Annular Eclipse (Oct. 14, 2023)

 

Here is my take on the annular eclipse. I tried to set up near the center line in Beeville or George West (both Texas towns) but met clouds. With time running out, I drove north and bet on Kenedy, TX's Joe Gulley Park---and then for 40 minutes shot through every break in the (still present) clouds. It was pretty exciting.  These are various exposures through the SWED80 and 0.85x reducer-flattener and my old Canon T3i.  Oddly, perhaps, I am most pleased by the clarity of the sunspot in the second image.  I had very little time to focus and was happy to see that detail.

Sol (July 31, 2023)

I am thinking of the upcoming eclipses.  This is 1/4000, a single frame, with a Canon T3i and a SW80ED, processed in DPP and PS.

M35 & NGC 2158 (Feb. 2023)

I tried several times to see NGC 2158 with a telescope from the suburbs.  My wonderful 6" f/8 would only show me one star.  My C8 would show me that star and hints of two others.  My CFF 290 Classical Cassegrain would show me those three and a glow with averted vision, on the night I tried it.  With a camera on a small scope, the cluster stands out. This is just 16x600" with the Atik 460EXC through the SWED80 at f/6.375.  I am always impressed with the optical quality of the ED80, and the flattener/reducer does a superb job.

M38 and NGC 1907 (Jan. 2023)

 

This is 19x600" with the Atik 460EXC and LPS-P2 through the SW ED80.  Which is better, the more stretched shot or the less stretched one?  The less stretched one is closer to what the area looks like through a large telescope.  The more stretched one shows stars as deep as 17th magnitude.

Double Cluster, NGC 884 & NGC 869 (Oct. 2022)

This is 61x120" with the Atik 460EXC and SW ED80 on a night when the seeing was not great.

Bubble Nebula and M59 (Oct. 2022)

 

This is 26x1200" with the Atik 460EXC through a SW 80ED at f/6.375, with the SW 80ED reducer/flattener.  I have always been impressed with the optics on this scope.  On this image, I had to balance the stars over the nebula against the stars in the cluster.  I wanted to show the cluster well but not overwhelm the nebula.

Eclipse Preparation

These are test images of Sol and some flowers in the backyard.  The system is the Sky-Watcher ED80 and dedicated reducer-flattener connected to my Canon T3i.  I am trying to prepare for the eclipse on August 21.