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Rambling through - Sep / Oct /Nov/Dec Sky
" with a Mintron 12V1-EX ccd/lens
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Quickie drift-acquired test shots with a 2nd hand Russian 300mm f/2.8 lens and Mintron CCD or the light-weight watec 902H / short video lens to show that some DSOs are still within reach of a small aperture in our so-so sky. |
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| Objects: m22, m6, m8/m20 ,m17, m24,
m57,m42, m31_m110, ngc 2070(Tarantula Nebula), 47 Tuc*, Double clusters
Perseus ngc 869/884* m31/m32* |
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| (Sept 18 '04) Globular Cluster M22(dia 33') - note a numeric '7' like groove running through the cluster. ( M22 ranks 3rd after Omega Centauri and 47 Tucanae) | (Sept 18 04 ) M6 (dia 20') - The butterfly. I saw a standing robot with antenna. |
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| M8 - Lagoon Nebula (dia 90'x40') - dark lane is obvious in the cotton-ball like nebula. | M17 - Omega or Swan Nebula (dia 25') . ( Lick's obs image here ) |
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| (Top : Watec 902H +25 mm lens) - Oct 03 '04 - Itching to do something even though the sky was cloudy I pointed the watec/25mm lens outside the window and found the 'tipping' Teapot . Tiny 'cross' at M7 core can be seen at bottom mid centre. Grabbing via Astrovideo and stacked in Registrax. The band of flare was caused by red-lights from roof-top, and streaks were from hot pixels. Brightest portion of the milkyway | ( Watec 902H+75mm f1.4) Oct 04 '04 - M24 -Big Star-Sac (dia: 1 deg x1 def) Small Sagittarius Star Cloud. Close inspection revealed finger like dark inclusions on the right edge of 'star-sack'. |
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| ( Watec 902H) - Oct 4 '04 M8 (Lagoon Neb.) and the tiny barely recognizable 'circular' M20 ( Trifid Neb) | ( Ring Nebula - M57 Dia: 76 ") Oct 5 '04- Tiny 'doughnut' (mag 8.8) in the mid lower centre . Shot through the kitchen window. 300mm + Mintron. |
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| Nov 5 2:30am M42 Great Orion Nebula resembles side view of a bird ... | |
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| SET-UP - Twin lenses on parallel optical axis. The Russian fixed focal 300mm f/2.8lens (~$800) + Mintron (~S$600) and the much smaller watec 902H/f1.4 75mm video lens (S$500) as 'electronic' finder. | Nov 17 '04 47 Tuc - NGC104 Dia 30.9' mag 4.0 - Look very much like a condensed star in the small video lens. Stacking revealed the globular nature of the stars. Some members are visible in above image extending from the central core |
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| Nov 14 '04 - (Andromeda Galaxy M31 , M110) Dia 3d x1d
Mag 3.4 top edge. Note the 'double' dust lanes. Sky:
through thin cloud
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" Spider in the sky or Tarantula
Nebula " - Nov 15 '04 - 2:00am (NGC 2070 Dia 40' Mag 8). NGC 2100 appeared at lower left hand corner. Sky Condition: Bad, shooting through cloud layer. |
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| Nov 18 0:15am Double Clusters NGC 869, 884 in Perseus. Stumbled on by chance on the electronic finder. | A bright meteor in Puppis Nov 18 '04~ 5:14 am. A persistent train is visible in the video playback. ( a single frame grab is reproduced below) The starting position is less than 45 degree from Leo's radian. Several frames later - fast other swift Leonid transited similar FOV. |
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 Watch
the
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| Nov 18 '04 12:10am M31 and M32 in lower left hand corner... sky slightly better.. |
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