Sorry, I accidentally deleted my first post (trying to remove duplicate images from post and hit wrong delete key)

I've been looking into purchasing a large dob to replace my old C-11.? Part of that has been thinking about what to do with my current scope, an old C8 on a wobbly wedge-pod.?? I was thinking astrophotography would be fun to try out, but that would require a significant investment in a new mount (and those dollars would be better spent on aperture, me thinks).? I ended up reading about lucky imaging techniques for planetary work and discovered that I was already equipped to give it a go.? I have a Canon T4i with Magic Lantern installed, which means movie crop mode (1:1 pixel ratio) and raw videos at ~30 fps.? I had a barlow with T threads and a T-ring adapter for the camera.? So, last night, despite the poor seeing, I sat in the backyard shooting videos of Jupiter, Saturn and Mars.? I still have a lot to learn, but I'm very pleased I was able to pull off a few decent images on my first try.? Here's a few shots that I processed from my videos.? Any tips or tricks would be welcomed, I've only just dipped my toes in.

I actually started out hoping to sketch Stephan's quintet but was only able to spot NGC 7320 and 7320C.? They were too close to the limit of visibility for me to try and sketch (as a newbie to sketching at least), so I slipped back over to 7331.? But even that was only the bright core, the disk was invisible and not a hint of the "fleas".? I'm certainly missing the extra aperture of my old C11.? I'm hoping to give it a shot again, with the 18inch.

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You have have given me a new target for astrophotos. There are a whole bunch of objects there, aka the Deerlick group, that I would like to image.

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Very nice!

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Canon Hack Development Kit, built on Magic Lantern for Canon DSLRs. It is only for the Powershot. It removes ASA and exposure limits among many other things like an intervalometer. I used CHDK on my PowerShot 730HS ... 33 x 2 minutes subs, 2000 ASA, piggybacked on my Celestron C8. I need to nudge the alignment before I can do 3 minute exposures and more. Sized down from 20 MP. Focus is being worked on.

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I have found that mid-week is usually pretty quiet.

FLO is currently equipped with three scopes, two of which are operational.? The two operational scopes, an 18 inch Starmaster dob and a 6 inch astrophysics super planetary refractor are available for use by trained RASC members.? I've only recently been approved to use them, so I don't have a good feel for how often they are busy, but I do understand that there is an expectation that reasonable efforts to share eyepiece time are made when more than one individual is on site.? I have been onsite with my own scope when others have used the Starmaster for the type of imagining you describe so it is certainly possible.

Matt

I understand FLO has a 16 inch dob which approved users are free to use.? I like the idea of imaging planets with a large scope.? How busy is this scope on a clear night with good seeing?? Would it be feasible for approved users to spend 1 hour doing lucky imaging?

Thanks,
Greg

Took a last minute trip out to FLO on Sept 29th.? Set up on the North mound and observed for a few hours with my C-8.? Sketched NGC 7331 (well, the core of NGC 7331) and later, the goblular cluster NGC 6760 (with more success).? Just before midnight, I turned my attention to Jupiter and was surprise to witness the occultation of Europa, which was like watching a small, yellowish ball bearing first touch, then slip behind the limb.? Pretty neat.? Seeing was good too, so had nice views of Saturn and details on Jupiter.

Matt

Hello all,

Reading these posts about Nirvana reminded me that I wanted to post a short summary about my visit this past summer...

Allan Rahill of Montreal, Chris Thuemen, Raymond Dubois and myself gathered at Nirvana to observe for three nights at the end of July. ?The weather forecast was extremely favourable for all 3 nights. ?On arrival, it was obvious that the entrance way leading up to the airstrip was much, much improved with packed gravel. ?It is after all a logging route, so it's not too surprising that it would be fixed. ?My Mazda CX-5 had no issues going up the hill, and it was no longer necessary to do a sort of "twist and turn" to avoid the ruts. ?The downside to the easier access is that Nirvana indeed now attracts more visitors, such as ATVs, campers, people setting off fireworks, bonfires or target practice.

During our visit, it was a busy place (being weekend and all), and a group of people were camped out near the south end. ?They had a fire going and fireworks, but fortunately far enough to not be too bad. ?Allan, Raymond and I setup further to the north end, while Chris setup on the west side of the airstrip.

The bugs were bad (mosquitoes) at around sunset and a bit after but went away as the air cooled.

The sky was gorgeous. ?Easily hitting mag 6.8 or better. ?I looked forward to observing with Allan with his 28 inch dob, and doing meteor observing (as I been busy with home renos, etc... I have been less active in astronomy lately). ?Did I enjoy any observing? ?Nope! ?As I went back to my car to get my coffee in the dark, I lost my footing as my hand held the car door. ?Then the door swung towards me as I fell forward, and without any warning, I felt a sudden sharp pain, as the door's top corner hit smack in the middle of my left eye! ?A night of holding an ice pack didn't help, so in the morning, Raymond drove me to hospital where I was treated. ?That put a quick end to observing, but the good news is that my eye has healed after a couple of weeks. ?From what I heard, Raymond, Chris and Allan had some great dark skies. ?Allan had some unfortunate electrical issues with his 28 inch.

Nirvana continues to be a fantastic option for some of the darkest skies we can get within a couple of hours drive from Ottawa. ?But it may not be as quiet not that RVs, etc can easily get up there.

Clear skies!
Pierre

I'd love to attend but I have to stay home this weekend.

Cheers!
Pierre

Unfortunately, I need to stay close to home tomorrow night. But I do plan to observe at FLO for a few hours tonight. I plan to arrive around 8pm or so.

Matt

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I’m up for it!

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The fireball was also seen by some at the Festival of Stars at the Frontenac DSP. I missed it, but others saw it.