One day before the closest encounter, because of the clouds. Seen through ASI 178MM (cooled), ZWO IRpass 850 1.25″, TS-Optics 76/342 TS76EDPH, mountpusher, EQ3-mod
Venus – 2022-01-07
Sun, in CaK 2021-12-23
ASI 178MM (cooled), Baader K-Line Filter 1.25″ (double stacked), TS-Optics 76/342 TS76EDPH, mountpusher, EQ3-mod
Venus, first light 2021-12-23
At 13:43 local time, I had the first light with the new ASI 485 MC camera. Although the new driver made it visible in sharpcap 3, it only worked correctly in sharpcap 4.
ASI 485 MC, first light, UV-IR-cut, GSO 3x APO barlow, TS-Optics 76/342 TS76ED, mountpusher, EQ3-mod, ersatz-obsi
Venus, 2021-12-18 through two tubes, three filters
I used the following gear: MC102/1300, 2x barlow, UV/IR cut, ASI 462MC and the TS-Optics 76/342 TS76EDPH, with the filterwheel, and ASI 178MM with a 3x ED barlow, both — one after the other — mounted onto the EQ3-mod with the mountpusher.
Since the phase of Venus doesn’t favor observing its clouds, and the seeing was really bad, I opted for the IR850-pass, and the solar continuum filter to minimize the atmospheric effects. Five minutes for each.
Venus, ASI 462MC
Venus, solar continuum, ASI 178MM
Venus, IR850, ASI 178MM
Sun, CaK, 2021-12-17
I only had a few minutes between the clouds, so no heavy post-processing this time, given that I don’t have the usual 10×3 minutes, which significantly reduces the … noise, a pixel size “something” I guess, present either in the instrument or really on the Sun.
The gear: ASI 178MM (cooled), Baader K-Line Filter 1.25″ (double stacked), TS-Optics 76/342 TS76EDPH, mountpusher, EQ3-mod
Same happenned for 2012-12-15, only a few minutes. We can see the beautiful spotted region rotating into view
The Sun in Calcium K – 2021-12-18
Finally, the clouds broke over the ersatz-obsi, and the Sun is showing some awesome activity. The image was taken, as usual, through the Calcium filter, which I found yields the best images, hydrogen alpha aside, of the surface of the Sun, running circles around the solar continuum, as long as a full disk image is the goal.
ASI 178MM (cooled), Baader K-Line Filter 1.25″ (double stacked), TS-Optics 76/342 TS76EDPH, mountpusher, EQ3-mod, with the automated filterwheel.
The Sun in 2015-07-03, CaK, then vs reprocessed
Using a setup I no longer have, an Atik camera, I made a mosaic of the Sun with the N150/750 tube, through the Baader K-Line Filter 1.25″ (double stacked) filter. I processed it back then, and reprocessed it now. It shows the difference.
Calcium K (2015)
Calcium K 2015, reprocessed in 2021
