visual art Planets, Astrophotography, and UV/IR Photography

[Phosphor 11,529]

If the sky is clear after sunset, I'm usually outside with a telescope. Saturn is my favorite planet, so I tend to image it the most with my gear. A storm can be seen near the Polar Hex region in the color image. The monochrome image is in the near Infrared spectrum. Enjoy!

[emma_22 30]

Wow,you've  got great images!I like Saturn very much and I also like Uranus.are you curious about such topics?And here I say on July 27th is the longest bloody lunar eclipse of the 21st century! 

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 41,478]

Very nice! These are so clear, all things considered. For some reason I could never find Saturn with my own telescope but even if I did find it I wouldn't see it this well. So thanks for sharing, always nice to see anything space related. Makes me want to play Elite Dangerous right now. XD

[cuteycindyhoney 13,307]

Wow! When I was little, my brother once showed me Saturn with his telescope. I think yours might be better, because that image is a bit clearer than I remember.

[Phosphor 11,529]

16 hours ago, emma_22 said:

Wow,you've  got great images!I like Saturn very much and I also like Uranus.are you curious about such topics?And here I say on July 27th is the longest bloody lunar eclipse of the 21st century! 

Thank you. Oh, I love astronomy! I also do some astrophotography, mainly in the winter months. 

[Phosphor 11,529]

10 hours ago, Kyoshi said:

Very nice! These are so clear, all things considered. For some reason I could never find Saturn with my own telescope but even if I did find it I wouldn't see it this well. So thanks for sharing, always nice to see anything space related. Makes me want to play Elite Dangerous right now. XD

You're welcome. I have a lot of Mars data from last night's imaging session, so I'll be posting those soon. 

[Shadow Beam 1,179]

Absolutely astonishing. Thank you for sharing this, I'm truly excited to see more in the future! ^^

[Phosphor 11,529]

Methane has an absorption line at 889nm, which is also in the near IR spectrum. Unlike the above NIR image, Saturn's atmosphere is very dark when imaged with a Methane Absorption filter. The rings are quite reflective due to the water ice and lack of methane.

Telescope: Skywatcher 16

Camera: ZWO ASI178MM

[Phosphor 11,529]

Saturn 7/26/2018: 

I think I can see the Polar Hexagon in these images. It's tough to capture with the planet low in the sky. Enjoy!

2nd image is full spectrum.

[Phosphor 11,529]

Mars 7/29/2018

The sky was a bit hazy but I was still able to image. There is a bright spot in the center right of the planet. This might be another dust storm.

First 3 images are Near IR. Mars' rotation can be seen by cycling thru these. Fourth image is blue light. Last is violet light. The polar ice cap and clouds really shine in the shorter wavelengths. I wasn't able to do any UV imaging. Conditions weren't favorable, so I had to use my smaller rig. Enjoy!

Telescope: Celestron C8 / Camera: ZWO ASI178MM

 

[Phosphor 11,529]

More Mars images. The humidity was crazy high. I had to keep the fan on full blast to keep the telescope from fogging up and run off the mosquitoes. 

Imaged with Celestron C8 and ZWO ASI224MC camera

[Phosphor 11,529]

Tonight was wonderful for imaging. The atmosphere was as calm as one could ask for. I enjoying watching the Milky Way from my patio, especially when it's overhead. 

The Milky Way images appear more red than usual. This is because I had my dslr camera converted to detect the Near Infrared and UV spectrum. The infrared portion interferes with the colors when a blocking filter isn't used. Enjoy!

[BornAgainBrony 2,397]

On 8/3/2018 at 1:51 AM, Phosphor270 said:

More Mars images. The humidity was crazy high. I had to keep the fan on full blast to keep the telescope from fogging up and run off the mosquitoes.

My first attempt at catching a planet with my little telescope is coming soon. I just saw Mars last night when I was getting off my shift and couldn't believe how big and bright it was.

Edited August 6, 2018 by bornAgainEquestrian

[Phosphor 11,529]

5 hours ago, bornAgainEquestrian said:

My first attempt at catching a planet with my little telescope is coming soon. I just saw Mars last night when I was getting off my shift and couldn't believe how big and bright it was.

You'll be in a for a treat. The polar ice cap and some surface details will be visible, even in a small telescope. 

[Phosphor 11,529]

Last night was fantastic for planetary imaging! The atmosphere was calm and that helped a ton with dialing in the focus.

The storm near Saturn's Polar Hexagon appears to have grown in size since I last imaged it. 

The dust on Mars is continuing to settle; however, the planet is moving away from us. It will take on more of a gibbous phase and decrease in brightness and apparent size as time goes on. The last 2 Mars images are Near Infrared, which is able to penetrate the remaining dust a little better.

Last image is my Celestron C8 telescope and tracking mount in thermal infrared (wavelengths 2-5 microns).

Cameras: ZWO ASI224MC (color); ASI178MM (Near IR/UV)

Edited August 15, 2018 by Phosphor270

[Phosphor 11,529]

4 minutes ago, Califorum said:

@Phosphor270

I love those pictures!

Thank you! Tomorrow night is looking really good in the forecast. I plan to setup the SkyWatcher 16, if the conditions hold up. I also want to take another shot at Venus in UV. It's sinking lower in the sky every night.

[cuteycindyhoney 13,307]

@Phosphor270

If you ever spot Bronson Alpha and Bronson Beta, let me know as soon as possible!

 

Seriously, I love your photographs. The Milky Way pictures are beautiful.

 

 

Edited August 15, 2018 by cuteycindyhoney

[Phosphor 11,529]

Last night was quite humid. I think I spent more time drying the optics with the hairdryer than actually looking at the sky. lol. Rain is in the forecast for the next several days. Afterwards, my next targets are Venus and the Lagoon Nebula.

Mars rotation can be seen by cycling thru the images. Imaged with the Skywatcher 16 Telescope.

 

[Lord Midnight Madness 1,543]

I've noticed during the winter I can view planets better than during the summer.

[Phosphor 11,529]

Some UV images of Venus from the last 3 months. The planet will begin to appear brighter and larger each day until it reaches inferior conjunction in October. When Venus becomes a thin crescent, it is possible to image the night time side, which has a thermal emission at 1.1 microns.

1st Image: 6/25/2018

2nd Image: 7/25/2018

3rd Image: 8/21/2018

Telescope: Celestron C8

Camera: ZWO ASI178MM w/ U-Venus filter

[Phosphor 11,529]

It's very late in the season for Jupiter, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity yesterday evening after imaging Venus. Images are in Near Infrared. 

[Phosphor 11,529]

Some craters near the Moon's terminator. It's been forever since I looked at the Moon thru one of my telescopes.

[Phosphor 11,529]

Not a bad night at all, however, I think this will conclude imaging season for Jupiter and Saturn. These 2 are well past their oppositions for this year. Enjoy everypony!

[Phosphor 11,529]

Last night's humidity level was underwater. I kept the hair dryer close by as my optics were fogging up pretty bad. Aside from that, another good night. 

Mars polar ice cap and clouds reflect nicely in UV. Last item is an animation I made of Mars rotation.

[Phosphor 11,529]

Clouds cleared out last night. Thank you Rainbow Dash for that.

Atmospheric turbulence was quite low, which allowed me to exceed the optical limit of my Celestron C8. I'd say the dust on the red planet is completely settled. The animation I made of Mars rotation covers a period of 1 hour. I hope to do an even longer animation.

And just for fun, I have included some thermal infrared pics of clouds from earlier today. Imaged with a midwave infrared camera (2-5 microns).