round off this thread, Trevor I think I have orientated the image correctly. I am also on a mission to tidy up my images, reorganise them and their respective folders and sub-folders on my hard drive. Here is a comparsion from my first Jupiter CCD image 12 months ago and the latest one...

[RB]

I like the new 'info' format you've chosen for your images Stephen.

:thumbsup:

[Paul Haese]

Using an SDM is an interesting concept but one that is quite hard. I used my SDM for the same purpose in 2007 but found it very hard to keep everything in the right track. To be fair I had Servocat and Argo Navis which did help and it was imaging at 10,000mm. So yes it can be done at higher resolution. You would need to cut down your truss tubes a little but not a lot. I could easily focus both EP's and imaging equipment.

Here is a link to an image I took with the SDM. Just to give you a taste of what you could do with the scope. Mine was SDM 14.

http://paulhaese.net/2june2007.html

Nice effort but you do need more image scale.

[jjjnettie]

Excellent work. It's tricky isn't it, doing planetary with a dob. I fully appreciate the blood sweat and tears you've put into these images.

[stephenb]

Thanks Paul for your comments, I followed your imaging pursuits with your SDM for some time. I have no intention of using this scope for any form of imaging. I wanted this purely as a visual scope and that's how Peter configured it. I had a clear night for a few hours and with a full moon in the sky, I'd thought I'd experiment. I'm leaving the imaging for another setup which I am researching now. Actually having the weekend free have given me a bit of time to understand wavelets in a little more detail. I've also setup and diassembled the SDM a few times and practiced collimation, which takes a minute or two.

[Quark]

Looking good Stephen,

If you are just taking planetary images for your own satisfaction then the orientation really does not matter. What looks best to you is fine.

It is only when taking them for scientific evaluation that they should be orientated to the IAU convention, as some researchers are dealing with images from various amateurs around the world and it helps if they all have the same orientation, which is as you have the last 2 images in this thread, with South up and West to the right.

Regards
Trevor

[badchap]

Beautiful detail, Stephen !
Not bad, especially considering no tracking.

Carmel

[Crusader]

Knowing how difficult this can be with tracking, it's truly amazing that you got so much detail without any tracking. Great work!

[Nightskystargaz]

Stephen,

Nice pic's. but where are the moons :question:.

:thanx:,

Tom

[stephenb]

Thanks Tom and badchap,

Tom, In post #11 of this thread you can see Europa ans Io on the left of the planet. Ganymede is waaaay of the right, and Callisto is waaaay off to the left, both out of this field of view.

My camera is intermittant. I though it died, but it has come back to life, so I'll be out again in the coming days.