Swansea Astronomical Society Blog
Saturday, May 29, 2010
A new sunspot did form
A new sunspot did form where a nascent sunspot appeared to be forming yesterday. It has been given the designation AR1073.
It remains to be seen if it will develop into a significant spot or whether it will dissipate. However, as it has formed near the noth eastern limb, that area will be visible for several days.
Steve Wainwright
It remains to be seen if it will develop into a significant spot or whether it will dissipate. However, as it has formed near the noth eastern limb, that area will be visible for several days.
Steve Wainwright
Friday, May 28, 2010
Possible new sunspot forming in the north east of the Sun
Sunspot AR1072 is nearing the western limb of the Sun but in the north east an active region is evident in white light, H-alpha and Ca K-line light. A DMK21AS camera was used in conjunction with H-alpha, Ca K-line PSTs and an f/5, 6" refractor fitted with a Baader photographic solar filter. The images have been colourised to indicate the wevelengths being used.
Clicking on an image will show a larger view
Active region in the north east showing a possible sunspot developing. White light image:
The same north eastern region in H-alpha light showing the active region very bright:
Steve Wainwright
AR1072 in white light about to disappear around the western limb of the Sun
Clicking on an image will show a larger view
Active region in the north east showing a possible sunspot developing. White light image:
The same north eastern region in H-alpha light showing the active region very bright:
Ca K-line image showing the same nascent sunspot region:
The next day or so should tell whether a new sunspot forms in this active region
Steve Wainwright
Prominences and retreating sunspot
Yesterday Chris Playle (a one time member of SAS from many years ago) and I imaged the Sun with a Baader solar filter I had just made for him. We used a DMK21AS fitted to a f/5, 102mm refractor and an equatorial mount. This is the image of AR 1072 that we obtained:
We used the Ca K-line PST to obtain this image:
The sunspot is retreating to the western limb of the Sun and will soon have gone.
We also used the H-alpha PST to record the sunspot:
We used the Ca K-line PST to obtain this image:
Two significant prominences were present on opposite sides of the Sun. We made exposures to show the prominences and shorter exposures to show the solar disk and then combined them into a single image using Andrew Sprott's 'Solar Layers' software:
Steve Wainwright
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Solar activity
On May 22nd - 24th I observed the Sun in H-alpha, Ca K-line, Green continuum and white light.
Ca K-line light with a DMK21AS and a Ca K-line PST with a x2 Barlow lens assembly and a Ca K-line PST:
Green continuum light with an 80mm refractor with a 1000 Oaks glass solar filter, a Baader green continuum filter and a DMK21AS camera:
May 24th
An Afocal image in H-alpha light showed AR1072 as well as other structure such as plage and filaments on the solar disk:
H-alpha light with a DMK21AS and a H-alpha PST with a x2 Barlow lens assembly:
Ca K-line light with a DMK21AS and a Ca K-line PST with a x2 Barlow lens assembly and a Ca K-line PST:
Green continuum light with an 80mm refractor with a 1000 Oaks glass solar filter, a Baader green continuum filter and a DMK21AS camera:
May23rd
Solar prominence:
Sunspot AR1072 through an 8" SCT fitted with a Baader solar filter:
May22nd
Solar Prominence
Sunspot AR1072 through an 8" SCT fitted with a Baader solar filter and a Baader Ca K-line filter
Steve Wainwright
Monday, May 24, 2010
Last Night's Images
Last night I took a few images of Copernicus on the Moon. They were taken with my 11" Celestron telescope, the first at prime focus and the last with a 2.5x barlow through a DMK31 monochrome camera.
This morning I imaged Sunspot 1072 through my 80mm Skywatcher refractor, baader filter, a 2.5x barlow and the DMK31 camera. Using my Coronado PST I imaged a prominence using a 3x barlow and the DMK31 camera.
Keith Davies
Friday, May 21, 2010
Prominences and a tiny sunspot
I first of all took an afocal shot through a 15mm eyepiece with a Fuji -F-450 compact camera in B/W mode with the H-alpha PST:
This showed the largest prominence which I then imaged with a DMK 21AS camera fitted with an ultra short nosepiece and the lens assembly from a 2x Coronado Cemax Barlow. Exposures were taken to show the prominence and disk separately and were then combined into a single image with Andrew Sprott's Solar-Layers software:
Then the DMK was placed at the prime focus of a Ca K-line PST to image much of the solar disk and reveal the tiny sunspot that has recently emerged as well as some of the chromospheric network:
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Afocal Sun
There are no sunspots however, the limb is showing a number of prominences.
Today I concentrated on simple afocal imaging with a Fuji F-450 compact camera through a 15mm eyepiece.
The whole disk with the camera in Monochrome mode:
Click on the image to get a larger view.
Details of prominences in colour mode.
Showing what can be done with a simple handheld compact camera
Steve Wainwright
Today I concentrated on simple afocal imaging with a Fuji F-450 compact camera through a 15mm eyepiece.
The whole disk with the camera in Monochrome mode:
Click on the image to get a larger view.
Details of prominences in colour mode.
Showing what can be done with a simple handheld compact camera
Steve Wainwright
Monday, May 17, 2010
Neptune, a calculated guess
Last Thursday Mr Andy Lownd gave us a fascinating talk on Neptune. This covered its initial discovery, what we have learned through the ages, discovery of Neptune's rings, Voyager 2's visit and so on. I personally was surprised how much we currently know about such a distant planet, and its largest moon Triton. However, it is disappointing to hear that there are no expeditions currently planned to go back to Neptune and find out more.
Many thanks to Andy for a very enjoyable evening.
3D conjunction of the Moon and Venus
If you have 3D viewers (the sort with a red left lens and a cyan right lens, then use them to view this image of Sunday night's conjunction of The Crescent Moon and Venus:
Click on the image to see a larger version.
I used Andrew Sprott's 3D program to render the 3D image.
Steve Wainwright
Click on the image to see a larger version.
I used Andrew Sprott's 3D program to render the 3D image.
Steve Wainwright
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
More deep sky with the Samsung SDC-435
Last night I used the Samsung SDC-435 video camera with the 10" f/4.8 Newtonian. Capturing AVIs of 100 or 150 frames at 5s intervals using a Kworld DVD Maker capture card and the AstroVideo software. A 100 frame Dark Frame AVI was captured and processed in Registax to produce a dark frame. The dark frame was then scaled with Dark Frame Scaler to produce a suitable dark frame to use in Registax with the AVI captured of each object.
The results are presented below:
M82
M57
M13
Using a focal reducer:
M51
M27
Steve Wainwright
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Active regions breaking out all over the Sun
After a couple of spotless weeks the Sun is breaking out in small spots in both hemispheres.
I imaged the Sun in Ca K-line light with a PST solar scope and a DMK21 camera at the prime focus. There were five or six active regions , with at least three showing tiny spots:
Click on any of the images to see a larger version.
Using a short nosepiece and a x2 Barlow lens assembly on the front of the camera the sun was imaged at a greater image scale to concentrate on two sunspot groups:
The same region was imaged in H-alpha light with a PST and the DMK21 and the Barlow lens assembly:
A very hot, bright area of plage can be seen.
We have already had more days with sunspots this year than in the whole of 2009.
Steve Wainwright
Last Night's Images
Here are a few images from last night.
They were all taken through an 11" Celestron telescope, the shot of Venus was with a DMK31 camera and a 2.5x barlow and Saturn a DBK21 camera with a 2.5x barlow. Unfortunately the seeing conditions were quite poor last night.
The deep sky images were taken with a Nikon D700 digital camera at prime focus through the telescope.
Keith Davies
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