Saturday, November 22, 2014

Solar Activity from Nov 21 2014

Imaging opportunities have been few and far between for us lately . Yesterday the sky was reasonably clear so I was able to grab some of the action . I started out with my double stacked Skywatcher mod and the sky looked pretty steady so I later mounted the 150mm mod to get a bit more detail . I missed the big AR 2209 last time around but was pleased to have caught it this time .

                                       First some double stacked shots with the Skywatcher

                                                      AR 2209 and surrounding activity


                                     The new Kid on the block , AR 2216 coming around the limb


                                                               AR 2209 DS with 2x




AR 2216 



Now some shots from the 150mm Istar Mod




150mm Istar at 2x






Proms and filaments to finish this session off , hope you enjoy them !






Monday, November 10, 2014

A Few More Double Stacked Mod Images

I have had a lot of cloud cover up here in Ontario lately . This is typical for this time of year but I think the recent purchase of a 90mm etalon could be contributing !
  Today's conditions were not great and these images were shot through some hazy holes that drifted by . This is my second go with this combination , Skywatcher Equinox Mod  +  SM 90 etalon . So far the new etalon seems to be getting along well with the mod .





                                                                 Views of AR 2205




                                                    A couple more highlights from today






Thursday, November 6, 2014

Congratulations to Mike for his next mod with the 90 Etalon.  This new project looks to be a real winner.  :twothumbsup:  There was a gap in the clouds today for about an hour and a half so I jumped on the opportunity.  The day had started out with rain but ....  The next big and active sunspot AR2205.  Not as big as the last monster but big enough.  :-)

AR2205 -




Below AR2205 AR2206 upper right -



Eastern limb AR2100 and AR2101 -


AR2205 and the long filament to the west -


AR2205 in closer using the DMK-21 camera -



Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Sun Again it's Been a While !

It seems like a long time since I have seen the sun , checking back I can see that it has been almost a month since I have imaged . Bill has done a great job of displaying what I had missed , well done sir !!
  The problem I have with no sun is that I find myself scrounging the used astro market . I have been trying to find a SM 90 etalon for some time now and got lucky , a fellow sold me the second etalon from his double stacked SM 90 . I am hoping that this new piece will open a few more imaging doors for me . So far I have adapted it to fit my 100mm Skywatcher mod to give me a double stacked 90mm mod . Later I will adapt it to some other scopes for full aperture 90mm single operation .
  These images are from the 100mm Skywatcher mod double stacked with the new 90mm etalon .



                                                 New active area 2205 coming into view


                                                                        A closer look



My apologies for the orientation being off , these were a quick test of the new etalon between the  clouds .