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Monday, September 26, 2011
A collection of images from Australia ( Shot by a remote telescope)
Southern wonders
Images from Northern Galactic Groups remote telescope, narrow and broad band. photos.
I had an access to a great instrument, 16 inch RCOS, in Australia for few months about an year ago, what a wonderful experience! I made this poster form presentation from that material. Southern sky is full of wonders and the site was really dark. I miss this "Stradivarius" of telescopes, my old Meade feels like a toy after this...
A labeled version
A collection of remote images can be found from my portfolio, with technical details:
Labels:
nebula
R.I.P Dell laptop at age of ten years...
This was a third time I tried to have my first light for the Autumn season 2011. This time my ten years old Dell laptop, used to run the observatory, died.
I have ordered a new tabletop computer with some extra com ports. There are no 9 pin communication ports in modern computers and many astro gears need one, like active optics unit, TCF-s focuser and Meade telescope control. I bet, the weather will clear up now, since I can't shoot...
Some redone images
I have turned some of my images to a panoramic format for one customer.
They turned to be kind of nice, so I'll publish some of them here.
(They looked wonderful as a large print on canvas)
More panoramic images in my portfolio:
http://astroanarchy.zenfolio.com/p1055055963
More panoramic images in my portfolio:
http://astroanarchy.zenfolio.com/p1055055963
M8, the "Lagoon Nebula"
in constellation Sagittarius
Image is in HST-palette, (HST=Hubble Space Telescope)
from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
Original image and technical details:
NGC7000, the "North America Nebula", a closeup
in constellation Cygnus
Image is in HST-palette, (HST=Hubble Space Telescope)
from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
Original image and technical details:
M104, the "Sombrero Galaxy"
in constellation Virgo
A broad band image in natural RGB-colors
Original image and technical details:
Sharpless 162, NGC 7635, the "Bubble Nebula"
Image is in HST-palette, (HST=Hubble Space Telescope) from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen & B=Oxygen.
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.
Labels:
Narrowband color images
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Rain and more rain... couple of wide fields vs closeups
Since the weather doesn't support shooting any new material, I have done more image pairs from same target.
I have shot many targets with least two different focal lengths, usually a 200-300mm camera lens and my old Meade LX200 GPS 12" telescope. I have done earlier some scale studies as a zoom in series, with Moon circle as a scale.
Now I have done just simple image pairs, showing both, a wide field and a closeup from the same objects.
"Rosette Nebula"
Ra 06h 33m 45s Dec +04° 59′ 54″, in constellation Orion
Image is in HST-palette, (HST=Hubble Space Telescope)
from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
Links to an original images used in series from top to bottom
Sharpless 162, NGC 7635, the "Bubble Nebula"
Ra 23h 20m 48s Dec +61° 12′ 06″
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.
Links to an original images used in series from top to bottom
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/03/sh2-157-reprocessed.html
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/09/bubble-nebula-reprocessed-again.html
Image is in HST-palette, (HST=Hubble Space Telescope)
from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
Links to an original images used in series from top to bottom
Labels:
Narrowband color images
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
A small set of image pairs, Wide field vs closeup
I have shot many targets with least two different focal lengths, usually a 200-300mm camera lens and my old Meade LX200 GPS 12" telescope. I have done earlier some scale studies as a zoom in series, with Moon circle as a scale.
Now I have done just simple image pairs, showing both, a wide field and a closeup from the same objects.
IC1396 and the "Elephant's Trunk Nebula"
In constellation Cepheus
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.
Links to an original images used in series from top to bottom
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/01/ic-1396-reprocessed.html
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/01/elephants-trunk-nebula-inside-ic-1396.html
IC 1848, the "Soul Nebula"
In constellation Cassiopeia
Image is in HST-palette, (HST=Hubble Space Telescope)
from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
Links to an original images used in series from top to bottom
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/02/ic-1848-soul-nebula-finalized.html
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2009/11/soul-nebula-closeup-finalized.html
NGC1499, the "California Nebula"
RA 04h 03m 18.00s Dec +36° 25′ 18.0"
Links to an original images used in series from top to bottom
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/06/ngc-1499-california-nebula-reprocessed.html
- http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2010/12/ngc-1499-california-nebula-closeup.html
Labels:
Narrowband color images,
nebula
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Moon images from new point of view, set II
Buy a photographic print from HERE
I'm a deep sky photographer and the Moon usually is just an other form of light pollution to me.
The Moon can be a source of inspiration too. (An sometimes good for romantic feelings, I have been told...)
As an astronomical photographer I started with Moon images, as so many do. The 3D-transformation technique of mine gives a possibility to see the Moon from an angle not seen from Earth. This brings a new life to an old Moon image back from 2004.
In this series, some major features in full Moon are seen directly overhead
3D-twisted image, Mare Imbrium seen directly overhead.
3D-twisted image, Crater Tycho seen directly overhead.
3D-twisted image, Mare Crisium seen directly overhead.
3D-twisted image, Crater Stevinus seen directly overhead.
3D-twisted image, Craters Copernicus and Kepler, at lower Right center, seen directly overhead.
At previous post, you will see why I'm playing with old Moon images...
Labels:
moon images
So much about the first light for this season...
Source: www.foreca.fi
I was hoping to be having an opening picture for the Autumn season 2011 here to show...
Weather broadcast for next six days tells it all.
Monday, September 19, 2011
Season opened... kind of
Last night was finally clear! I took my previous picture at March 15., after that, there was no astronomical darkness to work with, since I live at 65N. My first target was the "Propeller Nebula" in constellation Cygnus.
About six months mandatory pause makes no good ones skills and routines. Last night I forget to plug in a power cord of the filter wheel, stupid me. I thought, that I was shooting H-alpha channel, instead I shot four hours of very weak O-III signal. That's OK, I can use it later for a color image, but due my mistake I have nothing to show here, there is very little to see in ionized Oxygen band . (Mainly stars, noise and some very dim signal from the ionization)
Since I don't have anything to show in this post, please, have a visit in my portfolio, there is some re organization done lately: http://astroanarchy.zenfolio.com/
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Moon images from a new point of view
This original image of the Moon is used to make all of the images below by using my 3D-transformation technique.
Buy a photographic print from HERE
"Crescent" view to a half a Moon
Buy a photographic print from HERE

Buy a photographic print from HERE
"Crescent" view to a half a Moon
Buy a photographic print from HERE

"Surface" view to half a Moon
Buy a photographic print from HERE
Moon images in this post looks kind of odd...
They are real images of the moon, imaged by me years ago, showing a half Moon with the Earth shine.
(Shadowed side of the Moon get lit by the light reflected from the Earths atmosphere, hence the bluish color)
Actually you can't see the Moon from Earth at this angle!
Images are done by re projecting the moon image to a sphere made by a 3D-software. After that you can select any new viewpoint to a Moon, as long as the point of interest stays on the visible side of the Moon. It's kind of having a private Moon orbiter.
I like this method, since the actual image data stays practically untouched, it just get seen from an other angle.
Images are done by re projecting the moon image to a sphere made by a 3D-software. After that you can select any new viewpoint to a Moon, as long as the point of interest stays on the visible side of the Moon. It's kind of having a private Moon orbiter.
I like this method, since the actual image data stays practically untouched, it just get seen from an other angle.
I developed this technique back in 2005. At the time it gets published by the "Sky & Telescope" magazine.
(J-P Metsävainio, A New Way of Looking at the Moon. Sky & Telescope, Jan 2005, p 142-146.)
I have made several short movies with this technique, here are some links to them:
This movie shows the principle of the technique used:
Please note. To see the movies at full resolution, click the HD-resolution selector at the lower Right corner of the Youtube Window. Double click the movie window to see the movie in full screen.
Surface view 1
A Moon surface image series, converted from an image at top of the page.
"Fly over the terminator zone"
Surface view 2
Labels:
moon images
Monday, September 12, 2011
Couple of image collections with very different instruments, Tokina 300mm camera lens and the Meade LX200 GPS 12" telescope 3000mm
Images taken with a Tokina AT-X 300mm f2.8 camera lens
Images are in HST-palette from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen & B=Oxygen.
Note. Images in this poster are not in same scale.
All images in this collection can be found from my portfolio, with technical details:
Tokina AT-X 300mm camera lens is an excellent astrolens!
Here is a blog post about the lens and the first light for it:
Tokina lens at top of the Meade LX200 GPS 12" telescope, it's a large lens with the dew shield attached.
Imaging bath, more info in this blog post:
http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2009/09/active-otics-and-meade-lx200-gps-12.html
All the images above are shot from my city center observatory, under a heavy light pollution.
The narrowband imaging is must under my conditions. Dark place is better naturally, now I'm able to use every cloudless moment, unlike with an observatory in distant dark location.
A collection of images taken with a Meade LX200 GPS 12" 3000mm f10 telescope, forced to work at ~f5.
My old Meade LX 200 GPS12" telescope, on its original fork mount, is not a perfect instrument for astronomical imaging. I have managed to get it work like a real imaging platform, not an easy task though.
Great help is an active optics unit, SXV-AO, from Starlight express. (UK based company)
Most of the images are in HST-palette from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen & B=Oxygen. Red ones are in natural narrowband colors. Note. Images in this poster are not in same scale.
All images in this collection can be found from my portfolio, with technical details:
My old Meade LX 200 GPS12" telescope, on its original fork mount, is not a perfect instrument for astronomical imaging. I have managed to get it work like a real imaging platform, not an easy task though.
Great help is an active optics unit, SXV-AO, from Starlight express. (UK based company)

Imaging bath, more info in this blog post:
http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2009/09/active-otics-and-meade-lx200-gps-12.html
All the images above are shot from my city center observatory, under a heavy light pollution.
The narrowband imaging is must under my conditions. Dark place is better naturally, now I'm able to use every cloudless moment, unlike with an observatory in distant dark location.
Labels:
equipments,
Narrowband color images
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