All manner of celestial goodies

[JustAnotherAsshole]

*Saves to wallpaper folder*

[negz]

That's pretty cool. Do you have a telescope?

[Midnight Sun]

That's pretty cool. Do you have a telescope?

I have four.

[negz]

What kind? What's a good starter telescope that's not too expensive but has powerful magnification?

[LSA King]

^ as mentioned above. Afte Iraq and the desert sky I am fascinated with the stars and outer space.

[The General]

^ as mentioned above. Afte Iraq and the desert sky I am fascinated with the stars and outer space.

shit were you in the army? Is that why you've been on so much but then leaving feb 10th?

Oh and this should be in visual arts

[LSA King]

shit were you in the army? Is that why you've been on so much but then leaving feb 10th?

Oh and this should be in visual arts



Yeah, I'm currently ETS'ing so I've had the past 2 months to sham out of work :). I take terminal leave feb. 14th.

[Midnight Sun]

What kind? What's a good starter telescope that's not too expensive but has powerful magnification?

A Celestron NexStar 130 SLT, Orion Maksutov-Cassegrain 127, Celestron Starterscope 60, Coronado PST.

When buying a telescope you need to take a few things into account, the first and foremost is what you want to see through it. The second is aperture. The last is magnification.

I took this with a five inch telescope - the NexStar. It has a fast focal ratio, which means its field of view is wider, which means that its easier to find things with in the eyepiece. The Maksutov is the same aperture (minus 3 mm but close enough) has a much slower focal ratio, meaning a narrow field of view but higher magnification for things like planets and the moon - hence I would be using this for the close-ups.

If you're mostly interested in galaxies and nebulae, the NexStar will provide a good base to get started on. It can do planets but since its focal ratio is short you will have to get an eyepiece kit or just a standalone Barlow lense to double its magnification which is about the most it can take. I have enjoyed, however, decent views of Saturn, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, and the Moon through this telescope. It has the built-in computer which I've never used because I've never been able to make it work, but I'm the exception, not the rule. Many people are very satisfied with it.

If you are willing to learn your way around the skies manually and aren't interested in the telescope tracking an object, a DOBSONIAN is the way to go. They are cheap and offer a lot of bang for the buck. For example, an 8 inch dobsonian just at a glance was the price of the 5 inch NexStar. Some of them, such as Orion brand, offer a type of computer to help you find objects. I have no experience with this.

tl;dr: get as large-aperture telescope as you can. The higher the aperture the better. Magnification is necessary only on solar system objects, and the higher your aperture the more magnification you can get.

[The General]

Yeah, I'm currently ETS'ing so I've had the past 2 months to sham out of work :). I take terminal leave feb. 14th.

Good luck to you man, my dream is to go to USNA and then spend a few years in the navy then retire. My dad was in the special forces in Afghanistan before he retired but I really respect you. Good luck.

[0x29A]

Thats awesome Habanero!! Inb4 Sybil comes in sippin on the hatorade

[LSA King]

Good luck to you man, my dream is to go to USNA and then spend a few years in the navy then retire. My dad was in the special forces in Afghanistan before he retired but I really respect you. Good luck.



Right on man good luck stay away from the army lol that place fucks with your head. At least marines still have pride in what they do. Army is failing faster then I thought possible in just my measly 5 years. New GI Bill kicks ass though.


But back to the topic Iraq is what made me consider moving to Phoenix (that and the extreme cold this winter). In the PNW we don't see more than 5 stars with all the clouds. Something so mesmorizing about whats up above.

[Midnight Sun]

Thats awesome Habanero!! Inb4 Sybil comes in sippin on the hatorade

yeah, I bet I ripped this one off too right sybil? lmfao :rolleyes:

Thanks for all the comments. I want to major in astronomy in college.

[Midnight Sun]

peaking of the moon, what planet is visible right now below the moon? It's hella fuckin' bright.

Venus.

[Haiti's Space Agency]

A Celestron NexStar 130 SLT, Orion Maksutov-Cassegrain 127, Celestron Starterscope 60, Coronado PST.

When buying a telescope you need to take a few things into account, the first and foremost is what you want to see through it. The second is aperture. The last is magnification.

I took this with a five inch telescope - the NexStar. It has a fast focal ratio, which means its field of view is wider, which means that its easier to find things with in the eyepiece. The Maksutov is the same aperture (minus 3 mm but close enough) has a much slower focal ratio, meaning a narrow field of view but higher magnification for things like planets and the moon - hence I would be using this for the close-ups.

If you're mostly interested in galaxies and nebulae, the NexStar will provide a good base to get started on. It can do planets but since its focal ratio is short you will have to get an eyepiece kit or just a standalone Barlow lense to double its magnification which is about the most it can take. I have enjoyed, however, decent views of Saturn, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, and the Moon through this telescope. It has the built-in computer which I've never used because I've never been able to make it work, but I'm the exception, not the rule. Many people are very satisfied with it.

If you are willing to learn your way around the skies manually and aren't interested in the telescope tracking an object, a DOBSONIAN is the way to go. They are cheap and offer a lot of bang for the buck. For example, an 8 inch dobsonian just at a glance was the price of the 5 inch NexStar. Some of them, such as Orion brand, offer a type of computer to help you find objects. I have no experience with this.

tl;dr: get as large-aperture telescope as you can. The higher the aperture the better. Magnification is necessary only on solar system objects, and the higher your aperture the more magnification you can get.
Prices?

[Midnight Sun]

Prices?

About 400$ for both the NexStar and the dob I was looking at.

By the same token, there's also a 114mm reflector for 150$, no computer. Check telescopes.com, see if you see something you like, they have good deals.

[Haiti's Space Agency]

About 400$ for both the NexStar and the dob I was looking at.

By the same token, there's also a 114mm reflector for 150$, no computer. Check telescopes.com, see if you see something you like, they have good deals.

Cool. Thanks for all the info man. I used to have a telescope but it was stolen and I've been looking to get another one. But I've been looking to get another one for like 5 years now :(

[CEM]

I took an Astronomy course in college and it ranks up there as one of my all time favorite classes. I really enjoyed it and learned a lot. I have an Orion 8” reflector, but I haven’t used it much lately. If anyone is interested in stargazing I would recommend checking around to see if you have an astronomy club in your area.

[Midnight Sun]

If anyone is interested in stargazing I would recommend checking around to see if you have an astronomy club in your area.

This too. For those who aren't too sure if they want a telescope or not, get a nice pair of binoculars. I have some 20x80's and they're HEAVY but one of the best purchases I ever made. I can lie on my back and just scan around the sky, and they're wonderful for finding a faint object before attempting it in the telescope, since it helps you know the general area and if you can't find it in the scope, at least you found it in the binoculars.

[7i8_Dago]

Yeah, I'm currently ETS'ing so I've had the past 2 months to sham out of work :). I take terminal leave feb. 14th.

i salute you sir.

[CEM]

This too. For those who aren't too sure if they want a telescope or not, get a nice pair of binoculars. I have some 20x80's and they're HEAVY but one of the best purchases I ever made. I can lie on my back and just scan around the sky, and they're wonderful for finding a faint object before attempting it in the telescope, since it helps you know the general area and if you can't find it in the scope, at least you found it in the binoculars.

Thats good advice. Binoculars are perfect for someone just starting out and like you said, I usually use them to find what I'm looking for before using my scope.

[kelsokid18]

Well shot photo Habanero!

[Steve]

That's a very nice picture, crisp with good color.
I took pictures of the sun onetime. It's a lot harder than you would think to get it to not be either blown out white, or too dark to see well.

[Midnight Sun]

That's a very nice picture, crisp with good color.
I took pictures of the sun onetime. It's a lot harder than you would think to get it to not be either blown out white, or too dark to see well.

yeah, although unless there's a lot of sunspots the sun can be kind of boring unless you're imaging in hydrogen alpha, in which case there's a lot going on. I'm about to venture into the hydrogen-alpha imaging department...haha, whole different ball-game.

[illuminatikiller]

http://i42.tinypic.com/2vcyqgl.png

peep dat homes:fap:
was gonna shoot some closeups, but goddamn clouds ruined it...:mad::mad:

Cool pic. I'm gonna :fap: to the moon.

[negz]

Thanks for info, Hab.

[Sybil]

http://i42.tinypic.com/2vcyqgl.png

peep dat homes:fap:
was gonna shoot some closeups, but goddamn clouds ruined it...:mad::mad:

Well, the others just looked dodgy because they were cut up and looked like they were stolen from somewhere on the internet.
If you had just post this picture I would of believed you though, good stuff.

[Rocko]

That's a good picture, about as clear as photography through the atmosphere gets.

[zuperxtreme]

Awesome. Who would have though you were into this sort of stuff. :)

[Midnight Sun]

Awesome. Who would have though you were into this sort of stuff. :)

that's what a lot of people say :D

[zuperxtreme]

Heh, yeah. No offence, but you come off as the ignorant HB user. You should write an article for the Totsepedia. :D

[Midnight Sun]

Heh, yeah. No offence, but you come off as the ignorant HB user. You should write an article for the Totsepedia. :D

yeah, I know, and I was actually going to write an astronomy textfile for totse but it looks like its going to be for zoklet instead.

FYI, another pic should be coming tonight. PREFERABLY WITH CLOSEUPS TOO!

[zuperxtreme]

Awesome.

Didn't you at one point post a flickr album thing once?

I could have sworn some guy posted a link of the pics he had taken.

[Midnight Sun]

Awesome.

Didn't you at one point post a flickr album thing once?

I could have sworn some guy posted a link of the pics he had taken.

yah, that was me.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/32977326@N04/

[zuperxtreme]

Cool.

Bookmarked.

[0x29A]

Those pix of saturn are crazy, how the hell did you get that shot? What power telescope do I need to see saturn in that kind of detail?

[Midnight Sun]

Those pix of saturn are crazy, how the hell did you get that shot? What power telescope do I need to see saturn in that kind of detail?

the one of Saturn where you can actually see the rings as rings, not as a line, were shot with an off-the-shelf digital camera held to the eyepiece of my NexStar 130. The other one was through the Maksutov-Cassegrain. Either way both are kind of dismal, I wish I had more aperture or something since the bands on the planet are missing in both shots.

Just finished collecting the data for tonight's moon and pre-processing it. 'bout to assemble and post-process now...

[0x29A]

answer the second part of my question habanero!!!

[Midnight Sun]

answer the second part of my question habanero!!!

:mad::mad::mad:if you scrolled up to see what equipment I use, that should give you an impression of about a decent enough minimum to see Saturn. I would recommend a catadioptric like the Maksutov-Cassegrain but a Schmidt-Cassegrain will work okay too. Spectacular views can be had in a 5". Everything on up only adds to the eye-porn.

[Jordan]

Nice shot.

There's an man in there you know.

[Midnight Sun]

Interesting story, while I was evaluating the moon this afternoon through binoculars, a weather balloon flew by. Could see the balloon, the strings, and its payload. Kinda cool.

The moment you've been waiting for: Moon Part II:

http://i44.tinypic.com/1zntl5w.png

Less interesting than last night. The interesting phase of tomorrow night looks like it shall be rained out :facepalm:

Closeups are on their way!

[Siu3d]

It sucks we can only see one side of the moon. Cool pics btw...

[Midnight Sun]

Eh, I have good nights and bad nights...shit can be reliant on a lot of things. A thing to watch out for is how when the phase advances, the part furthest away from the day/night line will become shittier and shittier as there is less contrast to work with.

Here are the closeups:
Proclus: http://i41.tinypic.com/qqzdqs.png
(the one with all the rays coming from it)
A bunch of random shit: http://i43.tinypic.com/16k1dmh.png
Theophilus & its region: http://i41.tinypic.com/167pc9g.png
(furthest right of the big ol' chain of three craters)

[Yggdrasil]

Boy, where are you? I've never seen the sky that crisp in my life.

[God Like]

what am i looking for...do the stars make a funny shape or the cloud things?

[Midnight Sun]

Boy, where are you? I've never seen the sky that crisp in my life.

lol, Connecticut. Its not that good tbh, I'm in a red/yellow zone on a scale of red being worse than yellow and just a step away from white as the worst.

[Yggdrasil]

lol, Connecticut. Its not that good tbh, I'm in a red/yellow zone on a scale of red being worse than yellow and just a step away from white as the worst.

I can see a maximum of like 70 stars in the sky. The sky isn't even dark; it's a purplish haze. Fucking urban area...

[Rhino Cock 3000]

is space as colorful as they show it in the pictures?

[Agronox]

is space as colorful as they show it in the pictures?

generally that coloration is a result of different light filters, ie xray, uv, visible but it depends on the picture and space is a big place, theres got to be colors somewhere :p

[Midnight Sun]

is space as colorful as they show it in the pictures?

it can be. sometimes you can see a blue or greenish tint to the nebula I photographed with a dark enough sky and large enough telescope. there are a few others that show color too.

For the most part, color images are shot through R G B filters and combined to make color, or the nebulae are shot in narrowband (Sulfur II, Hydrogen Alpha, and Oxygen III emissions) for falsecolor...and sometimes infrared and X-ray in the case of the hubble telescope, where its images are paired with those from Spitzer and Chandra.

[Fetus-Smasher]

I'm not bothered by a nice clear night, living outside of L.A. It sucks.

[Drox]

Are you angry at the Nebula

[zuperxtreme]

Fucking +rep :mad:

[Midnight Sun]

Are you angry at the Nebula

now why would that be :confused:

[TheDoc]

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3190/3285849931_8b70e30ae1_o.png

Enjoy.

Looks like someone just snorted up a bunch of coke in a hurry on a black shiny surface.

Peace.

[Haiti's Space Agency]

I always enjoy these.

[Wraith]

Are you planning on studying Astronomy?

[Midnight Sun]

Are you planning on studying Astronomy?

you got it boss

[The English Gentleman]

nice, though I was hoping it was code for titties:rolleyes:

[whimsi]

Awesome =D

[Kinkou]

habanero,

space is hawt

[Mutant Funk Drink]

That's pretty cool! I remember when I first found the Orion Nebula through my homemade dobsonian telescope. It was wicked. :cool:

[Rhino Cock 3000]

can you post more?

[The Gow]

That's pretty sweet.
What kind of telescope do you use?

[Midnight Sun]

That's pretty sweet.
What kind of telescope do you use?

5" newtonian reflector

[Ford Prefect]

Awesome.

Do you like math? I really wanted to study astronomy but half of the courses seemed to be math-related.

[Midnight Sun]

Awesome.

Do you like math? I really wanted to study astronomy but half of the courses seemed to be math-related.

I'm not so great at it, but it's a lot more engaging than reading.

[Duelist]

aren't all celestial bodies "gravitationally interacting" with each other?

It seems i am gravitationally interacting with my keyboard right now, as well.

[Midnight Sun]

aren't all celestial bodies "gravitationally interacting" with each other?

It seems i am gravitationally interacting with my keyboard right now, as well.

ahh, galaxies group into clusters and then into superclusters...but the gravitational interaction between loose members of superclusters is far smaller than that of a close knit cluster.

[Mutant Funk Drink]

5" newtonian reflector

That's pretty good for 5". My homemade scope(before I dismantled it) was 10", and I didn't get to see stuff that cool.

How exactly are you taking these photos from your scope? I briefly tried it many years ago but couldn't figure it out.

[Midnight Sun]

That's pretty good for 5". My homemade scope(before I dismantled it) was 10", and I didn't get to see stuff that cool.

How exactly are you taking these photos from your scope? I briefly tried it many years ago but couldn't figure it out.

I have an obsolete CCD camera...these are all 15 second exposures by it. Once I upgrade my mount I'll be able to move on up to 5 minutes.

They don't look nearly as cool with my naked eye, with the 5" and light domes they appear as hazy patches but still cool nonetheless!

[Cliche Guevara]

Wouldnt a 5 minute exposure just look really blurry cause the stars are moving?

[Midnight Sun]

Wouldnt a 5 minute exposure just look really blurry cause the stars are moving?

there is such a thing as motor drives you know ;)

That's what allows me to shoot the 15 second exposures, but the way the motors are put together, it only follows the object and not its slight rotation as it moves through the sky. (if you ever notice, when a constallation rises, it is tipped up, at its highest is straight, and when it sets it is tipped down.) An equatorial mount is designed to follow this arc and therefore eliminate the rotation.

[zuperxtreme]

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3650/3289900018_d5d0805d99_o.png
NGC 3628

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3390/3289937458_b8aaf7e7d7_o.png
M 66

These are 2 out of 3 galaxies in a group that are gravitationally interacting with each other (would've imaged the third but it kept drifting away :( )

Also my first images of galaxies, ever. :D

Thats awesome. :D

http://www.martinpughastrophotography.id.au/images/NGC3628LRGB.jpg

http://www.tayabeixo.org/portadas/images/m66_cfht.jpg

[Rhino Cock 3000]

you kick ass! I've always been a space lover.

that is fucking awesome!!!

[LSA King]

Thats amazing if only the nearest solar system wasn't light years away :(.

[Mirana]

I think I see a spaceship in the first one!

[Rhino Cock 3000]

somewhere in those galaxies is life. :eek:

[zuperxtreme]

And to think that those few pixels are FUCKING HUGE :mad:

[brotherinarms]

thats really dope man 1+

[electric wizard]

Kudos man! This is fucking cool! My Dad's got one of those massive "yard cannon" telescopes, but I haven't gotten around to asking him if we can use it some night.

[Midnight Sun]

Thanks everyone. I have a sort of "shopping list" of shit to image before they disappear for another year, so yeah, this shouldn't be the last.

[Fetus-Smasher]

Those things are awsome! Good stuff.

[1e-]

Very cool. Have a place where you post your photos? What telescope are you using?

[Midnight Sun]

Very cool. Have a place where you post your photos? What telescope are you using?

yeah, my flickr. I use a 5" newtonian reflector.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/32977326@N04

[Former FBI Agent]

Great fucking pics, man. Nice to see some nice photography other than Sybil's useless stuff. You should post a hi res version of that moon shot.

[Midnight Sun]

Great fucking pics, man. Nice to see some nice photography other than Sybil's useless stuff. You should post a hi res version of that moon shot.

Yeah, well, I would like to, but unfortunately, my drive with the full pic on it crashed. The moon will be waxing again soon, at that time I'll redo it.

[Siu3d]

Why is there so much hate in this thread...

Do you always post with the angry smiley, or only when you're talking about astronomy?

[Midnight Sun]

Why is there so much hate in this thread...

Do you always post with the angry smiley, or only when you're talking about astronomy?

lol, look at my post history, I almost always use the angry smiley.

Making up for lost time when he was gone on totse :mad:

[I Still Needmoney]

I love space photography, it's absolutely facinating.

[Vizier]

+Rep

Keep posting more pics man.

[Haiti's Space Agency]

Neato

[Illegal characters]

How do you have you camera rigged up?

Also ever think about IR/UV photography?

Will totally check out your Flickr

[Haiti's Space Agency]

How do you have you camera rigged up?

Also ever think about IR/UV photography?

Will totally check out your Flickr

WHAT.THE.FUCK.:eek:

[zuperxtreme]

EDIT: WRONG THREAD :mad:

[Midnight Sun]

How do you have you camera rigged up?

Also ever think about IR/UV photography?

Will totally check out your Flickr

Its a special CCD at prime focus.

I have thought about IR/UV. The tendency is in fact to block IR and UV because they can cause color fuckups.

However, IR pass and UV pass filters do exist, they're effective on planets though...I think with deep sky, they just wouldn't pass enough light. *shrugs* I think that's why, I've never, or if I have, very rarely seen IR/UV amateur astrophotography.

[Kinkou]

space is hawt, moon man

:mad: :mad:

[Midnight Sun]

space is hawt, moon man

:mad: :mad:

mmmm, babe so are you *cops a feel*

[1e-]

I really enjoyed your photos! Thanks for sharing. I love space people! :)

[Yggdrasil]

Where do you live, Habanero? Or should I say, where were the shots taken?

[I Still Needmoney]

I really enjoyed your photos! Thanks for sharing. I love space people! :)

Heh, "space people"...

*Shakes head and goes back to reading newspaper*

[Midnight Sun]

Where do you live, Habanero? Or should I say, where were the shots taken?

Connecticut.

I just took amazing galaxy shots. I have to work on them, but expect them in 45 mins or so, I'd guess..probably less but maybe that.

[Frank]

Got any suggestions for a telescope for a layman? I was looking to buy one about half a year ago but had no idea what I was looking for, there's just too much.

[Dickhead]

Old, fake.

[Rhino Cock 3000]

is it possible to take color shots?

[Midnight Sun]

Got any suggestions for a telescope for a layman? I was looking to buy one about half a year ago but had no idea what I was looking for, there's just too much.

Well, if you're willing to learn your way around the sky manually, you can't beat a dobsonian for the price. Some of the more expensive ones come with a rudimentary computer for finding things.

The one that I photographed this with is a Celestron NexStar 130, which I am very pleased with. It has an extensive computer which is nice when it works: it hasn't worked well for me until recently when it decided to work well.


Old, fake.


Wash your face with my balls. :facepalm::mad:

is it possible to take color shots?

It is, and that's next on my list. It's a monochrome camera, so I have to shoot the RGB channels individually, which is time consuming. However, given the time and the patience, I will shoot color. (you can get one shot color cameras, but shooting individual channels yields a much more detailed image)

[captain_pants]

Supernovas are such beautiful things.

[Rhino Cock 3000]

fuck man this is just awesome! +1

[SKUV]

cool

[Cathy McGee]

fucking rad!

i love astronomy so much, everything in space is just so fucking beautiful

so major props on the pics :D

[Lockie666]

I've been there before :rolleyes:

[Midnight Sun]

fucking rad!

i love astronomy so much, everything in space is just so fucking beautiful

so major props on the pics :D

thanks, and I agree

[Illegal Immigrant]

I call shens on every pic you have ever posted./

[Midnight Sun]

I call shens on every pic you have ever posted./

o rly.

well if that sentiment is shared, the next time I go outside for astrophotography, I will video the whole thing. Alignment, focus, and image acquisition.

[Illegal Immigrant]

o rly.

well if that sentiment is shared, the next time I go outside for astrophotography, I will video the whole thing. Alignment, focus, and image acquisition.


Please do so.


i am sure we would all like to see.

[LSA King]

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3401/3299577194_785ec48d6e_o.png




Looks like a Spiral galaxy to me ;). I always thought Whirlpool was a more proper name to describe the look though. Damn scientists and there funny way of naming things.

[Midnight Sun]

Looks like a Spiral galaxy to me ;). I always thought Whirlpool was a more proper name to describe the look though. Damn scientists and there funny way of naming things.

Well yeah.

It's a spiral, but its nicknamed the Whirlpool Galaxy, just like there's the Triangulum Galaxy, the Black-Eye Galaxy, and the Andromeda Galaxy to name a few.

[LSA King]

Its a pretty cool shot though. Spiral Galaxies are my personally favorite. They are much less in the universe from what scientists have observed compared to other types and they usually tend to hold the most stars (therefore more possibilities for worlds, earths, etc.).


Just thinking aout 100+ billion suns in our galaxy alone is crazy.

[Hammer Tank]

kick ass... you should photograph the comet passing by on 23 Feb.

[Midnight Sun]

kick ass... you should photograph the comet passing by on 23 Feb.

full intentions to do so.

also have intentions to photograph more galaxies

then the next morning, at 5:53 I have to get a shot of a solar eclipse on Saturn by Titan, so, no sleep for me.

[brotherinarms]

Holy nigger thats cool

[Curb Stomp]

Holy nigger thats cool

This.

And good job.

[Kosh Naranek]

What a pleasant surprise! Good job, man. Space truly is the final frontier.

[zuperxtreme]

What a pleasant surprise! Good job, man. Space truly is the final frontier.

The final frontier is our MINDS!

[The Risen Ghost of Hitler]

Is the Whirlpool Galaxy sponsored by those blokes who make the washing machines?

[Midnight Sun]

Is the Whirlpool Galaxy sponsored by those blokes who make the washing machines?

:facepalm:

[Fetus-Smasher]

Your pics are frickin awsome. Are you able to take a pic of the moon? I don't think I've seen a home made pic of the flag on there.

[Midnight Sun]

Your pics are frickin awsome. Are you able to take a pic of the moon? I don't think I've seen a home made pic of the flag on there.

yeah, you missed my mosaic of the crescent moon. In a week or so the moon will be back again, nixing for the most part any deep sky work and allowing for lunar work.

forget about me being able to image any of the lunar lander rocket stages or the flag, they're just too damn small. Not even Hubble could see those. I can, however, image the landing sites themselves. That's no problem.

[JustFate]

I dont know what the fuck is going on, but looks cool :D

[Siu3d]

I haven't even been able to see the sky for the past month because of all this bullshit snow and weather...the weather must be great where you are.

[---Beany---]

Would this be gods sphincter?

[1e-]

Think you'll be able to catch the comet that'll be passing by?

[Midnight Sun]

Think you'll be able to catch the comet that'll be passing by?

*points to original post*

that's what I'm waiting for

[1e-]

*points to original post*

that's what I'm waiting for

Completely missed it. Wow, Habanero you actually have a life. Whats it like?

[Midnight Sun]

Completely missed it. Wow, Habanero you actually have a life. Whats it like?

dull

except when I drop acid

[Drox]

Photograph some aliens next time

[Siu3d]

Photograph some aliens next time

I don't think he lives that close to the border.

[Cliche Guevara]

I don't think he lives that close to the border.

hahaha

[1e-]

I don't think he lives that close to the border.

I LOL'd

[0x29A]

wow thats AWESOME habanero.. you da man!

[kelsokid18]

http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f160/kelsokid18/ups_truck.jpg

[Rainycity]

how did you take these pics sorry i dont no much about this stuff and always wanted to no how

[Fuck_Meta_8]

Interesting fellow you are.

11 second exposures?

I don't know much about pictures, but isn't that quite long?

[Cliche Guevara]

cool man i enjoy these threads

[Junior Jacon Jeese Jurger]

Comet lulz.

:confused:

[mrgoodbar]

thanks for the post my good man

[HeWhoNeverSleeps]

Interesting fellow you are.

11 second exposures?

I don't know much about pictures, but isn't that quite long?

Pssh, that's nothing. I've had to take 90, 60, and 30 minute exposures using my telescope.

still, that's pretty damn impressive.

Pretty cool picture

[cronic5]

Cool. How into comets and such are you?

[Midnight Sun]

Pssh, that's nothing. I've had to take 90, 60, and 30 minute exposures using my telescope.

still, that's pretty damn impressive.

Pretty cool picture

Until I get an EQ mount I'm stuck with <15 seconds :(

Cool. How into comets and such are you?

Not a diehard, but I still enjoy them.

[Midnight Sun]

how did you take these pics sorry i dont no much about this stuff and always wanted to no how

Well...My telescope tracks the galaxies, and I have a CCD at prime focus which exposes for (in this case, 8 and 4 seconds) repeatedly. It stacks the individual exposures together, so if I had 8 8 second exposures that'd be like a 64 second exposure.

You can use DSLRs too, but I've never tried.

[Macgruber]

faggot space beaner

[Midnight Sun]

faggot space beaner

:mad:anus ape:mad:

[Village Idiot]

faggot space beaner

Mcgruber, is something upsetting you today? You seem angry.

[Macgruber]

:mad:anus ape:mad:

Wow nice one seniorita

[Midnight Sun]

Wow nice one seniorita

:)

[@@@]

Why is the sun grey?

ps- cool pix.

[Macgruber]

Mcgruber, is something upsetting you today? You seem angry.

Nope, I'm kind of high off weed, and got suspended for a fight but, no problems

[Midnight Sun]

Why is the sun grey?

ps- cool pix.

Well, through the solar filter it's white. I can use an orange filter to approximate true color but I didn't. Anyway what was happening was that as I upped the contrast, the sun was turning blue, so I just desaturated it.

[Village Idiot]

Nope, I'm kind of high off weed, and got suspended for a fight but, no problems

Alright just making sure. Carry on then!

[Irukanji]

Nice, keep up the good work. Any way to just hold the shutter down instead of the timer? If so, just rig something up to keep it down, and go somewhere nice and dark :)

[dark_rider_666]

Well, you can hold for as long as you want if you set your exposure to "Bulb" Mode, only problem is you do have to hold it down for however long you want to.

[Kinkou]

thumbs up moon man

my favorite is picture # 3 :)

[dark_rider_666]

And yeah, Nice pictures :)

[1e-]

Talented little shit. ;) Great pics.

[Midnight Sun]

I have nearly unlimited exposure time with my CCD. The problem is the mount - it can't track accurately above 15 seconds at a time in my experience.

Until I get a GEM that is. :evil_bat:

[skyclaw441]

Very good job with this, I saw it through 10x50 binoculars as a dim blur to the right of Saturn on it's path last night. It took me 10-15 min. to find it, though.

[Kinkou]

old news...... :D

goodnight habanero

[Thelegendarylocke]

lol beaner astronaut and bitch ex-mod

[OMGPLZDNTBAN]

This thread title is misleading.

I'm in the middle of stephen hawkings, "A brief History of Time" for the third time. Shit that get's me thinking.

[Midnight Sun]

what can I say...flame nebula, fifteen minutes of fame...I thought it was catchy :facepalm:

[OMGPLZDNTBAN]

When I hear flame, you know what us noobs think.


I'm really just posting this for the bump.

[0x29A]

Yeah Habanero!! You're awesome!

[dcbp00]

what camera u uze?

[1e-]

what can I say...flame nebula, fifteen minutes of fame...I thought it was catchy :facepalm:

It was not lost on all, friend.

[PwnasaurusRex]

+1 for pun.
+1 for outerspace

[Midnight Sun]

what camera u uze?

An obsolete, monochrome CCD, known as the meade DSI.

I will, however, stick with monochrome when I upgrade due to increased sensitivity over straight color.

[Drox]

Will I find anything in this thread I can't find on Wikipedia

[Midnight Sun]

You can find anything you want on wikipedia.

If you don't like it, then say so and proceed to blow me.

[Rhino Cock 3000]

I like this.

I'd like more Galaxy shots too. I'd rep you but it says I need to spread more rep before giving it to you again.

[Midnight Sun]

I like this.

I'd like more Galaxy shots too. I'd rep you but it says I need to spread more rep before giving it to you again.

Your wishes will be fufilled as soon as the moon starts to wane and gives me an hour or two of good darkness. Then I intend to poke my telescope into the Virgo cluster of galaxies...we will be seeing some of the Sombrero galaxy along with a giant elliptical galaxy that has a large jet shooting out from its core...with any luck I will(should) catch that. Plus others! :D

[Vega]

So this is you? http://www.flickr.com/people/32977326@N04/

[Midnight Sun]

yeah

[shoplifter]

What shitty pictures, they're fucking blurry and shit.

[Midnight Sun]

What shitty pictures, they're fucking blurry and shit.

Not like you could do any better :rolleyes:

[7i8_Dago]

I shot this last night and around a month ago. Because Saturn's features are subtle to begin with and rotation is impossible really to see at this aperture level, I can get away with that. The result picture was a cleaner, larger, crisper version than either the luminance (what I shot in february, which provides the detail of the picture) or the RGB (what I shot last night, this gives the monochrome luminance color).

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3586/3340272184_e63b6fd7b3_o.png

tl;dr: I shot two pictures of Saturn a month apart. Both had positives and both sucked. When I combined them they kicked ass.

no one cares

[Midnight Sun]

no one cares

who asked you? :mad:

[Vizier]

I'd punch a baby in the face and kick the pope in the balls to be able to travel to Saturn.

[Rocko]

I'd punch a baby in the face and kick the pope in the balls to be able to travel to Saturn.

I would shoot a baby in the face and fuck the pope for a trip to Saturn.

Awesome pic.

[7i8_Dago]

who asked you? :mad:

why so glum?

its OPPOSITE DAY

:mad: = :)

[LSA King]

I'd punch a baby in the face and kick the pope in the balls to be able to travel to Saturn.



I did bot and all I got was prison time and syphillis. No saturn :(

[Vizier]

I would shoot a baby in the face and fuck the pope for a trip to Saturn.


I would shoot a baby in the face, rape it through every orifice, rape the pope while crucified and fap to Jesus, Buddah and Oprah for a trip to Saturn :mad:

I guess it's too much though.

[Midnight Sun]

the replies to this are golden


One day I'm going to discover an asteroid, and name it Totse. Not shitting you.
There are enough undiscovered rocks out there for Totse to have a place on...

[IWD]

molotov in the morning quit following me around.

[OMGPLZDNTBAN]

I always liked that pic of saturn from the fly by satellite that shows a shadow.

[0x29A]

Wow dude that is sooo freakin awesome!

[Former FBI Agent]

I would shoot a baby in the face, rape it through every orifice, rape the pope while crucified and fap to Jesus, Buddah and Oprah for a trip to Saturn :mad:

I guess it's too much though.

I'd rape a baby while I'm raping the pope with said baby while crucified on a cross made of dead babies and popes for a trip to Saturn. I'd get octomom to film it too. :mad: :mad:

[Marijuanasaurus]

this is the coolest one youve posted so far. good work:thumbsup:

[Vizier]

I'd rape a baby while I'm raping the pope with said baby while crucified on a cross made of dead babies and popes for a trip to Saturn. I'd get octomom to film it too. :mad: :mad:

I'd stick a highlighter in my ass while I fuck a toaster for a trip to Saturn :mad:

[Midnight Sun]

this is the coolest one youve posted so far. good work:thumbsup:
Wow dude that is sooo freakin awesome!
Thanks!

I'd stick a highlighter in my ass while I fuck a toaster for a trip to Saturn :mad:
Just about blew away the competition there.

[zuperxtreme]

Did you know that Saturn is FUCKING FAR?

And you took a picture. Well 2 technically.

Fucking props. :thumbsup:

[Vizier]

Did you know that Saturn is FUCKING FAR?

And you took a picture. Well 2 technically.

Fucking props. :thumbsup:

Sunlight takes about 1 and a half hours to reach Saturn.

[Rocko]

Sunlight takes about 1 and a half hours to reach Saturn.

Compared to about 8 minutes for Earth.

That's a LONG FUCKING WAY.

[LSA King]

This morning I masturbated....sike!

[Mutant Funk Drink]

That's pretty cool, though honestly if it were not for the red circle, I would not have been able to tell that it was the shadow of titan. The image is so blown up that it's difficult to differentiate it from the other black "dots". Pretty neat though. You can kind of see where the rings begin.

[Midnight Sun]

That's pretty cool, though honestly if it were not for the red circle, I would not have been able to tell that it was the shadow of titan. The image is so blown up that it's difficult to differentiate it from the other black "dots". Pretty neat though. You can kind of see where the rings begin.

Yeah, I know. I sifted through the images endlessly making adjustments till I found this one. It helped to know where the shadow was supposed to be so I knew where to look.

[master killer]

This thread is cool.

[Mikehunt1]

http://i44.tinypic.com/awz14g.gif

[Duelist]

lies












j/k awesome

[Flex Rigid]

Neat.

[Orgasm Hut]

Keep up the awesome!

[Biggz-K24]

Why did you use MR. HAI instead of the classic angry face?:confused:

[PointlessForest]

Wow, i feel like every time you post space pics, they get better and better.:thumbsup:

[FoX]

Cool pics :thumbsup:. I wish I had the gear to look into space like that

[Rainycity]

First up is Venus. It is getting very large now in apparent diameter while its illuminated portion is drastically shrinking - it is only at 4% illumination in this photograph.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3446/3363341171_845c64f215_o.png

Second is a 2-frame mosaic of the Running Man Nebula and an emission nebula catalogued 43 in Charles Messier's catalog. The Running Man is on the left. The strange, thick, darker grey line running through it is not a dust mote or anything, it is actually part of the nebula.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3657/3364635880_b78241ae1f_o.png

That previous photo is in fact part of a larger "molecular cloud" that includes the Great Orion Nebula, stitched into the mosaic below:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3609/3363871877_270975fe6d_b.jpg

Next is a globular star cluster. These are huge clusters of stars, hundreds of thousands of them, crammed into a very small space. They may be the former cores of galaxies our own Milky Way has "devoured". They orbit the galaxy outside its plane.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3109/3364869214_01792b5c12_o.png

Finally is the Whirlpool Galaxy. This is a bit of a reprocess of an old one using data taken tonight, it smoothed and softened the arm detail just a bit (it was oversharpened previously) and added some detail to the faint dust that is strewn all outside this galaxy and its companion.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3364867182_19cb0850d7_o.png

And because I liked the globular star cluster photograph so much I made it into a huge image for people to use as a desktop: http://bayimg.com/image/naobbaabg.jpg



Why in the third picture there is a big black sqaure void, did a sqaure black whole eat it up.

[Dark Feather]

They dont come come in coloured versions do they???? like on the science magzine ......

Btw great work mate, u goin/are into astronomy or is it just a hobby???....

thumbs up

[Midnight Sun]

They dont come come in coloured versions do they???? like on the science magzine ......

Btw great work mate, u goin/are into astronomy or is it just a hobby???....

thumbs up

nah, right now its too much damn effort to shoot color :P Maybe soon though.

and yeah I'm going to college for astronomy next year.


Re: I photographed a whole bunch of space stuff tonight.
Why did you use MR. HAI instead of the classic angry face?

Because I felt like it. :mad:

[Rainycity]

i bet this guy got theses pics from google, since he hasnt said anything

[pill popper]

Not too bad
nice pics

[Erorr]

i bet this guy got theses pics from google, since he hasnt said anything


He's posted atleast 3 threads involving photos he may or may have not took. Personally i think there authentic , but even if he is posting off google who cares either way his threads always deliver

[0x29A]

Yay Habanero!

[HeWhoNeverSleeps]

Just too fucking sweet dude!:thumbsup:

[Craigslist.org]

Looks cool.

[IWD]

First up is Venus. It is getting very large now in apparent diameter while its illuminated portion is drastically shrinking - it is only at 4% illumination in this photograph.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3446/3363341171_845c64f215_o.png

Second is a 2-frame mosaic of the Running Man Nebula and an emission nebula catalogued 43 in Charles Messier's catalog. The Running Man is on the left. The strange, thick, darker grey line running through it is not a dust mote or anything, it is actually part of the nebula.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3657/3364635880_b78241ae1f_o.png

That previous photo is in fact part of a larger "molecular cloud" that includes the Great Orion Nebula, stitched into the mosaic below:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3609/3363871877_270975fe6d_b.jpg

Next is a globular star cluster. These are huge clusters of stars, hundreds of thousands of them, crammed into a very small space. They may be the former cores of galaxies our own Milky Way has "devoured". They orbit the galaxy outside its plane.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3109/3364869214_01792b5c12_o.png

Finally is the Whirlpool Galaxy. This is a bit of a reprocess of an old one using data taken tonight, it smoothed and softened the arm detail just a bit (it was oversharpened previously) and added some detail to the faint dust that is strewn all outside this galaxy and its companion.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3574/3364867182_19cb0850d7_o.png

And because I liked the globular star cluster photograph so much I made it into a huge image for people to use as a desktop: http://bayimg.com/image/naobbaabg.jpg

Fail.

[The English Gentleman]

Very nice, thanks for the pics.

[OMGPLZDNTBAN]

You need a bigger telescope:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Antennae_galaxies_xl.jpg

[Midnight Sun]

You need a bigger telescope:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Antennae_galaxies_xl.jpg

not only that I want a better camera :facepalm:

just can't afford shit right now :/ this may change within a few months though

[Marijuanasaurus]

You need a bigger telescope:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Antennae_galaxies_xl.jpg

this

id stick my dick in that galaxy

[Haiti's Space Agency]

Your pictures aren't very impressive.

[OMGPLZDNTBAN]

Your pictures aren't very impressive.

are your's better? but so good to hear it.

[Midnight Sun]

Your pictures aren't very impressive.

not saying that they are...I have just a month's experience with taking this kind of astrophotograph...

[Haiti's Space Agency]

not saying that they are...I have just a month's experience with taking this kind of astrophotograph...

I might even go as far as calling them unimpressive.

[OMGPLZDNTBAN]

Troll! but so good to hear!

[Midnight Sun]

I might even go as far as calling them unimpressive.

always appreciate your opinion! :D

[Mutant Funk Drink]

That's pretty fucking cool. I think that's the best pic you've taken so far.

[Haiti's Space Agency]

That's pretty fucking cool. I think that's the best pic you've taken so far.

Which isn't saying a lot.:rolleyes:

[Mutant Funk Drink]

Which isn't saying a lot.:rolleyes:

You guys are such wankers for expecting hubble quality color photos of celestial objects. :rolleyes:

[Haiti's Space Agency]

You guys are such wankers for expecting hubble quality color photos of celestial objects. :rolleyes:

you guys are such wankers for embracing quantity(amount of astronomy threads) over quality.

[Mutant Funk Drink]

you guys are such wankers for embracing quantity(amount of astronomy threads) over quality.

I know, it must distract you more from scratching your ass, picking your nose, and being such a great mod.

[Haiti's Space Agency]

I know, it must distract you more from scratching your ass, picking your nose, and being such a great mod.

I'm not a mod. I'm just sayin. Maybe make a thread about astronomical photographs when its something worth talking about.

[Mutant Funk Drink]

I'm not a mod. I'm just sayin. Maybe make a thread about astronomical photographs when its something worth talking about.

Ah, I mistook the Senior Member title for you being a mod. :p

I see what you mean. Though I was really more talking about people criticizing what are amateur astronomical photographs.

Eh, not something for us to get worked up over. Have a banana. :cool:

[Haiti's Space Agency]

Yay! Bananas! NOM NOM NOM

[Echidna]

I think these space photo threads are awesome. I've never seen any of that shit before in person, I've barely seen the moon clearly.

You need a bigger telescope:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/Antennae_galaxies_xl.jpg

Is it an actual photo? Space trips me out. I was watching some show on the Science channel they were like "in 500 years we'll be deep out in space, and on other planets". I couldn't stop thinking, holy shit this is going to be awesome. Then I realized I won't make it unless I go the Walt Disney approach..

(yeah I know he wasn't really frozen.)

[Midnight Sun]

well, look, I do my best...I actually spent a lot of time on this (try a span of 3 days), it's not my fault I can't afford anything more than an obsolete camera that sucks nigger cock and a small telescope that tracks the skies poorly. Depending on various circumstances this will change in approximately a month and a half.

[PointlessForest]

well, look, I do my best...I actually spent a lot of time on this (try a span of 3 days), it's not my fault I can't afford anything more than an obsolete camera that sucks nigger cock and a small telescope that tracks the skies poorly. Depending on various circumstances this will change in approximately a month and a half.


Hey, don't let that asshat make you doubt yourself. Space photography is difficult, and your pictures are impressive, keep posting more. Kudos. :thumbsup:

[the beat]

Which isn't saying a lot.:rolleyes:

You suck.

[LSA King]

Damn thats pretty sweet.

[Midnight Sun]

I just realized it looks anemic on some monitors due to darkness...I'll make a brighter version just in case..

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3627/3373510022_4802cd964b_o.png

[the beat]

Eye of God:

http://www.grebz.fr/Images/astronomie/photos_originales/NGC7293_eye_of_god.jpg

[Haiti's Space Agency]

I just realized it looks anemic on some monitors due to darkness...I'll make a brighter version just in case..

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3627/3373510022_4802cd964b_o.png

Amazing.

[Cliche Guevara]

how long are those exposures? I still don't get how you do it with a normal telescope and camera you just point the camera into the telescope and follow galaxies around?

[Midnight Sun]

Amazing.
:mad:

how long are those exposures? I still don't get how you do it with a normal telescope and camera you just point the camera into the telescope and follow galaxies around?

40x30 seconds each, at least the most recent ones, combined together to get, effectively, a very clean 30 second exposure. (1 30 second exposure has a lot of noise, combining a lot of them increases the signal to noise ratio)

I have a camera specially designed for this purpose. It is a very sensitive monochrome CCD (monochrome for sensitivity, lacks the Bayer filter) and a telescope that isn't really designed for this purpose. It can track, easily enough, but it has severe periodic error (it doesn't track well) so I am very limited in what I can do with it. The camera is lensless since the telescope acts as a giant lens for it, and is fitted with a 1.25" barrel to fit directly (prime focus) into my telescope's focusing tube. It is controlled via a laptop.

As I have said I intend to overhaul this setup soon, new camera, mount, scope, etc, vastly increasing my ability to do this kind of stuff.