jupiter
Observation Report 23/03/2014
March 23, 2014 | View ScopeThe Setup
Well it has been a long time, to long really. This winter was very bad in terms of cloud cover and any nights that seemed to be clear did not suit me. But as luck would … Continue reading Read More
A View from My Scope – October 11th – Observation Report
October 13, 2013 | View Scope11 October 2013
This morning was the first time in a long time that I had a chance to take the telescope out and get some real good stargazing done.
Although I had work this morning, I got an early … Continue reading
Using Registax
February 28, 2013 | View Scope | 3 CommentsStacking the Footage
Ok so from the last post we have captured our footage and are now ready to move this into Registax for stacking. What this program does is analyse the video, splits the video into frames, removes the … Continue reading
Using Sharpcap
February 23, 2013 | View Scope | 2 CommentsCapturing Your Target
In the last post I went through the process of modifing your web cam and setting up your laptop with the programs necessary to use a webcam for astrophotography. In this post I will go through the set … Continue reading
Webcam Astrophotography
February 21, 2013 | View Scope | 2 CommentsWhat is Webcam Astrophotography?
Webcam astrophotography is a method to use relatively cheap webcams to take photos of the planets and the moon. A few years ago this would have had to be done with expensive CCD cameras, now with some freely available programs on the web and a proper webcam, amateurs can get some very good results. Although a good CCD camera will still produce better images, using a webcam is a nice easy way to get introduced to astrophotography.
What we do with the webcam is essentially capture a video of the target i.e. Moon / Jupiter etc. We then import that video into a stacking program which allows us to split it into individual frames, remove the bad ones and combine the good ones to get our image.
What was the Star of Bethlahem?
December 22, 2012 | View ScopeThe star of Bethlahem is synonymous with Christmas, but is it possible to link this famous star with an astronomical event.
Matthew 2:1-11: “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him… Then Herod…inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem… When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother…” (KJV)
Like a Taurus in a China Shop
November 10, 2012 | View Scope | 2 CommentsKeep an eye towards Taurus this weekend and you might just see a few spectacular meteors. The Taurid meteor shower is taken place right now and will continue through the weekend, with the peak expected to be after midnight on the 11th and 12th. However forecasts for this evening in the North West of Ireland is calling for relatively clear skies compared to tomorrow and Monday so it might be best to go looking tonight after midnight. Read More
Focal Ratio (f)
October 7, 2012 | View ScopeThe focal ratio is the relationship between the diameter of the main optic (aperture) and the focal length. Lets use a Skywatcher Explorer 130 for the next example, the 130 signifies the aperture of the telescope and the length of this telescope is 650 so our focal ratio would be 650/130 = 5, so our f number would be f/5.
Tonight’s View of the Sky – October 6th 2012
October 6, 2012 | View Scope | One CommentTonight was the first night in a while that I have had the opportunity to go and have a good look at the night sky.
Although I am still without a telescope I decided to do what other astronomy website’s recommend and get to know the sky just using a pair of binoculars.
