Astronomy

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Misly
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

t0mby wrote:Actually, now I'm posting, did anyone hear of that asteroid that was supposed to pass between the Earth and the Moon earlier this month? Astrologists had been predicting it for months, think it was around 11th Nov. Then, heard it was imminent within around 36hrs on the radio then nothing. Apparently only viewable from Europe when it happened.
Well we are alive!

I think this is it (Interesting wiki here):

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Last edited by Misly on 26 Nov 2011 02:33 am, edited 4 times in total.
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Misly
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Cool:
Youtube wrote:Asteroid 2005 YU55 whisks through the field of view of Swift's Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope (UVOT) on Nov. 9, just hours after the space rock made its closest approach to Earth. The video plays on a background image from the Digital Sky Survey that shows the same region, which lies within the Great Square asterism of the constellation Pegasus (times UT).
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYbq-aV3 ... re=related[/youtube]
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Misly
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Had a blast using my telescope for the first time tonight. Pulled a bit of a crowd (mum and daughter from neighbouring unit and both parents and two kids from next door plus the missus). Initially I was a bit worried and annoyed because it was the first time I used it as a telescope, first time aligning mirrors and first time alligning the GoTo software to real stars. Lucky the software made me look like I knew what I was doing. Spectacular views of the universe and having the GoTo allowed us to see so much more. Telescope and GoTo performed better than expected. After initial alignment, the auto tracking kicks in and compensates for the rotation of the Earth, so I didnt have to constantly re-center the object we where looking at (remembering the hassle of having to do this with old manual telescope). GoTo finding objects was pretty much spot on. It is great to be able to manually push it around, then let the GoTo take over without re-alignment.

Compared to smaller scopes, my 10 inch scope (light bucket) wont make the bright planets look any better but the extra apeture makes a greater number of the dimmer deep space objects visable. Even with lots of clouds, tall buildings all around and light pollution we still had plenty to look at. Only two planets possible with the solar timing and other restrictions (clouds / tall buildings). I could tell Uranus was a planet (pretty sphere) and Jupiter looked amazing. Nice detail with the cloud bands and I think I could just make out the spot (one of the cloud bands had a lump). Easily recognisable as Jupiter and amazing to see Jupiters details with own eyes (I have before, but not for like 15 years)

I could see so much detail in Orion Nebula. 10 inches of apeture absorbed plent of light from the dimmest details of the nebula and focused it all on the back of my eye balls. My favorite part of the night. The black dark patches blocking light and also the cloudy light with detail of different looking segments and lines. Dialled up plenty of messier objects and little fuzz balls of light in the finder scope turned into beautiful clusters. I really look forward to being able to point the telescope at Andromeda.

Almost dont wanna post this photo. Comes nowhere near to doing the viewing experience justice. My eyepieces have some camera standard thread, however the mobile phone just doesnt cut it. I had to hold my mobile phone up to the eyepiece to take this photo. Couldnt get any detail at all. Light washed out everything. I even tried darkening with moon and light filters on the eye piece, but soon as the phones camera takes a pic in black / dark, any small amount of light just blurs and washes out. The moons look oversized because I manually held the phone and the image blurred. Jupiter and moons looked nothing like this when viewing tonight, but you can see Jupiter and the four Galilean moons. From left to right is Ganymede, Io, Jupiter, Europa and Callisto.
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So tired...
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Misly
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Re: Astronomy

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Misly wrote:...Jupiter looked amazing. Nice detail with the cloud bands and I think I could just make out the spot (one of the cloud bands had a lump)...
That 'lump' was a shadow of one of Jupiters moons...

I saw Jupiter the next day. I must have collaminated the mirrors better or something (dunno still learning) because the image was outstanding compared to first night. I could see detail in Jupiters cloud bands, I saw 2 moon shadows chasing Cat Stevens across Jupiter and the red spot was clear and obvious, it looked amazing.

That was yesterday, today is windy as anything, but I was determined to point the scope at Earths moon. I took about 25 photos and only two had any detail and were not completely washed out by white light. I find if I quickly move the phone from dark to light and take the pic before the phone washes out the photo with light, then I get some detail. Any photography light wash out tips appreciated!

Medium eye piece with my shakey hand held mobile phone:

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Re: Astronomy

Post by t0mby »

Fuck that's awesome. Seriously.

Be sure to let us know if you see any UFOs! ;)
selfish wrote:Being a massive fanboy and trying to hide it is Lestat's worst bottleneck.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

Gotta get a real camera!

Tonights effort:

Mobile phone held up to telescope with 13mm eyepiece, moon filter. Trying so hard to capture Jupiters cloud bands with my mobile phone (with a black background, mobile phone just floods everything with way too much light). Can just make out 2 x very faint cloud bands of Jupiter. Does not come close to doing the visual experience justice. Visually I can see whisps and swirls in the cloud bands and the spot and the shadows of Jupiters moons on Jupiter.
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Photo of Moon taken with mobile phone held up to telescope 25mm eyepiece and moon filter to take away light glare.
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Photo of Moon taken with mobile phone held up to telescope 10mm eyepiece and moon filter to take away light glare.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by t0mby »

IT IS MADE OF CHEESE!

I wonder why the moon has so many craters. Does it really get hit by so many asteroids? If so, why do so few hit earth, or are they too small and burn up upon entry?
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Re: Astronomy

Post by KillKen »

Are they craters not from when it was formed? I think they have been there for a while.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

KillKen wrote:Are they craters not from when it was formed? I think they have been there for a while.
Would be cool to see one hit - what are the odds?

Heads up on another eclipse. Australia wide, but info for Sydney:
STAR gazers will get their chance to see the last total lunar eclipse until 2014 where the Moon turns red.

Those keen to watch the Moon passing through the Earth's shadow will be able to see it on December 10, according to the Sydney Observatory.

The actual eclipse begins at 11.45pm and by 1.06am, a 'totality' or 'darkest phase' will emerge when the Moon will be fully immersed in the shadow for 52 minutes.

The eclipse will end at 3.18am.
I look forward to watching first eclipse through the scope!

Here
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Re: Astronomy

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So it was cloudless until the eclipse started. Then the clouds came. I was surprised that the telescope and binoculars could see a fair bit through the clouds, when visually you couldnt see anything. There was odd patches when the moon came out. Thanks to tall buildings next door, at total eclipse and later, the low sitting Dobsonian telescope couldnt see the moon. However still enjoyed great views of the eclipse through the binoculars connected to a tall tripod high on a rock table.

Photos taken with my mobile phone held up to telescope or binoculars from the eclipse:

Before the eclipse:
[Click to see hidden content]
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Here comes the Earths shadow! No light filter gave better Earth shadow definition:
[Click to see hidden content]
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Last pic before couldnt point telescope at moon due to tall buildings next door. A bit of detail in Earths shadow:
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Polarizing Moon light filters used to reduce moon glare and bring out moon surface details. However this killed the outline / definition of the Earths shadow:
[Click to see hidden content]
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Eclipse through the Binoculars (15 x 70). Unlike the telescope, binoculars dont flip the image. First pic is when the Earths shadow first appeared / eclipse begun. The second pic is total eclipse and the last two pics are from when the Earth shadow is leaving / eclipse ending.
[Click to see hidden content]
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And a vid:
me wrote:Videos I made of the December 2011 Lunar Eclipse. Filmed using my mobile phone manually held up to my Telescope (10 inch Dobsonian med-low power eye pieces) and Binoculars (15 x 70). Telescope at start, then binoculars at 30 seconds. Telescope view finder scope at 50 seconds, then back to telescope at one minute. A second video begins at 1.20. The eclipse has advanced a bit by this stage. Photos of the eclipse through telescope and binoculars begin around 3.25. Finishes off with a video of the moon before the eclipse. Enjoy!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvEXUSo6 ... ature=plcp[/youtube]
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Re: Astronomy

Post by KillKen »

Some cool photos from around the world of the Eclipse:

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Re: Astronomy

Post by Twit »

Don’t know where to plonk this, so screw it:

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badas ... -ton-baby/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://arstechnica.com/science/news/201 ... n-2013.ars" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

...the universe is a hell of a place.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

Hubble Holiday Handout '11
Best example yet of an Einstein Ring. The blue ring is actually a galaxy far far away, behind the red eliptical/cluster. The massive gravity bends the light from that blue galaxy around it. Gravity is amazing.
Image
Read about it here: http://scienceblogs.com/startswithabang ... _a_hor.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Source:
http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/potw1151a/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

Image
http://www.meade.com/lx80" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I've got my eye on this puppy. 6" or 8" Schmidt-Cassegrain if I can afford it ($1600-$2000). So damned tasty.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Froggy »

He's not going to win against even a democrat made from a paper bag but he wants to colonise the moon which is pretty cool I reckon! Vote 1 Republican party for a moon town!

moon town says candidate
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Re: Astronomy

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Photo of Saturn holding my mobile phone up to the telescope eyepiece. Disclaimer = Considering how hard it is to get a decent pic with mobile phone - this blurry photo is the best of about 20 photos I took. Visually Saturn is crisp / sharp and in focus. I could easily see Titan and 4 other moons. I could also see the Cassini division (Gap in the rings)

Image

Also visible in this photo is the shadow of Saturn on the rings behind (to the right).
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Talez »

t0mby wrote:IT IS MADE OF CHEESE!

I wonder why the moon has so many craters. Does it really get hit by so many asteroids? If so, why do so few hit earth, or are they too small and burn up upon entry?
Small ones hit the moon and don't reach the suface of the Earth. Also there's no weather to weather the craters back down to smooth so some of those craters could be millions or even billions of years old.
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Re: Astronomy

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So I have started to mod my telescope. I replaced the stock focuser with a moonlite focuser - imported from the US. The new moonlite focuser has dual speed focusing. A second fine focus knob makes it so easy to focus. It feels ultra smooth as well. No moving the telescope as I focus. Even when being extra careful with the old focuser, the image would bounce around when focusing - not anymore! It also has a lock to lock the focus. Also the eye pieces and collimating tools sit much better in the focuser with the compression ring instead of screws. It is very easy to make everything look great through the telescope. I love it! Here are some pics:

Stock Focuser:
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The Moonlite Focuser:
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Moonlite Focuser Installed:
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HEADS UP - Transit of Venus coming up in June. The next one after June isn't until 2117! Also a total solar eclipse in QLD November (accommodation was booked out 2 years ago!). I will be building a sun funnel to observe the transit of Venus. Being a reflector telescope, I will also need to reduce the aperture of my telescope by about 98% so I don't melt the insides! And here is the important disclaimer about never looking directly at the Sun through your telescope...

Sun Funnel:
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Re: Astronomy

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Another mobile phone photo of Saturn. In this pic I can just make out cloud bands and Cassini division. Still nowhere near as good as visually. Also mobile phone cant pick up any of the moons. But a lot better than the Saturn pic I posted earlier.

I took this a few days before when Saturn is closest to Earth. Solar timing - Saturn is closest to Earth on Monday night 16th April.

Image
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Re: Astronomy

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More moon pics I took today with my mobile phone hand held up to various eyepieces. Magnification levels given according to my 1200mm focal length 10 inch telescope.

With 25mm eyepiece (magnification is x48):
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With 13mm eyepiece (x92) (The moon just fills the view with this eyepiece, however when I upload, imageshack automatically rotates to portrait):
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With 8mm eyepiece (x150). Note obvious center crater is called Copernicus (Left of dead center). Copernicus has a diameter of 93 kilometres. Go find Copernicus in the other moon photos - now you have a size reference!:
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EXTREME MAGNIFICATION using 3.5mm (x343) eyepiece and 2 adjustment rings to bring the eyepiece to 1.8mm (x667) and then an additional 2x Barlow lens taking the magnification to x1333!!!. This crater is called Copernicus and has a diameter of 93 kilometres and is the same center crater from the image above. Even though it is stupidly extreme magnification, it actually looks a lot better visually than in this photo. Ultra hard to get focus at such high magnification with hand held mobile phone. Plus just the fine wind shakes the telescope / image. Also at this magnification, the crater zooms through the eye piece within seconds... Rolls eyes at my own excuses....
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With 8mm eyepiece (x150). The black at the bottom right is not the moons edge. It is the barrell of the eyepiece. I love how you can see the sunlight on the edge of the crater that is in shadow (near top and just right of middle):
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With 8mm eyepiece (x150). Again the black at the bottom of the photo is the barrell of the eyepiece. Kinda makes it look like looking out at the moon through a round window while wizzing past on a space ship!
Image
Last edited by Misly on 01 May 2012 08:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Burnzoire »

top stuff misly... you need to get a dslr + adapter for that scope though. With your goto you'd get some fantastic exposures!
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Candy Arse »

More pics please Misly, love your work in this thread. A nice telescope is in my future, I can feel it. Would love to spend time out at night looking upward.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Candy Arse »

http://www.news.com.au/technology/sci-t ... 6344558966" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looking forward to your photos, Misly.
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Re: Astronomy

Post by Misly »

The moon it hard for me to photograph because it is too bright. At supermoon, it is at its brightest! A full moon is rather boring to look at and photograph through a telescope because you dont get the shadows highlighting features such as craters and mountains.

Supermoon pic stolen from wiki:

Image
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Re: Astronomy

Post by GreyWizzard »

Fark those pics are awesome.
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