Late season Milkyway widefield

[Mickoid (Michael)]

Both Friday and Saturday nights were pretty clear for astrophotography so not one to miss an opportunity, I took myself out to the outskirts of Melbourne for some darker skies. I planned to take C/2017 Panstarrs K2 with a Tamron 500mm Mirror lens but I was too late on arriving at site and it was setting below the trees. Before I packed up I took 15 x 30sec (7.5mins!) of M8 and M20 at 3200iso, using a modded Canon 550d on an iOptron Sky Tracker Pro. The good seeing and transparency certainly helped achieve a better than expected result, especially with such a short integration time and a 500mm Mirror Lens fixed at f8.

Saturday I did some widefield using the modded 550d and a 50mm lens mounted on a Sightron Nano Tracker. 30 x 60secs at 1600iso for Rho ( Can you spot comet c/2017 Panstarrs in the lower right hand corner? ) but Melbourne's light dome washed out the bottom half of this shot . The Milky Way shot was a two panel combo, both panels only 2 x 120secs at 800 iso with the modded 550d.

[Anth10 (Anthony M)]

Mick,
The trip out to the bush was all worth the effort by the looks. Busy nights.
Nice color obtained with the lagoon and triffid and the dark sky really enhances the vast star field to boot. Dust lanes streaming across Rho look quite nice. Widefield's are speccy.

Top stuff!!!

[AstroViking (Steve)]

For such short integration times, they are excellent results.


Whereabouts do you go to? I'm looking for some dark(er) skies not too far from home in Melbourne's outer-east.


Cheers,
V

[Dave882 (David)]

Wow beautiful shots!!

[Mickoid (Michael)]

Originally Posted by AstroViking

For such short integration times, they are excellent results.
Thanks David, Rho's too far into the west now to give it a decent go. They say at least 3 hrs will bring out the best but at this position from my location it would not be worth it. Next year perhaps?


Whereabouts do you go to? I'm looking for some dark(er) skies not too far from home in Melbourne's outer-east.


Cheers,
V

Thanks Steve, M8 and M20 were taken from Kinglake West, Milky Way shots were taken from Clonbinaine, so a little to the west from you. Any public clearing or reserve off the road and away from private property north of Yarra Glen or Healesville would be better for you. Just get onto Google Maps and browse around the area for a suitable site - that's what I do, though good sites are getting harder to find.

Originally Posted by Anth10

Mick,
The trip out to the bush was all worth the effort by the looks. Busy nights.
Nice color obtained with the lagoon and triffid and the dark sky really enhances the vast star field to boot. Dust lanes streaming across Rho look quite nice. Widefield's are speccy.

Top stuff!!!

Cheers Anthony, procrastination holds me up from getting out there when I should but once I make up my mind to go, I normally enjoy the serenity of the countryside.

Originally Posted by Dave882

Wow beautiful shots!!

Cheers Dave, thanks for the compliment! Glad you liked them.

[AstroViking (Steve)]

Cool, thanks for the pointers.

I sometimes head up to the Hamer Arboretum just outside Olinda. You get great views to the North and the East - very handy for most of the summer meteor showers. To the South and West you're starting to hit Melbourne's light-dome.

Originally Posted by Mickoid

Thanks Steve, M8 and M20 were taken from Kinglake West, Milky Way shots were taken from Clonbinaine, so a little to the west from you. Any public clearing or reserve off the road and away from private property north of Yarra Glen or Healesville would be better for you. Just get onto Google Maps and browse around the area for a suitable site - that's what I do, though good sites are getting harder to find.

[Mickoid (Michael)]

That seems a fairly dark sky location Steve and Silvan Reservoir Park may even be darker having looked at the Light pollution Map. The issue I have is being disturbed by people arriving where I'm set up which happens to be part of their late night joy ride. At the Kinglake West location on Friday night, I had two groups of 4WD vehicles arrive with their array of LED light bars and driving lights blazing into where I had set up. Fortunately, they didn't stay around for long!

[Doogs38 (Alex)]

Beautiful images ... nothing like wide-field images to inspire awe and wonder. Alex

[Crater101 (Warren)]

Very nice work indeed. I'm hoping to attempt something similar in the near future. Liking the exposure, and these are framed very well.