'I saw the crescent, you saw the whole of the Moon'
Observing plan for Bortle 3 dark sky trip
Almost defeated by the dire Autumn weather. On the night of 9th a brief 45 minute spell with gaps to the heavens gave poor views of M31 but surprisingly good ones of M57 (x150). The following morning dawned clear (again briefly, after another night of thick cloud) to the beautiful sight of the crescent Moon with earthshine, Venus and between the two the still-visible star Regulus in Leo.
A sketch of Jupiter very close to sunrise
This morning gave a really excellent view of Jupiter in the Dobsonian. The sky was lightening constantly as I watched and the reduction in contrast against the sky I believe enhanced considerably the view and removed any diffraction spiking that might have intruded. Venus as a semi-crecent and Sirius were also prominent.
Integration time (running total):
* OSC 88 X 300s (440m)
* Total: 7h20m
Integration time target
* Target: 7 hours
* Progress: 100%
Mon 4th September
Lucky imaging: best 75% frames from 1000 video frames.
Integration time (running total):
* OSC 95 X 300s (475m)
* Total: 7h55m
Integration time target
* Target: 12 hours
* Progress: 66%
22nd August 2023
Lucky imaging: best 75% frames from 500 video frames. Mosaic of two images, North and South.
Integration time (running total):
* OSC 129 X 300s (645m)
* Total: 10h45m
Integration time target
* Target: 12 hours
* Progress: 90%
8th August 2023
A sketch made from an image taken on 28th April 2023 when the Moon was eight days old. The last few weeks have been so cloudy and the Moon so low as to make direct observation impossible.
A sketch made over two evenings, taking about one hour in total. Sketching was made easier by being possible before nightfall and the sketch pad therefore being visible without a torch.
Integration time (running total):
* OSC 94 X 120s (190m)
* Total: 3h10m
Integration time target
* Target: 6 hours
* Progress: 50%
Seeing index: Not recorded
Jet stream: Not recorded
Integration time (running total):
* OSC 139 X 120s (278m)
* Total: 4h38m
Integration time target
* Target: 12 hours
* Progress: 39%
The bright supernova SN2023IXF currently visible in M101, the Pinwheel Galaxy.
