Capturing and Processing Deep Space Images. Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018

Size: px
Start display at page:

Download "Capturing and Processing Deep Space Images. Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018"

Transcription

1 Capturing and Processing Deep Space Images Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018

2 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 2

3 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 3

4 Astrophotography AstroPhotography : recording light coming outside of our planet Astro star Photography Photo light Graphy drawing 2 basic types of astrophotography Deep Sky Dealing with objects outside our solar system Planetary Dealing with objects inside our solar system Moon(s), Planets Each type requires different equipment and techniques. We will focus on deep sky astrophotography Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 4

5 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 5

6 Telescopes Usually fast newtonian reflectors, apochromatic refractors. Price, Performance, Handling Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 6

7 Cameras Astronomy Cameras split into 2 categories: deep space and planetary. Deep space cameras Large sensor (Regulated) Cooling CCD (or CMOS) Modified DSLRs (deprecated nowdays) Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 7

8 Target image Camera and optical system combination Focal length of the system: Telescope FL, Barlow (focal length multiplier) Magnification: related to camera pixel size and focal length FL Targets ~ mm (small FL) Wider shots (i.e. M42, M31) ~ >800mm (medium / large FL) High Magnification More demanding requirements on equipment > 1000mm Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 8

9 Basic Equipment Mono vs Bayer (colour) camera Mono advantages Better useful resolution Color advantages Simplicity (no filter wheel, re-focusing, ) Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 9

10 Basic Equipment Mount capable of tracking Equatorial vs alt/az Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 10

11 Setup in action Guide system is almost necessary Purpose : Tracks a star and sends corrections to the mount Mount are not perfect (Periodic error) Polar alignment will likely not be perfect Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 11

12 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 12

13 Preparation Telescope / cameras / mount / filter wheel / laptop / cable connections, etc. Test everything beforehand to make sure everything works (software and hardware)! Choose a target relatively high (less atmosphere) Cool the telescope. Leave it out for some time (depending on tis size and in/out temperature) to reach the environment temperature. Collimation Align the optics of the telescope More frequently on Newtonians Light pollution is an issue Can have a dramatic effect Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 13

14 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 14

15 Workflow Setup equipment (balance telescopes, align, ) Focus cameras (main camera and imaging camera) Find Target Start guiding Start taking images Take flat frames (always needed) Take dark frames (if needed not always with regulated cooling) Image(s) processing Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 15

16 Typical Setup - Target is framed - Camera is focused - Mount is tracking - Main camera taking images and saving to PC - Guide camera images are processed by an application on the PC which sends corrections to the mount Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 16

17 Acquisition Capturing Software APT Astro Photography Tool (all around tool) Camera provided software Processing software is different Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 17

18 Focusing Focusing Not trivial Live view : center on star, play with focus Find star, take 4 second images with very high gain, several experiments Take test 2-3 images at normal duration ( sec) Also Tools to help: Bahtinov mask, Motor focus, FWHM info Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 18

19 Pointing Targets are not always trivial to frame Especially when they are dim Goto can help Plate solving can help Software takes image Analyzes image to determine where the telescope is exactly pointed Corrects mount actual position Issues goto command to telescope to slew to target Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 19

20 Guiding One to rule them all PHD Guiding Other software available, but this just works Tweak mount control settings (guide pulse duration ) also on mount control software Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 20

21 Imaging We are ready to start taking images Exposure duration seconds no hard rule, depending on the target Be careful not to overexpose bright targets (M42 core for example) Number of images The more the better Several amateurs take images on multiple nights Big difference depending on light pollution (with dark skies we need less images to produce the same result) Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 21

22 Dark frames and flat frames Dark frames To reduce noise Take several exposures of the same length as the images with no light reaching the sensor. to record noise and then remove it Flat frames To reduce optical defects Take several images of an evenly illuminated surface To record deviations from a perfectly illuminated image and take them into account Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 22

23 Dark frames Dark frames are absolutely essential To remove Dark current Although some sensors are reported to produce exceptionally low noise Read out noise Bias Dark frame stretched from my SBIG ST-2K Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 23

24 Flat frames Flat frames are absolutely essential to remove optical defects Difference in illumination on the FOV (also effects due to dust) Need to take also flat darks Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 24

25 Dark and flat frames Due to the extreme processing that we do, in order to bring out detail of the faint objects we recorded, these effects will be visible without dark and flat frames. Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 25

26 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 26

27 Processing We have captured Lights Darks Flats Flat Darks Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 27

28 Processing We have captured (gigabytes of) data as image files. We need to process them. Calibration & Aligning (remove noise and prepare for stacking) Remove master dark frame (remove dark noise) from all images Master dark = combination of all dark frames Divide by master flat frame all images (equalize illumination) Master flat = combination of all flat frames Convert to colour (if using colour camera) Do star analysis and align (move + rotate) all images Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 28

29 Processing Stacking (reduce leftover noise, increase signal) Each picture now contains some leftover "noise after the calibration If the noise (thermal) is random, then combining many images will reduce it. "True" information increases more rapidly at the same point than random noise. Take the best of the pictures and combine (align and stack) them with specialized software. Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 29

30 Processing Stacking Reduce leftover noise after calibration Increase signal (i.e. virtually increase exposure time) Stacking parameters Median Mean Kappa-Sigma Post Stacking: Iterative histogram stretch Sharpening Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 30

31 Processing Stacking Software Deep Sky Stacker also: IRIS (more hardcore specialized processing) PixInsight (very good reputation, commercial) (comprehensive list from Jerry Lodriguss) I personally now just use Deep Sky Stacker (hands on session afterwards) Post Processing Any software able to read 16 bit per pixel images and do histogram manipulation. I personally use Nebulosity 2 Also nice sharpening and noise reduction features for the final touch Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 31

32 Processing Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 32

33 Processing Final steps Crop Save as 8 bit JPG Always keep your original stacked image (and raw files) for later re-processing [cloudy nights] Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 33

34 Thank You Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 34

35 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 15/03/2018 Slide 35

Capturing and Processing Planetary Images. Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 11/06/2015

Capturing and Processing Planetary Images. Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 11/06/2015 Capturing and Processing Planetary Images Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy Club 11/06/2015 Agenda Introduction Basic Equipment Preparation Acquisition Processing Quick demo Petros Pissias Eumetsat Astronomy

More information

Astroimaging From Easy to Less Than Easy. S. Douglas Holland

Astroimaging From Easy to Less Than Easy. S. Douglas Holland Amateur Astrophotography Made possible by advances in: 1. Camera technology 2. High quality amateur telescopes 3. Telescope mounts 4. Computer technology 5. Astroimaging software What You Can Expect: Types

More information

Astronomical Equipment for

Astronomical Equipment for Astronomical Equipment for Martin Mobberley Springer 1 Fundamentals for Beginners 1 Using Low Magnification 1 Using High Magnification 4 Formulae 4 Jargon 4 Eyepiece Sizes 6 2 Refractors and Reflectors

More information

Contents 1 Introduction

Contents 1 Introduction Contents 1 Introduction... 1 Computers and Astronomy... 1 Look Before You Leap!... 1 Advancing from Binoculars... 2 Telescope Types... 3 Small Refractors... 3 Refractor Accessories... 4 Reflectors... 6

More information

You, too, can make useful and beautiful astronomical images at Mees: Lesson 3

You, too, can make useful and beautiful astronomical images at Mees: Lesson 3 You, too, can make useful and beautiful astronomical images at Mees: Lesson 3 Calibration and data reduction Useful references, besides Lessons 1 and 2: The AST 142 Projects manual: http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~dmw/ast142/projects/project.pdf

More information

An Adaptive Autoguider using a Starlight Xpress SX Camera S. B. Foulkes, Westward, Ashperton, Nr. Ledbury, HR8 2RY. Abstract

An Adaptive Autoguider using a Starlight Xpress SX Camera S. B. Foulkes, Westward, Ashperton, Nr. Ledbury, HR8 2RY. Abstract An Adaptive Autoguider using a Starlight Xpress SX Camera S. B. Foulkes, Westward, Ashperton, Nr. Ledbury, HR8 2RY. Abstract The acquisition of very faint deep sky objects, be it analog with film or digital

More information

Telescope Fundamentals

Telescope Fundamentals Telescope Fundamentals The focus of this presentation is to provide an overview of popular equipment available to the amateur astronomy community, as well as the equipment s applicability to differing

More information

Narrowband Imaging, or How to Image in Downtown Portland. Duncan Kitchin OMSI Astro Imaging Conference 2010

Narrowband Imaging, or How to Image in Downtown Portland. Duncan Kitchin OMSI Astro Imaging Conference 2010 Narrowband Imaging, or How to Image in Downtown Portland Duncan Kitchin OMSI Astro Imaging Conference 2010 Agenda Sources of noise in astro images Selectively removing light pollution Narrowband filters

More information

ADAS Guide to choosing the right Telescope. Produced by Members of the Society, Nov 2017

ADAS Guide to choosing the right Telescope. Produced by Members of the Society, Nov 2017 ADAS Guide to choosing the right Telescope Produced by Members of the Society, Nov 2017 Choosing a Telescope Telescope Types Telescope Features Visual or Astrophotography use? Telescope Package or Separate

More information

Objectives: My objective in last night s test was to visually compare how changing the focal ratio of a telescope impacts the following:

Objectives: My objective in last night s test was to visually compare how changing the focal ratio of a telescope impacts the following: Playing With Focal Ratio by Jim Thompson, P.Eng Test Report January 16 th, 2012 Objectives: My objective in last night s test was to visually compare how changing the focal ratio of a telescope impacts

More information

Detection of Exoplanets by Amateur Astronomers

Detection of Exoplanets by Amateur Astronomers Detection of Exoplanets by Amateur Astronomers September 17, 2015 by Dennis M. Conti email: dennis_conti@hotmail.com 1 Background Exoplanet (Extrasolar Planet) a planet orbiting a distant host star First

More information

Canon EOS 20Da, 3504 x 2336 pixel CMOS, 8.2 Mpx Canon EOS 60Da, 5184 x 3456 pixel CMOS, 17.9 Mpx

Canon EOS 20Da, 3504 x 2336 pixel CMOS, 8.2 Mpx Canon EOS 60Da, 5184 x 3456 pixel CMOS, 17.9 Mpx Introduction The Caldwell Catalogue is an astronomical catalog of 109 bright star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies for observation by amateur astronomers. The list was compiled by Sir Patrick Caldwell-Moore,

More information

Photographing the Moon and the ISS. By Thierry Legault

Photographing the Moon and the ISS. By Thierry Legault Photographing the Moon and the ISS By Thierry Legault Photographing the whole Moon: basics Needs a DSLR at prime focus of the telescope The field of view depends on the telescope FL and the size S of the

More information

Telescopes come in three basic styles

Telescopes come in three basic styles Telescopes come in three basic styles Refracting telescopes use lenses Refractors are either achromatic (some color distortion) or apochromatic (very little if any color distortion). Apo refractors use

More information

Imaging with the 70AT and the Meade electronic eyepiece CCD imager By Ted Wilbur 2/4/02

Imaging with the 70AT and the Meade electronic eyepiece CCD imager By Ted Wilbur 2/4/02 Imaging with the 70AT and the Meade electronic eyepiece CCD imager By Ted Wilbur 2/4/02 Background: Follow-up 3/10/02: Process improvements and comments in red - TW I took up the hobby of astronomy in

More information

C2A for Pulsar2 how to control your telescope from C2A

C2A for Pulsar2 how to control your telescope from C2A C2A for Pulsar2 how to control your telescope from C2A C2a is a free and powerful planetarium program available from.http://www.astrosurf.com/c2a/english/ that offers native support for Pulsar2 without

More information

This is the third of 3 parts detailing my experience of auto guiding for astrophotography.

This is the third of 3 parts detailing my experience of auto guiding for astrophotography. AstronomyShed Tutorials Autoguiding - Part 3 - Using you autoguiding setup This is the third of 3 parts detailing my experience of auto guiding for astrophotography. Prerequisites In writing this article

More information

Polar alignment in 5 steps based on the Sánchez Valente method

Polar alignment in 5 steps based on the Sánchez Valente method 1 Polar alignment in 5 steps based on the Sánchez Valente method Compared to the drift alignment method, this one, allows you to easily achieve a perfect polar alignment in just one step. By "perfect polar

More information

Lecture 8. October 25, 2017 Lab 5

Lecture 8. October 25, 2017 Lab 5 Lecture 8 October 25, 2017 Lab 5 News Lab 2 & 3 Handed back next week (I hope). Lab 4 Due today Lab 5 (Transiting Exoplanets) Handed out and observing will start Friday. Due November 8 (or later) Stellar

More information

Remote Observing with HdA/MPIA's 50cm Telescope

Remote Observing with HdA/MPIA's 50cm Telescope Remote Observing with HdA/MPIA's 50cm Telescope Carolin Liefke AstroTechTalk May 5th 2017 Remote observing with HdA/MPIa's 50cm telescope The telescope and its instrumentation Remote observing how does

More information

By Percy Jacobs Pretoria ASSA Centre 2017

By Percy Jacobs Pretoria ASSA Centre 2017 1 By Percy Jacobs Pretoria ASSA Centre 2017 The Agenda Spectroscopy Equipment Planning Preparation Taking the spectra Processing the spectra The maths Some high resolution & more expensive equipment 2

More information

Image 1 - The ProED 80, case and accessories.

Image 1 - The ProED 80, case and accessories. Sky-Watcher USA ProED 80-mm and 100-mm Apo Refractors By James R. Dire, Ph.D. Image 1 - The ProED 80, case and accessories. In the November/December 2013 issue of ATT, I introduced the Sky- Watcher USA

More information

ADVANCED CCD PHOTOMETRY AND EXOPLANET TRANSIT PHOTOMETRY. By : Kenny A. Diaz Eguigure

ADVANCED CCD PHOTOMETRY AND EXOPLANET TRANSIT PHOTOMETRY. By : Kenny A. Diaz Eguigure ADVANCED CCD PHOTOMETRY AND EXOPLANET TRANSIT PHOTOMETRY By : Kenny A. Diaz Eguigure KELT: THE KILODEGREE EXTREMELY LITTLE TELESCOPE Robotic Survey for Transiting Exoplanets KELT-North Deployed 2005 to

More information

How do they work? Chapter 5

How do they work? Chapter 5 Telescopes How do they work? Chapter 5 1. History 2. Lenses & Hardware 3. Reflecting Telescopes 4. Refracting Telescopes History Hans Lippershey Middleburg, Holland invented the refractor telescope in

More information

Detection of Exoplanets Using the Transit Method

Detection of Exoplanets Using the Transit Method Detection of Exoplanets Using the Transit Method De nnis A fanase v, T h e Geo rg e W a s h i n g t o n Un i vers i t y, Washington, DC 20052 dennisafa@gwu.edu Abstract I conducted differential photometry

More information

Lincoln Hills Astronomy Group Exploring the Night Sky. October 28, 2009

Lincoln Hills Astronomy Group Exploring the Night Sky. October 28, 2009 Exploring the Night Sky October 28, 2009 1 Exploring the Night Sky Course Outline Session 1 OC lodge - Ron Presentation: Orientation to the Night Sky Viewing: Naked eye Session 2 OC Lodge John Presentation:

More information

Imaging with SPIRIT Exposure Guide

Imaging with SPIRIT Exposure Guide Imaging with SPIRIT Exposure Guide SPIRIT optical telescopes utilise extremely sensitive cameras to record the light from distant astronomical objects. Even so, exposures of several seconds up to a few

More information

1 The Preliminary Processing

1 The Preliminary Processing AY 257 Modern Observational Techniques...23 1 The Preliminary Processing Frames must be corrected for a bias level and quantum efficiency variations on all scales. For a minority of CCDs and most near-ir

More information

ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY TARGETS Jan-Feb The Sun in Hydrogen Alpha By Theo Ramakers

ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY TARGETS Jan-Feb The Sun in Hydrogen Alpha By Theo Ramakers ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY TARGETS Jan-Feb 2019 The Sun in Hydrogen Alpha 12-26-18 By Theo Ramakers Visual/Bino Targets Quadrantid Meteor Shower: Jan 4-7. The Quadrantid meteor shower will reach its maximum rate

More information

INTRODUCTION TO THE TELESCOPE

INTRODUCTION TO THE TELESCOPE AST 113/114 Fall 2014 / Spring 2016 NAME: INTRODUCTION TO THE TELESCOPE What will you learn in this Lab? For a few of the labs this semester, you will be using an 8-inch Celestron telescope to take observations.

More information

10 - Celestron Telescope II: Operation

10 - Celestron Telescope II: Operation 10 - Celestron Telescope II: Operation Purpose: Gain more experience setting up a 6 Celestron telescope, familiarize yourself with the software interface, and acquire an image with the CCD camera. Due:

More information

D.A.R.V. (DSLR / CCD Drift Alignment by Robert Vice)

D.A.R.V. (DSLR / CCD Drift Alignment by Robert Vice) 1 of 5 5/2/2011 13:55 D.A.R.V. (DSLR / CCD Drift Alignment by Robert Vice) For many years I have spent time learning the Star drift method of alignment for my telescope. Although tedious, it has turned

More information

Operating the Celestron 14 Telescope

Operating the Celestron 14 Telescope Operating the Celestron 14 Telescope 1. The Telescope and Its Controls The Celestron 14-inch telescope is located in the east bay of the observatory (Fig. 1). It is a Schmidt-Cassegrain type instrument;

More information

Mounts and Coordinate Systems

Mounts and Coordinate Systems Mounts and Coordinate Systems Part 3: Some Advanced Techniques For Mounts Last month we looked at the basic mount types and methods for aligning them. This month s article, and the last for this series

More information

Small Aperture Amateur Observational Capabilities/Tools (Imaging/Photometry/Spectroscopy)

Small Aperture Amateur Observational Capabilities/Tools (Imaging/Photometry/Spectroscopy) Small Aperture Amateur Observational Capabilities/Tools (Imaging/Photometry/Spectroscopy) Over several thousand years, astronomy continues to be popular subject among amateurs. Day by day, advancements

More information

AstroBITS: Open Cluster Project

AstroBITS: Open Cluster Project AstroBITS: Open Cluster Project I. Introduction The observational data that astronomers have gathered over many years indicate that all stars form in clusters. In a cloud of hydrogen gas, laced with helium

More information

CONTENTS. vii. in this web service Cambridge University Press. Preface Acknowledgements. xiii xvi

CONTENTS. vii.  in this web service Cambridge University Press. Preface Acknowledgements. xiii xvi CONTENTS Preface Acknowledgements xiii xvi 1 Earth and sky 1 1.1 Planet Earth 1 1.2 The Earth s magnetosphere 6 1.3 Aurorae 8 1.4 Visually observing aurorae 10 1.5 Other methods of observing aurorae 16

More information

Telescopes, Observatories, Data Collection

Telescopes, Observatories, Data Collection Telescopes, Observatories, Data Collection Telescopes 1 Astronomy : observational science only input is the light received different telescopes, different wavelengths of light lab experiments with spectroscopy,

More information

Instructions Manual Zoomion Apollo 80

Instructions Manual Zoomion Apollo 80 Instructions Manual Zoomion Apollo 80 English version 7.2015 Rev A 1 The Zoomion Apollo 80 Figure 1. Parts description. Congratulations on the purchase of the new Zoomion Apollo 80. This telescope will

More information

Where s the Blur? By Eric Chesak

Where s the Blur? By Eric Chesak Where s the Blur? By Eric Chesak www.ericchesak.com echesak@flash.net As an avid astrophotographer, improvement is always the word of the day (or night, as the case may be). As can be imagined, getting

More information

Contents. Part I Developing Your Skills

Contents. Part I Developing Your Skills Contents Part I Developing Your Skills 1 Accessing and Developing Your Observing Skills... 3 1.1 Stargazer or Amateur Astronomer?... 3 1.2 Perceptions and Expectations... 7 1.3 Assessing Your Skills and

More information

Open Cluster Photometry: Part II

Open Cluster Photometry: Part II Project 4 Open Cluster Photometry: Part II Observational Astronomy ASTR 310 Fall 2005 1 Introduction The objective of this and the previous project is to learn how to produce color-magnitude diagrams of

More information

Dark Sky Observing Preview. BSA Troop 4 Pasadena, CA

Dark Sky Observing Preview. BSA Troop 4 Pasadena, CA Dark Sky Observing Preview BSA Troop 4 Pasadena, CA Topics Finding Dark sky Observing etiquette Observing basics Things to see Resources Finding Dark Sky To see faint objects, you want the darkest sky

More information

INTRODUCTION TO THE TELESCOPE

INTRODUCTION TO THE TELESCOPE INTRODUCTION TO THE TELESCOPE What will you learn in this Lab? For a few of the labs this semester, you will be using an 8-inch Celestron telescope to take observations. This lab will introduce you to

More information

SOFT 423: Software Requirements

SOFT 423: Software Requirements SOFT 423: Software Requirements Week 11 Class 1 Telescope Example End-to-End SOFT 423 Winter 2015 1 Last Class CRUDO Activity Diagrams SOFT 423 Winter 2015 2 This Class Telescope System Example We won

More information

SimpleDreamEQ2. Upgrade kit equatorial mounts Synta EQ2, Celestron CG3. User guide. Micro GoTo system. Micro GoTo system

SimpleDreamEQ2. Upgrade kit equatorial mounts Synta EQ2, Celestron CG3. User guide. Micro GoTo system. Micro GoTo system SimpleDreamEQ2 Upgrade kit equatorial mounts Synta EQ2, Celestron CG3 User guide Micro GoTo system Micro GoTo system AstroGadget 2017 1. DESCRIPTION The kit consists of a control unit and a set of drives

More information

Observations of Transiting Exoplanets with Differential Photometry

Observations of Transiting Exoplanets with Differential Photometry Manuscript accepted by the Scientific Terrapin, Dec 2011 Observations of Transiting Exoplanets with Differential Photometry Brett Morris University of Maryland bmorris3@astro.umd.edu ABSTRACT Preliminary

More information

College of San Mateo Observatory

College of San Mateo Observatory College of San Mateo Observatory Stellar Spectra Catalog SGS Spectrograph Spectra taken from CSM observatory using SBIG Self Guiding Spectrograph (SGS) A work in progress compiled by faculty, staff, and

More information

MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society

MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society Compiled by: Roger Ivester, Boiling Springs, North Carolina & Fred Rayworth, Las Vegas, Nevada Introduction March 2009 NGC-2403 (Caldwell 7)

More information

MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society

MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society Introduction MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society Compiled by: Roger Ivester, Boiling Springs, North Carolina & Fred Rayworth, Las Vegas, Nevada May 2009 The Leo Trio M-65/M-66/NGC-3628

More information

ABOUT SPOTTINGSCOPES Background on Telescopes

ABOUT SPOTTINGSCOPES Background on Telescopes 22 November 2010 ABOUT SPOTTINGSCOPES A spotting scope is a compact telescope designed primarily for terrestrial observing and is used in applications which require magnifications beyond the range of a

More information

Chapter 6: Transforming your data

Chapter 6: Transforming your data Why is transformation necessary? Chapter 6: Transforming your data The AAVSO International Database is composed of data collected from many different observers, at different times, from around the globe.

More information

Department of Physics and Astronomy University of Iowa 29:137 Astronomical Laboratory Fall 2011 Lab 4: Stellar Spectroscopy

Department of Physics and Astronomy University of Iowa 29:137 Astronomical Laboratory Fall 2011 Lab 4: Stellar Spectroscopy Department of Physics and Astronomy University of Iowa 29:137 Astronomical Laboratory Fall 2011 Lab 4: Stellar Spectroscopy 1 Introduction Throughout your astronomy education, you have read about stellar

More information

Introduction to Telescopes Pre-lab

Introduction to Telescopes Pre-lab AST 114 Spring 2005 Introduction to Telescopes Introduction to Telescopes Pre-lab 1. Read through the "Parts of a Telescope" section of the lab. You may be asked to point out the different parts of the

More information

Sources of Noise. Noise can come from a variety of sources but can generally be grouped under three headings.

Sources of Noise. Noise can come from a variety of sources but can generally be grouped under three headings. Noise The next factor to be investigated is noise. (It is a common misconception that the more sensitive a camera is the fainter the object you can detect. In fact it is the amount of noise, both from

More information

Reduction procedure of long-slit optical spectra. Astrophysical observatory of Asiago

Reduction procedure of long-slit optical spectra. Astrophysical observatory of Asiago Reduction procedure of long-slit optical spectra Astrophysical observatory of Asiago Spectrograph: slit + dispersion grating + detector (CCD) It produces two-dimension data: Spatial direction (x) along

More information

Instruction Manual 1

Instruction Manual 1 Instruction Manual 1 Dobson 76/300 DOB English version 8.2014 Rev A The Omegon 76/300 DOB Congratulations on the purchase of the new Omegon 76/3006 DOB. This small telescope will give you hours of fun,

More information

Refraction is the bending of light when it passes from one substance into another. Your eye uses refraction to focus light.

Refraction is the bending of light when it passes from one substance into another. Your eye uses refraction to focus light. Telescopes Portals of Discovery Chapter 6 Lecture The Cosmic Perspective 6.1 Eyes and Cameras: Everyday Light Sensors How do eyes and cameras work? Seventh Edition Telescopes Portals of Discovery The Eye

More information

Photometric Studies of GEO Debris

Photometric Studies of GEO Debris Photometric Studies of GEO Debris Patrick Seitzer Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan 500 Church St. 818 Dennison Bldg, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 pseitzer@umich.edu Heather M. Cowardin ESCG/Jacobs

More information

Obtain an optical "bench" setup (there should be three sliding mounts on the calibrated horizontal bar. The setup is shown in the diagram below.

Obtain an optical bench setup (there should be three sliding mounts on the calibrated horizontal bar. The setup is shown in the diagram below. Astronomy 100 Name(s): Exercise 4: Telescopes and spectroscopy Once the various focal issues are resolved, magnification of a small image is a significant consideration for a telescope. Though a planet

More information

How do telescopes "see" on Earth and in space?

How do telescopes see on Earth and in space? How do telescopes "see" on Earth and in space? By NASA, adapted by Newsela staff on 03.28.17 Word Count 933 Level 970L TOP IMAGE: The Hubble Space Telescope orbiting in space over Earth. SECOND IMAGE:

More information

125-Day Spectral Record of the Bright Nova Delphini 2013 (V339 Del)

125-Day Spectral Record of the Bright Nova Delphini 2013 (V339 Del) Mooers and Wiethoff, JAAVSO Volume 42, 2014 161 125-Day Spectral Record of the Bright Nova Delphini 2013 (V339 Del) Howard D. Mooers Department of Geological Sciences, University of Minnesota Duluth, Duluth,

More information

PHYS/ASTR 2060 Popular Observational Astronomy(3) Syllabus

PHYS/ASTR 2060 Popular Observational Astronomy(3) Syllabus PHYS/ASTR 2060 Popular Observational Astronomy(3) Syllabus Instructor: Prof. Wayne Springer (wayne.springer@utah.edu) Office: 226 INSCC (Office Hours: T 3PM-5PM or by appt.) Phone: 801-585-1390 TA: Jinqi

More information

Measurements of 42 Wide CPM Pairs with a CCD

Measurements of 42 Wide CPM Pairs with a CCD Page 424 By Richard Harshaw, Brilliant Sky Observatory, Cave Creek, AZ (rharshaw51@cox.net) Abstract: This paper addresses the use of a Skyris 618C color CCD camera as a means of obtaining data for analysis

More information

Observing Night 1 DON T FORGET TO KEEP NOTES ON YOUR PROCEDURE AND KEEP AN OBSERVING LOG FOR THE NIGHT!!!!!

Observing Night 1 DON T FORGET TO KEEP NOTES ON YOUR PROCEDURE AND KEEP AN OBSERVING LOG FOR THE NIGHT!!!!! Observing Night 1 Objects : Name RA (2000) Dec V B-V V-R R-I MK source HD 5015 00 53 04 +61 07 26 5.34 0.54 0.48 0.30 F9V Ducati 2002 HD 30197 4 46 17 +18 44.1 6.01 1.21 0.620 0.533 K4III J66/T86 HD 7615

More information

» The observatory will be located uphill and north of the Reuter Center at the end of UNC Asheville s road-to-nowhere (Nut Hill Road).

» The observatory will be located uphill and north of the Reuter Center at the end of UNC Asheville s road-to-nowhere (Nut Hill Road). » The observatory will be located uphill and north of the Reuter Center at the end of UNC Asheville s road-to-nowhere (Nut Hill Road). UNC-Asheville Campus » With some tree removal, this location is a

More information

Lab 1: Introduction to the sky and making telescopic observations with the CCD camera. AST 152M Lab Instructor: Greg Doppmann Due: Feb 11, 2000

Lab 1: Introduction to the sky and making telescopic observations with the CCD camera. AST 152M Lab Instructor: Greg Doppmann Due: Feb 11, 2000 Lab 1: Introduction to the sky and making telescopic observations with the CCD camera. AST 152M Lab Instructor: Greg Doppmann Due: Feb 11, 2000 Objective: The goal of this lab is to give students their

More information

Open Cluster Research Project

Open Cluster Research Project Open Cluster Research Project I. Introduction The observational data indicate that all stars form in clusters. In a cloud of hydrogen gas, laced with helium and a trace of other elements, something triggers

More information

Columbia University Astronomy Big Dome Telescope Start up/shut Down

Columbia University Astronomy Big Dome Telescope Start up/shut Down Columbia University Astronomy Big Dome Telescope Start up/shut Down Start Up 1. Get the Eyepieces: Go into the transit room and get any eyepieces you will need. The telescope in the big dome takes both

More information

REGISTAX (Paul Maxon s tutorial)

REGISTAX (Paul Maxon s tutorial) REGISTAX (Paul Maxon s tutorial) My first step is to drag and drop my frames onto Registax (Figure 1). Once you do that, you ll see the screen shown in Figure 2. At this point you have a couple of decisions

More information

Light and Telescope 10/24/2018. PHYS 1403 Introduction to Astronomy. Reminder/Announcement. Chapter Outline. Chapter Outline (continued)

Light and Telescope 10/24/2018. PHYS 1403 Introduction to Astronomy. Reminder/Announcement. Chapter Outline. Chapter Outline (continued) PHYS 1403 Introduction to Astronomy Light and Telescope Chapter 6 Reminder/Announcement 1. Extension for Term Project 1: Now Due on Monday November 12 th 2. You will be required to bring your cross staff

More information

D = telescope aperture h = wavelength of light being observed D and h must be in the same units.

D = telescope aperture h = wavelength of light being observed D and h must be in the same units. the diameter or aperture. Because stars are extremely far away, they appear as point sources of light even with a telescope. Their brightness in the telescope depends only on the size of the aperture.

More information

Venus nightside: the dark hemisphere at 1 micron and visible wavelengths with amateur equipment

Venus nightside: the dark hemisphere at 1 micron and visible wavelengths with amateur equipment Venus nightside: the dark hemisphere at 1 micron and visible wavelengths with amateur equipment D. Gasparri ¹ ¹ Università di Bologna, Dipartimento di Astronomia, Via Ranzani 1, 40127 Bologna, Italy Abstract

More information

Image Acquisition Best Practices. Richard A. Bennion Ewell Observatory

Image Acquisition Best Practices. Richard A. Bennion Ewell Observatory Image Acquisition Best Practices Richard A. Bennion Ewell Observatory QTR MILE: 16.2 QTR MILE: 14.9 15.4 13.2 16.7 Imaging Performance By what standard do we measure imaging performance? What is good data

More information

How to use your astronomical telescope for the first time.

How to use your astronomical telescope for the first time. How to use your astronomical telescope for the first time. A quick guide to setting up and using your telescope for the first time. There are 10 pages in this section which cover a variety of topics to

More information

Choosing your first telescope

Choosing your first telescope Choosing your first telescope By Isa Mohammed Caribbean Institute of Astronomy June, 2009 Introduction Choosing a telescope can be a daunting task for a budding amateur astronomer. There are so many designs

More information

Commissioning of the Hanle Autoguider

Commissioning of the Hanle Autoguider Commissioning of the Hanle Autoguider Copenhagen University Observatory Edited November 10, 2005 Figure 1: First light image for the Hanle autoguider, obtained on September 17, 2005. A 5 second exposure

More information

Telescopen > Catadioptrisch Spiegel /lens > Celestron > Celestron NexStar Evolution > Celestron NexStar Evolution 6 inch (15 cm) Robtics

Telescopen > Catadioptrisch Spiegel /lens > Celestron > Celestron NexStar Evolution > Celestron NexStar Evolution 6 inch (15 cm) Robtics Model: - Artikel: Fabrikant: Celestron» Control your telescope wirelessly from your ios or Android smartphone or tablet with the free CELESTRON Celestron mobile NEXSTAR app with EVOLUTION planetarium interface

More information

Light and Telescope 3/4/2018. PHYS 1403 Introduction to Astronomy. Guideposts (cont d.) Guidepost. Outline (continued) Outline.

Light and Telescope 3/4/2018. PHYS 1403 Introduction to Astronomy. Guideposts (cont d.) Guidepost. Outline (continued) Outline. PHYS 1403 Introduction to Astronomy Light and Telescope Chapter 6 Guidepost In this chapter, you will consider the techniques astronomers use to study the Universe What is light? How do telescopes work?

More information

The ALMA Optical Pointing Systems

The ALMA Optical Pointing Systems The ALMA Optical Pointing Systems Design Considerations, Prototype Description, and Production Model Suggestions Jeff Mangum (NRAO) DRAFT June 20, 2005 Contents 1 Introduction 1 2 Design Considerations

More information

MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society

MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society Introduction MONTHLY OBSERVER S CHALLENGE Las Vegas Astronomical Society Compiled by: Roger Ivester, Boiling Springs, North Carolina & Fred Rayworth, Las Vegas, Nevada With special assistance from: Rob

More information

Detecting Other Worlds with a Backyard Telescope! Dennis M. Conti Chair, AAVSO Exoplanet Section

Detecting Other Worlds with a Backyard Telescope! Dennis M. Conti Chair, AAVSO Exoplanet Section Detecting Other Worlds with a Backyard Telescope! Dennis M. Conti Chair, AAVSO Exoplanet Section www.astrodennis.com The Night Sky Q: Which stars have one or more planets (exoplanets) around them? A: Most

More information

Expected Performance From WIYN Tip-Tilt Imaging

Expected Performance From WIYN Tip-Tilt Imaging Expected Performance From WIYN Tip-Tilt Imaging C. F. Claver 3 September 1997 Overview Image motion studies done at WIYN show that a significant improvement to delivered image quality can be obtained from

More information

CCD Astrometric Measurements of WDS

CCD Astrometric Measurements of WDS CCD Astrometric Measurements of WDS 04155+0611 Zhixin Cao 1, Junyao Li 1, Jeff Li 1, Steve Qu 1, Michael Fene 2, Grady Boyce 3, and Pat Boyce 3 1. Army and Navy Academy, Carlsbad, California 2. University

More information

Model SGS Dual CCD Self-Guiding Spectrograph

Model SGS Dual CCD Self-Guiding Spectrograph .. Model SGS Dual CCD Self-Guiding Spectrograph The Self-Guiding Spectrograph is designed to be used with the ST-7XE/XME camera. For convenience, it can also be used with any dual sensor ST/7/8/9/10/2000

More information

Lab 4: Stellar Spectroscopy

Lab 4: Stellar Spectroscopy Name:... Astronomy 101: Observational Astronomy Fall 2006 Lab 4: Stellar Spectroscopy 1 Observations 1.1 Objectives and Observation Schedule During this lab each group will target a few bright stars of

More information

AS750 Observational Astronomy

AS750 Observational Astronomy Lecture 9 0) Poisson! (quantum limitation) 1) Diffraction limit 2) Detection (aperture) limit a)simple case b)more realistic case 3) Atmosphere 2) Aperture limit (More realistic case) Aperture has m pixels

More information

Library Loaner Telescope Program

Library Loaner Telescope Program St. Louis County Library in partnership with the St. Louis Astronomical Society presents Library Loaner Telescope Program Loaner Scope s 250 Eyes Quick Start User s Guide Telescopes can be complicated,

More information

Keck Adaptive Optics Note #385. Feasibility of LGS AO observations in the vicinity of Jupiter. Stephan Kellner and Marcos van Dam

Keck Adaptive Optics Note #385. Feasibility of LGS AO observations in the vicinity of Jupiter. Stephan Kellner and Marcos van Dam Keck Adaptive Optics Note #385 Feasibility of LGS AO observations in the vicinity of Jupiter Stephan Kellner and Marcos van Dam Version 2: 25 July 2006 1 Introduction It has been proposed by Imke De Pater

More information

PoleMaster User Manual (Northern Hemisphere)

PoleMaster User Manual (Northern Hemisphere) PoleMaster User Manual (Northern Hemisphere) 1. Hardware Installation 1.1 Attach the PoleMaster camera unit to the quick install plate using the three bolts supplied. In the case of the AZ EQ5-GT and Mesu

More information

APPLICATION NOTE. Filter Set Prescription Alan Holmes

APPLICATION NOTE. Filter Set Prescription Alan Holmes APPLICATION NOTE Filter Set Prescription Alan Holmes August 1st, 22 SBIG has a color filter set prescription specifically designed to achieve correctly balanced color images for galaxies and nebulae. Our

More information

Understanding Astro-Photos Part 1: Deep-Space Objects (DSOs) Greg Marshall, Wa-chur-ed Observatory

Understanding Astro-Photos Part 1: Deep-Space Objects (DSOs) Greg Marshall, Wa-chur-ed Observatory Understanding Astro-Photos Part 1: Deep-Space Objects (DSOs) Greg Marshall, Wa-chur-ed Observatory The most common misconception about astro-photography is that it requires a powerful telescope. That is,

More information

These maps also show the path of the sun and moon movements in the sky.

These maps also show the path of the sun and moon movements in the sky. Window to the sky My collection is about star charts and photographs, which I collected during my astronomy class during the time I was 12 to 15 years old. Astronomy always fascinated me since I was little.

More information

IN REPORT: Plate Scale and FOV of CCD for Each Telescope using Albireo Stars

IN REPORT: Plate Scale and FOV of CCD for Each Telescope using Albireo Stars USE ASTROIMAGEJ NOT AIP4WIN To download ALL the public data from Canvas, go to Files, then click the 3 dots next to the Public Data Folder and click Download. It will download all the files at once. 6.1

More information

METEORS VIDEO OBSERVATION SYSTEM IN (NRIAG) EGYPT, GOALS AND EQUIPMENT

METEORS VIDEO OBSERVATION SYSTEM IN (NRIAG) EGYPT, GOALS AND EQUIPMENT wahba_gnkj@yahoo.com Ahmed_astro84@yahoo.com shafeeq_abdalazeez@yahoo.com Meteors as an astronomical phenomenon have been studied since the XVII century. Now we know that meteors ( shooting stars ) are

More information

Award Winning Photographer Ted Dobosz

Award Winning Photographer Ted Dobosz Award Winning Photographer Ted Dobosz The Astronomy Photographer of the Year is an annual event run by the Royal Observatory Greenwich. The competition is open to anyone around the globe. The three main

More information

WHAT PHOTOMETRIC PRECISION CAN I ACHIEVE? DAVID BOYD

WHAT PHOTOMETRIC PRECISION CAN I ACHIEVE? DAVID BOYD WHAT PHOTOMETRIC PRECISION CAN I ACHIEVE? DAVID BOYD If you start using a CCD camera to carry out photometry on variable stars, this is a question that sooner or later you will ask yourself. Prompted by

More information

Photoelectric Photometry of the Pleiades Student Manual

Photoelectric Photometry of the Pleiades Student Manual Name: Lab Partner: Photoelectric Photometry of the Pleiades Student Manual A Manual to Accompany Software for the Introductory Astronomy Lab Exercise Edited by Lucy Kulbago, John Carroll University 11/24/2008

More information

FLAT FIELDS FROM THE MOONLIT EARTH

FLAT FIELDS FROM THE MOONLIT EARTH Instrument Science Report WFPC2 2008-01 FLAT FIELDS FROM THE MOONLIT EARTH R. C. Bohlin, J. Mack, and J. Biretta 2008 February 4 ABSTRACT The Earth illuminated by light from the full Moon was observed

More information

Telescopen > Catadioptrisch Spiegel /lens > Celestron > Celestron NexStar Evolution > Celestron NexStar Evolution 9.25 (23,5 cm) Robtics

Telescopen > Catadioptrisch Spiegel /lens > Celestron > Celestron NexStar Evolution > Celestron NexStar Evolution 9.25 (23,5 cm) Robtics Celestron NexStar Model: - Artikel: Celestron NexStar Fabrikant: Celestron Celestron NexStar Celestron's signature telescopes reach a new level with NexStar Evolution 9.25, the first Schmidt-Cassegrain

More information