tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37440487752485709302024-03-05T01:53:41.696-07:00Current Tucson SkiesThis presentation is designed to assist in suburban and urban astronomical observations from the Tucson area.
The following is current information updated as the page is refreshed.STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-47979019512340223982012-12-08T23:12:00.002-07:002012-12-08T23:12:44.862-07:00STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-56177936493004338292009-01-28T19:06:00.001-07:002009-02-01T21:27:39.805-07:00Orion Nebula<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpVrPfNboiyK3IkUNy0YazeogoI0ncXMfKxPPswwUwduyq1gIhP_BxiSZEBOZAyF8t3I7Znv4btp7CErFVdJNnu5DfF64wp_D4Mn_U2hEkT45g0SgGdWhj9AGCOUbmhqL-jeOMzrx765Q/s1600-h/Orion+01-24-09.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpVrPfNboiyK3IkUNy0YazeogoI0ncXMfKxPPswwUwduyq1gIhP_BxiSZEBOZAyF8t3I7Znv4btp7CErFVdJNnu5DfF64wp_D4Mn_U2hEkT45g0SgGdWhj9AGCOUbmhqL-jeOMzrx765Q/s400/Orion+01-24-09.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a> This is the Orion Nebula. This is known as a Stellar Nebula which means it is a star nursery. This is a combination of 16 photos stacked to give the most detail.<br /><div><br /></div><div>One of the wonderful things about Astrophotography is the ability to stack as many photos as that are taken to produce additional detail.</div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-26524432057844087152009-01-28T18:46:00.001-07:002009-02-01T21:27:07.178-07:00Moons of Saturn<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh53682xoqS4FlhcxYlMjRJN7JNQzi5kGxhsvsR3wx0-WpPFX-uny64vHXNGaTMOgxqqgKtoLbdPLivy3Oc73HgS3AQtXXNo6_tc6d9EHakfNto7JYf7Q8auvzm8wiWQ9JXVUhCMtnHqWM/s1600-h/SATURN.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh53682xoqS4FlhcxYlMjRJN7JNQzi5kGxhsvsR3wx0-WpPFX-uny64vHXNGaTMOgxqqgKtoLbdPLivy3Oc73HgS3AQtXXNo6_tc6d9EHakfNto7JYf7Q8auvzm8wiWQ9JXVUhCMtnHqWM/s400/SATURN.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a> The Moons of Saturn. This photo was taken while Saturn was low in the sky and there was severe atmospheric disruption. This shot was over exposed to give the best opportunity for the presentation of the moons. You should be able see 4 moon with Titan being the largest<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-37966826042331305492009-01-28T18:41:00.002-07:002009-02-01T21:26:11.344-07:00Sirius<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilmWBXpx6Tl4W_rsAfCGFcGn0YdRhaYxrGtnNXQ5Z1ITScoC-3bhewqZdhw-F8ReL-FecDKsQkSvAGi9uu1cQW2TVVerVBlpktKd_qbow2b8_9Y1B4Kn5EWHsJYErz3Jr8pNQ1Ud37Wx0/s1600-h/Sirius+and+Neighbors.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilmWBXpx6Tl4W_rsAfCGFcGn0YdRhaYxrGtnNXQ5Z1ITScoC-3bhewqZdhw-F8ReL-FecDKsQkSvAGi9uu1cQW2TVVerVBlpktKd_qbow2b8_9Y1B4Kn5EWHsJYErz3Jr8pNQ1Ud37Wx0/s400/Sirius+and+Neighbors.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Sirius A and B</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Sirius A is the very large star and Sirius B is the very tiny star at the 9 o'clock position to left of the Sirius A. Sirius A is the brightest star in our sky. Sirius is 9 Light Years away</span><br /></span><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-61491295652891325992009-01-28T18:36:00.000-07:002009-01-28T18:36:18.887-07:00M27<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAr4WybUHNMjAtcIIdG8HSVW2JUA0QALgiJLAnqthNTWXORe4lXmyKNvmVx4uftvBZcl5jbmJAlX2C4hNK2HZM8C-3HocnXG-Q-MBlsgV4pvY_XSuvhefbmAnXY0KDungZBesXTbryzH8/s1600-h/Dumbell+Nebula.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAr4WybUHNMjAtcIIdG8HSVW2JUA0QALgiJLAnqthNTWXORe4lXmyKNvmVx4uftvBZcl5jbmJAlX2C4hNK2HZM8C-3HocnXG-Q-MBlsgV4pvY_XSuvhefbmAnXY0KDungZBesXTbryzH8/s400/Dumbell+Nebula.jpg" border="0" alt="" style="clear:both;float:left; margin:0px 10px 10px 0;" /></a>This is the Dumbbell Nebula (M27)<div>It is a planetary nebula. Where planets are born. 1,360 light years away.</div><div><br /></div><div>Note the Greenish item to the left center of the photo.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is a combo of 16 images. This is not a great shot but it is what it is. What I love about this shot is the colors and depth of the stars. This is just stuff that we just don't get to see because at this magnitude our eyes are not sensitive enough to detect color.</div><div><br /></div><div>Magnitude 7.5</div><div style='clear:both; text-align:LEFT'><a href='http://picasa.google.com/blogger/' target='ext'><img src='http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif' alt='Posted by Picasa' style='border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;' align='middle' border='0' /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-7856284807224344992009-01-28T18:27:00.001-07:002009-02-01T21:25:10.399-07:00Venus<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlCVrmZHORrh_2LdGXL_qnOQ2INX0hcldwuqghjyHqwLHC0WRQm_EoysubHd5MzTPAIK4o6hEAzQG4EOcvSeUhsmlYkhyjC2e1rKGzPUx7kn19cdYlR91iPzMpBvjcgFq7l5zNkMnDT4/s1600-h/Venus.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlCVrmZHORrh_2LdGXL_qnOQ2INX0hcldwuqghjyHqwLHC0WRQm_EoysubHd5MzTPAIK4o6hEAzQG4EOcvSeUhsmlYkhyjC2e1rKGzPUx7kn19cdYlR91iPzMpBvjcgFq7l5zNkMnDT4/s400/Venus.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a> This is Venus in Phase. It has the somewhat the same phases as the moon as it reflects the suns light as the Earths moon does.<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-8132758710498338222009-01-28T18:18:00.002-07:002009-02-02T08:44:15.178-07:00ISS<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiR3EUMqjxyU14CJZQYN-Yr1l8n2c_j63IYy9nczoV-WKNULxqIPX26pJdMZ1f2sTMFnadNa43pyQXO4sUEdyh3rLx3Yao9KQeSjLEFqjtY-X-5ig6v_FCSXJqETR52ES1NNr-YAvK_so/s1600-h/ISS+detail.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiR3EUMqjxyU14CJZQYN-Yr1l8n2c_j63IYy9nczoV-WKNULxqIPX26pJdMZ1f2sTMFnadNa43pyQXO4sUEdyh3rLx3Yao9KQeSjLEFqjtY-X-5ig6v_FCSXJqETR52ES1NNr-YAvK_so/s400/ISS+detail.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a> This is a detail of the International Space Station on its pass on January 17th starting at 6:26PM over Tucson<div><br /></div><div>Here is some information about the pass:</div><div><br /></div><div>MAGNITUDE -2.3 VERY BRIGHT</div><div>START TIME 18:26:22</div><div>START ALTITUDE 10 DEGREES</div><div>START DIRECTION SW</div><div>ZENITH TIME 18:29:19</div><div>MAX ALTITUDE 67 DEGREES</div><div>END TIME 18:31:38</div><div>END ALTITUDE 15 DEGREES</div><div>END DIRECTION NE</div><div><br /></div><div>The rectangle on the left appears to be the larger solar panels. The ISS was over 200 miles away and was traveling around 17,500 miles per hour.<br /></div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-18242322069023147582009-01-28T18:06:00.001-07:002009-02-01T21:23:43.330-07:00M81<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJhWhPXbkRBiAVSLtQ43lLqpdTM7sUalGSDMcjxSVj5CBF1u2_Qcu5D8nimD65MIdV2wOVHm81bHk1YbW8LGjIJPxt8hEq0SurEQ9x2-70OGPlF4a-a6vgXKb7SMIOztrSAEl2a_lKUEY/s1600-h/M81+011709.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJhWhPXbkRBiAVSLtQ43lLqpdTM7sUalGSDMcjxSVj5CBF1u2_Qcu5D8nimD65MIdV2wOVHm81bHk1YbW8LGjIJPxt8hEq0SurEQ9x2-70OGPlF4a-a6vgXKb7SMIOztrSAEl2a_lKUEY/s400/M81+011709.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a>M81 <div><br /></div><div>This is the Galaxy known as M81. It is 4.5 - 9 Million Light Years away.<div><br /></div><div>That means that the light from those more distant stars traveled 9 million years before making it to the telescope.</div><div><br /></div><div>Note the red color. That is called Red Shift. It means that the Galaxy is traveling away from us. (the Universe is expanding)</div></div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-66388501604730826122009-01-28T18:00:00.001-07:002009-02-01T21:23:05.538-07:00The Andromeda Galaxy<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm0RdQcsWVLaTC1C92uLQ8I5X7Dr7MBXa9af86rUgd4aItSPa0kzujbLRcqZO8OG0KsTghD-e2Kp6pyNl6cC5aLAEPnnIHAaolM4K9edkgsQPpZ164TFJCOplvRDjDnM5woXWRSLh1lCs/s1600-h/Andromeda+Galaxy+011709.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm0RdQcsWVLaTC1C92uLQ8I5X7Dr7MBXa9af86rUgd4aItSPa0kzujbLRcqZO8OG0KsTghD-e2Kp6pyNl6cC5aLAEPnnIHAaolM4K9edkgsQPpZ164TFJCOplvRDjDnM5woXWRSLh1lCs/s400/Andromeda+Galaxy+011709.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> The Andromeda Galaxy</span><br /><div><br /></div><div><div>What you see here is a total of 25 photos stacked to get the most light possible.<br /><br />I have so much to learn.<br /><br />When I get as good as I can with what I have, my photos will get to be no better than 5 on a 10 scale from what is available to compare to.</div><div><br /></div><div>This one is about a 1.5 out of 10</div><div><br /></div><div>So you see the other galaxy to the left? How about the dust cloud? Can you see the beginnings of the spirals?</div><div><br /></div><div>With the equipment I have 100 images or so stacked would make a decent image.</div><div><br /></div><div>Each image is 15 seconds long and takes and additional 20 seconds post processing in the camera before it is sent to the computer. 100 photos would be about an hour and 20 minutes of photo time before I get to stack the photos and do additional post processing. This portion could take hours. In post processing I would use the 100 plus and additional 50 or so images to weed out the noise and camera issues.</div><div><br /></div><div>The photos you see in books all have post processing done to them and I would say most are done with some big scopes. 99% are more than one photo unless they are from a spacebound scope.<br /></div><div><br /></div></div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-19574741645184023422009-01-11T05:04:00.001-07:002009-01-11T05:06:16.985-07:00The first photo from the "Time Machine"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2OC9VrIg720_i_qdjH5UtJMuuwDeFHbNCWjH55EfX2uLLB5HLyX9sbhhDWpXvG20SvsE8hlQNQD1hU6lJn0SbvBGp9GF2pxeD_EnG7epB5e_crC66nsIBsxXtCLhdMoFnQ0LriLtppqI/s1600-h/Orion+Nebula.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2OC9VrIg720_i_qdjH5UtJMuuwDeFHbNCWjH55EfX2uLLB5HLyX9sbhhDWpXvG20SvsE8hlQNQD1hU6lJn0SbvBGp9GF2pxeD_EnG7epB5e_crC66nsIBsxXtCLhdMoFnQ0LriLtppqI/s400/Orion+Nebula.jpg" alt="" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0pt; clear: both; float: left;" border="0" /></a> <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><br /><br /><br />Orion Nebula<br /><br /><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /></span>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3744048775248570930.post-27374221068057679732008-12-21T04:37:00.011-07:002008-12-21T11:27:10.978-07:005 moons of Saturm<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/saturn/gif/ring_sat1.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 917px; height: 283px;" src="http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/saturn/gif/ring_sat1.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This morning at 2:45 AM there were 5 moons of Saturn available for viewing. The conditions were good as the temperature at this time in the morning was in a more or less a static phase. The humidity was low and the cloud cover was non-interfering. The observation area had dropped to below freezing and extensive use of the blow dryer was a necessity. Below is a video from the program Starry Night. It represents the actual viewing conditions that were visible from the observation point from 2:45 AM until 4:00 AM. Watch carefully as the moons do move. The video represents 300x actual speed.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Equipment in use:</span><br />Celestron CPC 800<br />18mm, 40mm eyepieces<br />Starry Night Planetarium and Scope control software<br />Nebulosity Photography Software<br />Canon EOS 20D (battery died due to cold)<br />MacBook<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Visible Moons:</span><br />Titan<br />Rhea<br />Tethys<br />Enceladus<br />Dione<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxI3dKysvYIFxQcGlVI-CEZMMwey4A0G-WgGERuUqVNFYgEPsv6fKqlSl0pXT8okZg4TBhkf-UfPkWby2SmYQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>STiMULihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04448857978202862989noreply@blogger.com1