Astro Anarchy: research and development

Showing posts with label research and development. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Deep look to the Heart

I made some testing with my new imaging system based on Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens.
The CCD I'm using has kind of large pixels, 9 microns, so I'm undersampled, the image scale is almost 5 arc seconds / pixel. Undersampling is not a bad thing when my targets are large and dim nebula complexes. This system collects photons very fast!

I selected the Heart Nebula as a target since I have plenty of reference material for it. Another reason is interesting and rarely imaged area after the bright tip of the heart. There are some remnants of a supernova explosion. I was really thrilled, when I saw the final stack of 12 600s H-alpha light frames. (Equal to 2h of exposures) I never have seen so much background nebulae and details from this popular target.

Beside 2h of H-alpha (Light from an ionized hydrogen) I shot 30 min of O-IIII (Light from an ionized Oxygen) To be able to make an image in visual palette.

The Heart Nebula, IC 1805

Please, click for a large image

Going very deep just in two hours! Image is in visual color palette from emission of an ionized hydrogen and oxygen. R=hydrogen, G=Oxygen and B=oxygen. I have made a starless version out of this image, it can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2020/01/an-animated-heart-nebula-ic1805805-with.html

An older image of the area from 2011

Note, there is a white circle showing an apparent size of the Moon at upper left corner to show the scale in the sky. More info about this older image can be seen here, https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/05/wide-field-vs-closeups-north-america_21.html

Technical details

Processing workflow

Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.

Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.

Deconvolution with a CCDStack2 Positive Constraint, 33 iterations, added at 50% weight

Color combine in PS CS3

Levels and curves in PS CS3.

Imaging optics

Tokina AT-x 300mm f2.8 camera lens

Mount

10-micron 1000

Cameras and filters

Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel

Guider camera, Lodestar x 2 and an old spotting scope of Meade LX200

Astrodon filters,
5nm H-alpha 3nm S-II and 3nm O-III

Total exposure time

H-alpha, 12 x 600 s, binned 1x1 = 2 h
O-III, 3x 600 s, binned 1x1 = 30 min..

Saturday, December 8, 2018

The Giant Cosmic Squid, Ou4, scale in the sky and a zoom in series

Sometimes it's hard to understand the actual scale and locations of cosmical objects from a photograph. I tend to shoot same objects with a very different focal lengths usually from 200mm up to 3000mm. Form that image material I'm able to build "zoom in series" of the cosmical objects. By that way it's easier to understand the actual scale and location in the sky.

Zooming in to the Ou4, the Squid Nebula in Cepheus

Please, click for a large image

More info and images about Ou4, the Squid nebula

INFO CAN BE SEEN HERE
https://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-giant-cosmic-squid-nebula-au4-new.html

Saturday, April 23, 2016

Elephant's Trunk nebula without stars

Now and then I publish experimental starless versions of my photos. They have a special eerie feel in them but they also reveal more details in the actual nebula. I haven't developed the star removal technique just for playing with it. It's used in my Tone Mapping image processing technique as a tool. I'm also using it as a very effective tool, when I like to hunt down dim and diffused details under a dense starfield of the Milky Way.

Elephant's Trunk nebula without stars

Click for a large image

A blog post about the original version with stars and technical details, can be found from HERE.

A closeup

Click for a large image

Friday, April 22, 2016

Who turn out the lights? Sharpless 114 with and without stars

Now and then I publish experimental starless versions of my photos. They have a special eerie feel in them but they also reveal more details in the actual nebula. This time I made a small animation out of the Sharpless 114 (Sh2-114) in Eastern Cygnus.

Sharpless 114 with and without stars

To see the details, you really should click the image large!

It's easy to see how much more details are visible in a starless version. Especially the very dim ones stand out better. A blog post about this photo, with the technical detail, can be found from HERE.
Note. The blue dot at top right is a planetary nebula Kn 26.

Why star removal?

I haven't developed the star removal technique just for playing with it. It's used in my Tone Mapping image processing technique as a tool. I'm also using it as a tool, when I like to hunt down dim and diffused details under a dense starfield of the Milky Way.

Tuesday, April 19, 2016

An experimental starless view to the Pickering's Triangle

Now and then I publish experimental starless versions of my photos. They have a special eerie feel in them but they also reveal more details in the actual nebula. To see the details, you really should click the image large!

Pickering's Triangle SNR with no stars
Please, click for a large image, 1700 x 1500 pixels

Pickering's Triangle is a part of Veil Nebula supernova remnant in Cygnus

Pickering's Triangle SNR untouched
Please, click for a large image, 1700 x 1500 pixels

Info about this image HERE

A starless Melotte 15 in IC 1805

Now and then I publish experimental starless versions of my photos. They have a special eerie feel in them but they also reveal more details in the actual nebula.

Melotte 15 with no stars
Please, click for a large image

The heart of the Heart Nebula, Melotte 15, without stars.

Blog post about IC 1805 and the Melotte 15 with all the stars

http://astroanarchy.blogspot.fi/2015/04/my-last-imaging-project-for-this-winter.html

Monday, April 4, 2016

The last imaging project of the season, PuWe1

This is my last imaging project of the Spring season 2016. We'll lose astronomical darkness day after tomorrow for about six months due to high latitude, 65N.

PuWe1 is a very large and diffused planetary nebula in constellation Lynx. I think this is the first ever three channel narrowband image of it. This planetary nebula is extremely dim, I added single twenty minutes frames at end of the post to demonstrate, how little information there really is.

The data is collected between 16. February and 3. April. Total exposure time is around 23h. To boost the sensitivity of the camera, exposures are mostly shot binned between bin 2x2 and bin 10x10.

Final data is combined so, that high signal noise components, mostly stars, are from bin 1x1 data. Low signal elements are combined from heavily binned data.

There is a hint of outer halo visible in this image. It's extremely dim, especially with the focal length used. I have shot this object with much shorter focal length at Spring 2011. That was the first time I noticed the possible outer structure in this planetary nebula. I like to have this confirmed by some other imager. I will continue this imaging project at Spring season 2017.

PuWe1, planetary nebula in Lynx

Ra 06^h 19^m 34^s Dec +55° 36′ 42"

The photo is in mapped colors from the light emitted by an ionized elements,

red=sulfur, green=hydrogen and blue=oxygen.

PuWe1 in visual colors

Click for a large image

Natural color composition from the emission of ionized elements, R=80%Hydrogen+20%Sulfur, G=100%Oxygen and B=85%Oxygen+15%Hydrogen to compensate otherwise missing H-beta emission. This composition is very close to a visual spectrum.

INFO

PuWe1, (Purgathofer-Weinberger 1, PNG 158.9 + 17.8, PK 158+17.1) is a large circular Planetary Nebula in the constellation of Lynx. It has an apparent diameter of 20', without an outer halo seen in the image.

Messier 27 compared to PuWe1

Click for a large image

Note. An apparent size of the full Moon is marked as a white circle atop of the image.

Technical details

Processing work flow

Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.

Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.

Deconvolution with a CCDStack2 Positive Constraint, 21 iterations, added at 25% weight

Color combine in PS CS3

Levels and curves in PS CS3.

Imaging optics

Celestron Edge HD 1100 @ f7 with 0,7 focal reducer for Edge HD 1100 telescope

Canon EF 200mm f1.8 camera optics (For S-II and O-III channels)

Mount

10-micron 1000

Meade LX200 GPS 12" (For S-II and O-III channels)

Cameras and filters

Imaging camera Apogee Alta U16 and Apogee seven slot filter wheel

Guider camera, Lodestar x2 and SXV-AOL
QHY9 (For S-II and O-III channels)

Astrodon filter, 5 nm H-alpha

Baader filter, 8,5 nm O-III

Baader filter, 8 nm S-II

Exposure times

H-alpha, 30 x 1200s binned 2x2 =10h

O-III, 21 x 1200s binned 2x2 = 7h
O-III, 12 x 900s binned 10x10 = 3h

S-II, 9 x 1200s binned 10x10 = 3h

Total 23h

A single uncropped, calibrated and stretched 20 min. H-alpha frame as it comes from the camera, the data is binned 2x2

A single uncropped, calibrated and stretched 20 min. O-III frame as it comes from the camera, the data is binned 2x2

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

An experimental 3D-study of an emission nebula IC 410

This is an experimental test with a 3D-conversion of my astronomical image. Only real elements from the original image are used, there is nothing added but the estimated volumetric information!

NOTE. This is a personal vision about shapes and volumes, based on some scientific data, deduction and an artistic impression.

My original photo of the IC 410
click for a large image

A blog post about this photo, with the technical details, can be seen HERE

An animated GIF

A flythrough video

This is a looped video, click to start and stop. Original movie is in HD720p resolution.

¨

A flyby video

This is a looped video, click to start and stop. Original movie is in HD720p resolution.

A study about the general structure of the IC 410

All pillar like formations are pointing to a source of ionization, the open cluster NGC 1893 at the heart of the IC 410. There are some more dense areas in a gas, able to resist the radiation pressure from young star cluster. Those dense areas, at tip of the pillars, are also potential places for the formations of the new stars. A radiation pressure (solar wind) from the cluster NGC 1893 is forming a hollow space inside a gas cloud, it can be seen in my 3D-studies too.

Stereo images of the IC 410
Parallel and Cross vision stereo pairs. An anaglyph Red/Cyan image (Red/Cyan eyeglasses are needed)
http://astroanarchy.blogspot.fi/2015/02/a-3d-study-of-ic-410-as-free-view.html

A Cross vision stereo pair as a sample, other formats behind the link above.

Info about the technique used

For as long as I have captured images of celestial objects, I have always seen

them three-dimensionally in my head. Over time I realized that we actually have

enough scientific information to build a coarse skeleton model of the nebula itself.

The scientific information makes my visions much more accurate, and the 3-D technique I have developed enables me to share those beautiful visions with others.

How accurate my 3-D-visions are depends on how much accurate information I have and how well I implement it.

Also, many different estimates are needed for the 3-D model. The final 3-D-image is always an appraised simulation of reality based on known scientific facts, deduction, and some artistic creativity

on top of everything else.

After I have collected all the necessary scientific information about my target,

I start my 3-D conversion using the stars in the image. Usually there is a recognizable star cluster which is responsible for ionizing the nebula. We don’t need to

know its absolute location since we know its relative location. Stars ionizing the

nebula have to be very close to the nebula structure itself. I usually divide up the

rest of the stars by their apparent brightness, which can then be used as an indicator of their distances, brighter being closer. If true star distances are available

I use them, but most of the time my rule of thumb is sufficient.
By using a scientific estimate of the distance of the Milky Way object, I can

then locate the correct number of stars in front of it and behind it.

Emission nebulae are not lit up directly by starlight; they are usually way too

large for that. Rather, stellar radiation ionizes elements within the gas cloud. So it

is the nebula itself that is glowing, at the characteristic wavelengths of each ionized element. (The principle is very much the same as in fluorescent tubes.) I use

this information for my 3-D model. The thickness of the nebula can be estimated

from its brightness, since the whole volume of gas is glowing, brighter means

thicker. By this means, forms of the nebula can be turned to a real 3-D shape.

Nebulae are also more or less transparent, so we can see both sides of it at the

same time, and this makes model-making a little easier since not much is hidden.

The local stellar wind, from the star cluster inside the nebula, shapes the

nebula by blowing away the gas around the star cluster. The stellar wind usually

forms a kind of cavity in the nebulosity. The same stellar wind also initiates the

further collapse of the gas cloud and the birth of the second generation of stars

in the nebula. The collapsing gas can resist the stellar wind and produces pillar like formations which must point to a cluster.

Ionized oxygen (O-III) glows with a bluish light, and since oxygen needs a lot

of energy to ionize it, this can only be achieved relatively close to the star cluster

in the nebula. I use this information to position the O-III area (the bluish glow) at

the correct distance relative to the heart of the nebula.

Many other small indicators can be found by carefully studying the image

itself. For example, if there is a dark nebula in the image, it must be located in

front of the emission nebula, otherwise we can’t see it.

Explosions in space are more or less symmetrical, due to that, most of the supernova remnants and planetary nebulae mainly has a ball like appearance .

Using the known data in this way I build a kind of skeleton model of the

nebula. Then the artistic part is mixed with the scientific and logical elements,

and after that the rest is very much like creating a sculpture on a cosmic scale

Thursday, July 9, 2015

An experimental 3D-study of the IC 1795

A blog post about this photo, with technical details, can be seen HERE

3D-study as a Video

This is a looped video, click to start and stop. Original movie is in HD720p resolution.

A simple animated GIF

Info about the technique used

Due to huge distances, real parallax can't be imaged in most of the astronomical objects.

I have developed an experimental technique to convert my astropics to a artificial volumetric models.

My 3-D experiments are a mixture of science and an artistic impression. I collect distance and other information before I do my 3-D conversion. Usually there are known stars, coursing the ionization, so I can place them at right relative distance. If I know a distance to the nebula, I can fine tune distances of the stars so, that right amount of stars are front and behind of the object.

I use a “rule of thumb” method for stars: brighter is closer, but if a real distance is known, I'm using that. Many 3-D shapes can be figured out just by looking carefully the structures in nebula, such as dark nebulae must be at front of the emission nebulae in order to show up etc...

The general structure of many star forming regions is very same, there is a group of young stars, as an open cluster inside of the nebula. The stellar wind from the stars is then blowing the gas away around the cluster and forming a kind of cavitation – or a hole — around it. The pillar-like formations in the nebula must point to a source of stellar wind, for the same reason.

How accurate the final model is, depends how much I have known and guessed right. The motivation to make those 3-D-studies is just to show, that objects in the images are not like paintings on the canvas but really three dimensional objects floating in the three dimensional space. This generally adds a new dimension to my hobby as an astronomical imager.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

The blue dot and rings in Sh2-232

This is a followup to my previous blog post. When I was processing the data, I noticed a small nebula in center of the large complex of Sharpless 232. It seems to be the only O-III emission source in this large emission nebula. My O-III exposure was relatively short though, only 2h. The origin of this small ionization zone puzzles me. I made a small animation from integrated emission channels. No other processing, than calibration and simple un linear stretching has been done to the images.

EDIT

One mystery solved with a help from another astroguy. "Saloja" from a Finnish astro group used the Megastar database and found out, that this blue dot is a known planetary nebula, PN G173.5+03.2. Thank you Saloja!

Narrowband image of Sh2-232 in mapped colors

Note the blue dot at middle of the photo, it's not a star but a small area of nebula emitting the O-III light.

An animation of emission channels

This animated GIF shows all three emission channels imaged for this photo, O-III, S-II and H-alpha.

The small nebula is visible in both, H-a and O-III, S-II doesn't show it. It could be nice to understand the mechanism behind this small object.
Is it part of the large nebula and what is the energy source for the ionization? It might even be a planetary nebula, part of the large Sh2-232 complex or a separate object front or behind it.
Has anyone else noticed this object? Let me know, if you have some info about it.

Another interesting feature of Sh2-232
A ring like formation

I have animated to this starless version of Sh2-232 photo, what I'm seeing in lower part of the nebula. There is a ring like formation and I'm seeing some hints of the concentric structure too.

Monday, October 27, 2014

A start of the new project, the Tulip Nebula

At night of 23.10 I managed to shoot 3h 20min H-alpha lights for the Tulip Nebula in constellation Cygnus.

It looks like we going to have a clear nigh ahead, I'll shoot more lights for the emission of Hydrogen and if possible, some data for other two emission lines, O-III and S-II.

I need some more signal to show better the area of Cygnus X-1, a black hole candidate. It's a strong source of X-ray emission and there are some interesting but kind of dim shock fronts around the X-1. This microquasar is a brighter of two stars above the Tulip Nebula, just middle right at one o'clock position.

The Tulip Nebula

Click for a large image

The Tulip Nebula at H-alpha light only, 10 x 1200s.

Some optical analysis

I'm amazed about the optical quality of the Celestron Edge HD 1100 with a 0.7 reducer for the Edge scope.

The massive reducer seems to do some magic, since the whole image area of the massive CCD in Apogee Alta U16 camera (36,8 x36,8mm) gets filled with a pinpoint stars from corner to corner. That shouldn't be possible, since the CCD is somehow larger, than the light path in Edge scope. See the image bellow.

As seen in the schematics, there should be some unusable areas at corners of the image.

A single uncropped, calibrated and stretched 20 min. H-alpha frame

Image above is an uncropped, calibrated and stretched, frame directly from the camera. Even the very corners are filled with a pinpoint stars.

Analysis of the image field

With the CCDInspector software

There is some very minor tweaking needed for the perfect collimation. Otherwise the image field is nearly perfectly flat. One pixel is about one arcseconds in this analysis.

Image corners as a closeup

Note. Images are from a single unprocessed, calibrated and stretched 20 min. H-alpha frame

Some very minor distortion can be seen, especially at image 2. That's due to some slight miss collimation. So large sensor is very picky about a correct distance (146,5mm), collimation and tilt.

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Variable star in the Pelican Nebula

I'll continue with the Pelican nebula tonight, if the weather allows. My goal is to make a two frame mosaic out of this beautiful area.

I made a comparison between my older image from Autumn 2009 and the new one from October 19. 2014.

I noticed a variable star at the image and I made a small animation out of it.

Variable star in the Pelican Nebula, an animation

Click for a large image

Animation between two images, one from Autumn 2009, the other from this Autumn

The whole image of the Pelican Nebula can be seen HERE

The variable star is an Emission-line Star 2MASS J20503695+4421408

Here is a SIMBAD database report out of it:
http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/simbad/sim-id?Ident=%4058843&Name=2MASS%20J20503695%2b4421408&submit=submit

Friday, June 6, 2014

A collection of a starless Veil nebula shots

Sometimes I'm publishing experimental starless versions of my astronomical images. They'll show the actual nebula better and have a kind of mystique feel.
Human brains has a tendency to form some quasi logical shapes out of the cloud of random dots, like stars in this case. Without stars, the shapes in a gas cloud stands out much better.

A collection of Veil Nebula supernova remnant images without stars