Telescope: Light Switch 8 @ f/6.2 (Optec 0.62x focal reducer), altaz mode

Camera: Full Spectrum Modified Canon 600D, interval timer

Filter: GSO IR Blocking Filter

Guide scope: None

Exposure: 39x10sec, ISO 1600, saved as RAW

Darks: Internal (Long Exposure Noise Reduction On)

Flats: 32×1/10sec, Tee shirt flats taken at dusk

Average Light Pollution: Red zone, Bortle 8, fair transparency

Lensed Sky Quality Meter: 18.4

Stacking: Mean with a 1-sigma clip.

White Balance: Nebulosity Automatic

Software: Deep Sky Stacker, Nebulosity, Photoshop

M30 is a relatively small, bright, condensed globular that makes a fine target for small telescopes. In larger scopes it resolves nicely into a tiny patch of stardust.

M30 is currently low in the southwest after sunset.

Telescope: Astro-Tech 8” f/8 Ritchey-Chretien, Orion Atlas EQ-G

Camera: Canon EOS Ra, Baader Mk III MPCC

Filter: Orion Imaging Skyglow Filter

Guide scope: Astro-Tech 60mm, Starlight Xpress Super Star, PHD2

Exposure: 1x120sec, ISO 800, saved as RAW

Darks: Internal (Long Exposure Noise Reduction On)

Flats: Synthetic

Average Light Pollution: Red zone, Bortle 8, poor transparency, moonlight

Lensed Sky Quality Meter: 18.2

Stacking: None

White Balance: Nebulosity Automatic

Software: Backyard EOS, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Comet C/2021 A Leonard is a faint comet currently crossing Canes Venatici in the morning sky. When this image was taken the comet was passing between NGC 4631 (The Whale and Pup) to the upper right and NGC 4656 (The Hockey Stick) to the lower left. I had to go real careful with the processing on this image as I haven’t quite figured out how to freeze the comet’s motion against the background sky so this is a single sub.

Comet Leonard is currently well placed high in the northeast at dawn glowing with a total integrated magnitude of 8.2 and is 73.8 million miles away above the Earth’s northern hemisphere.

Telescope: 8” LX80 @ f/6.3, LX90 mount, altaz mode

Camera: Stock Canon 600D, interval timer

Filter: GSO IR Blocking Filter

Guide scope: None

Exposure: 29x10sec, ISO 1600, saved as RAW

Darks: Internal (Long Exposure Noise Reduction On)

Flats: 32×1/20sec, Tee shirt flats taken at dusk

Average Light Pollution: Red zone, Bortle 8, fair transparency

Lensed Sky Quality Meter: 18.5

Stacking: Mean with a 1-sigma clip.

White Balance: Nebulosity Automatic

Software: Deep Sky Stacker, Nebulosity, Photoshop

M22 is a large, bright, class 7 globular cluster in Sagittarius and is one of the gems of the summer sky in the northern hemisphere. With an estimated distance of 10,600 light years it is one of the closer globulars in our galaxy. In many ways M22 should outshine M13, but it can get a bit lost among the stars along the Milky Way near the Sagittarius star clouds and its light is dimmed by dust along the galactic plane. Still, it is large, bright, and easily resolves into this beautiful glow of stardust even in a modest telescope. In a large telescope it blossoms into a glorious sight.

This is part of a series of images that I will be taking to explore deepsky imaging using fairly basic equipment and techniques.

M22 is currently well placed in the south as the sky darkens.

M11 – Open Cluster in Scutum

Telescope: Astro-Tech 8” f/8 Ritchey-Chretien, Orion Atlas EQ-G

Camera: Canon EOS Ra, Baader Mk III MPCC

Filter: Orion Imaging Skyglow Filter

Guide scope: Astro-Tech 60mm, Starlight Xpress Super Star, PHD2

Exposure: 21x60sec, ISO 800, saved as RAW

Darks: Internal (Long Exposure Noise Reduction On)

Flats: 32×1/20sec, Tee shirt flats taken at dusk

Average Light Pollution: Red zone, Bortle 8, poor transparency, haze

Lensed Sky Quality Meter: 17.8

Stacking: Mean with a 1-sigma clip.

White Balance: Nebulosity Automatic

Software: Backyard EOS, Deep Sky Stacker, Nebulosity, Photoshop

M11 is a bright and wonderfully rich open cluster just off the tail of Aquila. It is an easy binocular object that just gets keeps getting better in large telescopes. The cluster lies approximately 6000 light years away and contains an estimated 2900 stars in a volume of space about 20 light years across. The average distance between the stars in the cluster is about 1 light year, making this a very crowded neighborhood!

M11 is currently well placed in the southeast as the sky darkens.

I have been skimming through the Apollo 11 in Real Time Website and it has been fascinating following all of the chatter between the various mission controllers as well as all of the radio transmissions with the crew. Most of what we usually see and hear are just tiny bits and pieces from the key segments of the mission and it doesn’t capture what it was like to fly the mission. One neat episode that I have not heard before occurs at about Mission Elapsed Time of 71h30m. At this point Apollo 11 is about 11,000 miles from the moon and they enter the moon’s shadow for the first time. The temperature of the spacecraft plummets, though the temperature inside the spacecraft remains stable. Through the windows the crew can see the limb of the moon silhouetted solar corona and the face of the moon is lit by Earthshine. They turn the lights off inside the spacecraft to get a good look at the solar corona and light from the Earthlit moon pours in through the windows. Armstrong also describes being able to clearly see the stars for the first time in the mission.

Very cool.