Planet Jupiter Visible?

[julian64]

eharding said:

julian64 said:

Anyone know of some decent software to covert a video into an enhanced still.

I have a mead LX10 in the back garden with a usb webcam attached. Trying to get some decent post processing done.

Registax is getting on a bit now, has issues with large files, but is fairly straightforward to use, and has wavelet sharpening integrated:

https://www.astronomie.be/registax/

Now common for people to do video stacking in Autostakkert, and then do the wavelet processing on the resulting still back in Registax.

https://www.autostakkert.com/

Edited: Tutorial here: https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/184821-beginner...

Double edited: Not sure what capture software you're using, but both Sharpcap (https://www.sharpcap.co.uk/) and Fire Capture (http://www.firecapture.de/) are well regarded. The £10 annual fee for Sharpcap Pro is an absolute bargain IMHO, and has good integration with Zwo cameras (I've been using a Zwo ASI120MC-S for finding / guiding, and either an ASI290MC or ASI294MC Pro for imaging, the Jupiter shot above using the ASI290MC)

Edited by eharding on Tuesday 16th July 15:16

Brilliant thanks. The tracking on the original mead isn't the best. I've seen a few RPI projects which are internet linked that make it easier, but to be honest even on the best plossy lenses I have the image stays in the FOV for about a minute and at the moment, before I get more complicated, anything that can stack that to get an image will be good enough for me.

Unfortunately I rarely get a clear enough sky to even get that where I live.

[RobM77]

julian64 said:

eharding said:

julian64 said:

Anyone know of some decent software to covert a video into an enhanced still.

I have a mead LX10 in the back garden with a usb webcam attached. Trying to get some decent post processing done.

Registax is getting on a bit now, has issues with large files, but is fairly straightforward to use, and has wavelet sharpening integrated:

https://www.astronomie.be/registax/

Now common for people to do video stacking in Autostakkert, and then do the wavelet processing on the resulting still back in Registax.

https://www.autostakkert.com/

Edited: Tutorial here: https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/184821-beginner...

Double edited: Not sure what capture software you're using, but both Sharpcap (https://www.sharpcap.co.uk/) and Fire Capture (http://www.firecapture.de/) are well regarded. The £10 annual fee for Sharpcap Pro is an absolute bargain IMHO, and has good integration with Zwo cameras (I've been using a Zwo ASI120MC-S for finding / guiding, and either an ASI290MC or ASI294MC Pro for imaging, the Jupiter shot above using the ASI290MC)

Edited by eharding on Tuesday 16th July 15:16

Brilliant thanks. The tracking on the original mead isn't the best. I've seen a few RPI projects which are internet linked that make it easier, but to be honest even on the best plossy lenses I have the image stays in the FOV for about a minute and at the moment, before I get more complicated, anything that can stack that to get an image will be good enough for me.

Unfortunately I rarely get a clear enough sky to even get that where I live.

I'm not sure whether this applies to the Schmidt Cassegrain's, but my Meade Schmidt Newtonian 10" was really too heavy for the standard Meade GEM, even when well balanced; an upgrade to a Losmandy G11 was like night and day. I suspect you're fine, because the SCT range goes way up to about 16"?

[techguyone]

For people with just a passing curiosity and not owning Jodrell Bank etc, there's this app for Android.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com....

Just point the phone around the sky and it'll tell you what's what.
There are other similar apps around, but this is quite unintrusive.

[eharding]

techguyone said:

For people with just a passing curiosity and not owning Jodrell Bank etc, there's this app for Android.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com....

Just point the phone around the sky and it'll tell you what's what.
There are other similar apps around, but this is quite unintrusive.

If do you want your own little Jodrell Bank (quiet at the back), then there are people who will sell you one....

https://www.365astronomy.com/spider-500a-5m-profes...

Distinctly niche.

[Gojira]

eharding said:

If do you want your own little Jodrell Bank (quiet at the back), then there are people who will sell you one....

https://www.365astronomy.com/spider-500a-5m-profes...

Distinctly niche.

Ooh, that looks fun, but it won't fit in my garden....

Mind you, I have already managed to detect some radio noise from space

Back in 1994, when chunks of comete Shoemaker-Levy 9 were colliding with Jupiter, I picked up a huge noise spike using my Old Man's HF ham radio, at precisely the time expected for the main impact of the series, using a long-wire aerial on a frequency of about 14MHz

And that'll be 25 years ago on Thursday morning

[Snoggledog]

eharding said:

Topically, taken this very evening....



Finally got to try out my new shiny Sesto Senso USB focuser on the 300PDS - being able to fine tune the focus remotely, much less hassle. Nearly gave myself a heart attack getting the bloody telescope off the mount though - it's stupidly large, weighs 25kg and was covered in dew. If the weather stays clear tomorrow, back to more sensible equipment.

Beautiful photo which makes me want to drag my telescope out. It hasn't seen the light of night for a good 5 years

Idle curiosity but what mount are you using? Mine sits on a dobo which is absolutely awful for tracking anything and I've been looking to change for a while now.

[eharding]

Snoggledog said:

eharding said:

Topically, taken this very evening....



Finally got to try out my new shiny Sesto Senso USB focuser on the 300PDS - being able to fine tune the focus remotely, much less hassle. Nearly gave myself a heart attack getting the bloody telescope off the mount though - it's stupidly large, weighs 25kg and was covered in dew. If the weather stays clear tomorrow, back to more sensible equipment.

Beautiful photo which makes me want to drag my telescope out. It hasn't seen the light of night for a good 5 years

Idle curiosity but what mount are you using? Mine sits on a dobo which is absolutely awful for tracking anything and I've been looking to change for a while now.

That was with a Skywatcher 300P-DS on a Skywatcher AZ-EQ6 mount in AZ mode, and at the limit of what the mount can do. It did feel like I was abusing it to be honest.

The AZ-EQ6 is superb, bought new from First Light Optics. The 300P-DS was an eBay purchase, for £200, in very good condition, £625 new - there is a reason they are cheap second hand, even in mint condition, and that's because they are mahoosive and very hard to manage, and really need something like an EQ8 mount to really tame. But for £200, it was worth a punt.

I'd never really used the AZ-EQ6 in AZ mode before, but at this time of year for planetary work the AZ mode makes perfect sense, as you don't have to wait until it gets dark enough to get a polar alignment as you would for an EQ mount. You do have to buy extra counterweights to balance the 300P-DS though,

A further combination of beer and eBay means I have a couple of Skywatcher Dobsonians - 150P and 200P, which will be given away to relatives at some point. Great for a quick lunar or planetary peek, but at higher eyepiece powers the manual tracking is a chore. No experience of goto/tracking Dobsonians - suspect they would be much better for visual, but still dodgy for long exposure astrophotography, due field rotation.

I'd say the new Skywatcher AZ-EQ5 actually looks like quite a good choice, albeit with a lower payload, but still capable of managing a decent SCT or Maksutov, refractor or reflector.

The one thing I would avoid like the plague are older Skywatcher AZ goto mounts - wobbly as a wobbly thing, and combined with a 127 Maksutov with a very sensitive focuser very challenging to operate. Bought one second hand for £100, and the Maksutov is very good, but the mount is rubbish.

[Snoggledog]

eharding said:

That was with a Skywatcher 300P-DS on a Skywatcher AZ-EQ6 mount in AZ mode, and at the limit of what the mount can do. It did feel like I was abusing it to be honest.

The AZ-EQ6 is superb, bought new from First Light Optics. The 300P-DS was an eBay purchase, for £200, in very good condition, £625 new - there is a reason they are cheap second hand, even in mint condition, and that's because they are mahoosive and very hard to manage, and really need something like an EQ8 mount to really tame. But for £200, it was worth a punt.

I'd never really used the AZ-EQ6 in AZ mode before, but at this time of year for planetary work the AZ mode makes perfect sense, as you don't have to wait until it gets dark enough to get a polar alignment as you would for an EQ mount. You do have to buy extra counterweights to balance the 300P-DS though,

A further combination of beer and eBay means I have a couple of Skywatcher Dobsonians - 150P and 200P, which will be given away to relatives at some point. Great for a quick lunar or planetary peek, but at higher eyepiece powers the manual tracking is a chore. No experience of goto/tracking Dobsonians - suspect they would be much better for visual, but still dodgy for long exposure astrophotography, due field rotation.

I'd say the new Skywatcher AZ-EQ5 actually looks like quite a good choice, albeit with a lower payload, but still capable of managing a decent SCT or Maksutov, refractor or reflector.

The one thing I would avoid like the plague are older Skywatcher AZ goto mounts - wobbly as a wobbly thing, and combined with a 127 Maksutov with a very sensitive focuser very challenging to operate. Bought one second hand for £100, and the Maksutov is very good, but the mount is rubbish.

Thank you. I'd been vaguely looking at the EQ6 a while back but wasn't 100% certain whether it could cope with the weight. I've got a Intercon Spacetec D10 which is a hefty piece of kit to say the least. I had been looking at Losmandy mounts but the cost was eye watering hence why it's been sat in the garage for a few years.

[eharding]

Snoggledog said:

Thank you. I'd been vaguely looking at the EQ6 a while back but wasn't 100% certain whether it could cope with the weight. I've got a Intercon Spacetec D10 which is a hefty piece of kit to say the least. I had been looking at Losmandy mounts but the cost was eye watering hence why it's been sat in the garage for a few years.

Guessing one of these?. A 10 inch steel-tube newtonian reflector is probably about 15kg, add tube rings, guide scope and camera and you should still be OK with an EQ6-class mount. I'd go for the broader Losmandy-style of dovetail at that weight though, rather than the narrower Vixen style. Just beware some older EQ6s had an issue with the altitude adjustment bolts bending, but replacement seems fairly straightforwards.

[Pooh]

eharding said:

Topically, taken this very evening....

very nice.
That photo takes me back, I spent some time capturing light reflected from Jupiter's moons and analysing the spectrum to detect the elements present, when I was doing my OU degree.

[eharding]

Pooh said:

very nice.
That photo takes me back, I spent some time capturing light reflected from Jupiter's moons and analysing the spectrum to detect the elements present, when I was doing my OU degree.

Have been meaning to try some spectroscopy - I bought one of these and the associated software a while back:

https://www.365astronomy.com/Star-Analyser-100.htm...

In principle it should be possible to use it measure the red shift of distant quasars due to cosmic expansion, which always struck me as a neat thing to be able to do from the back garden.

[RobM77]

eharding said:

Pooh said:

very nice.
That photo takes me back, I spent some time capturing light reflected from Jupiter's moons and analysing the spectrum to detect the elements present, when I was doing my OU degree.

Have been meaning to try some spectroscopy - I bought one of these and the associated software a while back:

https://www.365astronomy.com/Star-Analyser-100.htm...

In principle it should be possible to use it measure the red shift of distant quasars due to cosmic expansion, which always struck me as a neat thing to be able to do from the back garden.

Oo.. that's interesting. This is exactly what I'd like to get into once I get my telescope sorted at our new house. We bought a house in a nice dark sky site five years ago and I've been slaving over restoring the house, rather than doing the selfish thing of getting a pier etc sorted.

Incidentally, whilst we're on the subject of Jupiter's rotation on this thread, and spectroscopy, as a first year project at Uni I measured the red and blue shift of Jupiter's receding and approaching limbs respectively, and from that calculated the planet's rotation. It was quite easy to get a very accurate answer. I did the same for Saturn and its rings.

[Pooh]

RobM77 said:

eharding said:

Pooh said:

very nice.
That photo takes me back, I spent some time capturing light reflected from Jupiter's moons and analysing the spectrum to detect the elements present, when I was doing my OU degree.

Have been meaning to try some spectroscopy - I bought one of these and the associated software a while back:

https://www.365astronomy.com/Star-Analyser-100.htm...

In principle it should be possible to use it measure the red shift of distant quasars due to cosmic expansion, which always struck me as a neat thing to be able to do from the back garden.

Oo.. that's interesting. This is exactly what I'd like to get into once I get my telescope sorted at our new house. We bought a house in a nice dark sky site five years ago and I've been slaving over restoring the house, rather than doing the selfish thing of getting a pier etc sorted.

Incidentally, whilst we're on the subject of Jupiter's rotation on this thread, and spectroscopy, as a first year project at Uni I measured the red and blue shift of Jupiter's receding and approaching limbs respectively, and from that calculated the planet's rotation. It was quite easy to get a very accurate answer. I did the same for Saturn and its rings.

That's interesting, I had never thought of doing that.

[RobM77]

Pooh said:

RobM77 said:

eharding said:

Pooh said:

very nice.
That photo takes me back, I spent some time capturing light reflected from Jupiter's moons and analysing the spectrum to detect the elements present, when I was doing my OU degree.

Have been meaning to try some spectroscopy - I bought one of these and the associated software a while back:

https://www.365astronomy.com/Star-Analyser-100.htm...

In principle it should be possible to use it measure the red shift of distant quasars due to cosmic expansion, which always struck me as a neat thing to be able to do from the back garden.

Oo.. that's interesting. This is exactly what I'd like to get into once I get my telescope sorted at our new house. We bought a house in a nice dark sky site five years ago and I've been slaving over restoring the house, rather than doing the selfish thing of getting a pier etc sorted.

Incidentally, whilst we're on the subject of Jupiter's rotation on this thread, and spectroscopy, as a first year project at Uni I measured the red and blue shift of Jupiter's receding and approaching limbs respectively, and from that calculated the planet's rotation. It was quite easy to get a very accurate answer. I did the same for Saturn and its rings.

That's interesting, I had never thought of doing that.

I'm guessing they got us spotty first years to do it because it was easy - both planets are relatively bright and occupy a decent size in the sky. It was an interesting first task with spectroscopy.

[eharding]

Absolute buggeration and discombobulation.

Weather forecast was pants for tonight, and there was thin high level cirrus, so didn't even think about setting up - but stepped outside to see Jupiter shining through the overcast and an ISS pass right over the top of it.

Sadly, rather than a camera, I was holding a Gin and Tonic. Arse.

[Alpinestars]

eharding said:

Absolute buggeration and discombobulation.

Weather forecast was pants for tonight, and there was thin high level cirrus, so didn't even think about setting up - but stepped outside to see Jupiter shining through the overcast and an ISS pass right over the top of it.

Sadly, rather than a camera, I was holding a Gin and Tonic. Arse.

Thanks for posting your picture. In the Canaries at the moment and strolled past a guy who’d set up a telescope on the promenade. First time I’ve looked into one, and it was pointed at Jupiter and 3 of the moons were visible. Made me want to get a telescope but know bugger all about them.

[Ructions]

Alpinestars said:

Thanks for posting your picture. In the Canaries at the moment and strolled past a guy who’d set up a telescope on the promenade. First time I’ve looked into one, and it was pointed at Jupiter and 3 of the moons were visible. Made me want to get a telescope but know bugger all about them.

A couple of hundred pounds gets you a basic telescope, which is what I have. Little bit of research either online or from some books that I’ve picked up over the last few months and a free app on your phone and away you go.
A good pair of binoculars are a worthwhile investment, much easier to navigate the night sky using binoculars than a telescope as a novice, in my opinion.

[Alpinestars]

Ructions said:

A couple of hundred pounds gets you a basic telescope, which is what I have. Little bit of research either online or from some books that I’ve picked up over the last few months and a free app on your phone and away you go.
A good pair of binoculars are a worthwhile investment, much easier to navigate the night sky using binoculars than a telescope as a novice, in my opinion.

Thank you. Binoculars sound a good start. What sort of magnification is needed to see Jupiter’s moons?

[eharding]

Alpinestars said:

Ructions said:

A couple of hundred pounds gets you a basic telescope, which is what I have. Little bit of research either online or from some books that I’ve picked up over the last few months and a free app on your phone and away you go.
A good pair of binoculars are a worthwhile investment, much easier to navigate the night sky using binoculars than a telescope as a novice, in my opinion.

Thank you. Binoculars sound a good start. What sort of magnification is needed to see Jupiter’s moons?

At 7x to 10x you should be able to pick out 2 or 3 moons, and at 15x all four of the major moons. As you get to larger magnifications, a tripod or monopod can help stabilise things. I have a pair of Helios 25x100 which will just start to reveal faint banding on Jupiter if the seeing is good, but those definitely belong on a tripod unless you're built like Arnie.

Sky at Night magazine has a regular 'Binocular Tour' feature of interesting targets every month, generally based around 10x - 15x magnification.

Lower apertures at each magnification should be OK for planetary work, but obviously if you want to go after fainter deep sky objects then a higher aperture is beneficial.

[RobM77]

Binoculars are the traditional route into astronomy, yes. One thing I will say from experience (I've been into astro since I was small, have a degree in it and am still keen now) is that whilst I agree with that, there are a few things binoculars won't show you that you need higher magnification and resolving power to see. Even a basic telescope should be able to hold 80-150x magnification fairly well (the reasons basic telescopes are limited for mag are mainly aperture and solidity of the mount), and have more resolving power than binoculars (directly related to aperture) so you'll be able to see the rings of Saturn, cloud belts on Jupiter, polar ice caps on Mars, and stunning close up views of the moon. Don't go imagining great views of those things, but you will be able to see the two main cloud belts on Jupiter, and the fact that Saturn has rings.