Monn and Mars over our chimney pots

Another pic taken a few hours later with our chimney pots in the foreground.

Moon and Mars close pairing

Took this earlier on this evening after seeing a message from www.spaceweather.com about the pairing shortly after sunset. I grabbed my 300D and tripod to take a picture with Hercules in the foreground.

Location Map for Comet 17P/Holmes

Go to www.spaceweather.com for updated maps

Comet 17P/Holmes update

Here is another shot of the comet this time I have inverted one image, this sometimes brings out subtle details that are not visible in normal viewing. The comet is in the constellation of Perseus at the moment and will offer good views to UK and Europe for a few weeks to come.

Comet 17P/Holmes

Saw holmes for the first time last night through my Lidl 10X50s only a 10 minute clear slot though! Very impressed with the view what an unusual sight! Tonight was forecast cloudy but at 8ish a clear spell developed I got the LX10 out and observed visually first - what a sight in a low power eyepiece, I then coupled my DSLR at prime focus to try some imaging with the scope only very roughly polar aligned! Here is one of my unprocessed results. I will look forward to more developments with this comet.

Cassiopeia wide field view

I was out last night untill 02.30hrs trying to get a picture of a perseid fireball. I managed to catch 4 or 5 on the camera but they were not very bright, all the bright ones were always in the wrong place. At 01.40hrs approx there was a very bright fireball streaking through the Cassiopeia region, it was greenish in colour and left a trail that was still visible upto 30 seconds later, the camera was pointing in a diffrent direction. I decided to stack some of the images from last night. This is a stack of 7 images of between 25 and 60 seconds exposure using the 300D with a standar zoom set to 18mm, the images were stacked using DeepSky Stacker (DSS).

ISS GLIDES PAST HERCULES AND LYRA

This is my first go at imaging the ISS. Just point the camera at the right bit of sky and open the shutter at the right time.

Did some imaging tonight

This is just one of the images taken tonight. Taken with an 18mm lens attached to a 300D Iso800 114secs at f5. Image has been processed using Noels actions and PSE3.

Still chucking it down!!!

The rain looks like its set in for good, I am giving up - better luck next time!

Pleiades Moon Occultation

Its 00.47 Tuesday 7th waited up to take some images of the Occultation, weather looked promising at 23.30 but its now chucking it down!!

Milky Way wide field

Took this image the other night (first for a while!) It shows the Mily Way, Andromeda Galaxy is also visible.

New website up and running!!!

Click image to enter

The Moon glides past The Beehive Cluster

One of my students took this the other night when the moon past M44 Praesepe 'The Beehive' star cluster taken with a 400 mm lens on a Canon 10D.

Moon Venus Conjunction 19 May 2007

These images were taken by one of my students during tonights conjunction.

M45 and Venus

Taken one of the images of last night and added a few notes.

Venus has a date with The Pleiades

This image illustrates the light pollution over the Liverpool area probably about 40 or 50 miles away!

Canon 300d 18mm lens 60secs AV5 ISO800 - location Great Orme Llandudno, N Wales. Really nice view tonight of the coming together of two heavenly icons!

Wide view shot of Saturdays Eclipse

March 3rd 2007 Total Lunar Eclipse

Montage of images taken using a 300d at prime focus 200mm SCT and a 10D with a 400 mm telephoto lens

More M42 shots

Various interpretations using CS2 photoshop Noels Actions and Deepskystacker. Stack of 10 exposures ranging from 30 to 60 seconds ISO 600 to 1600 Canon EOS 300D and 200mm SCT at prime focus.

Finally got an image of M42 the great Orion Nebula. Picture was taken at prime focus using a Canon EOS 300D on a Meade LX10 f10 SCT 200mm. 12second exposure at 1600 ISO. Could have made a better job of polar alignment but was worried about an approaching fog bank!

Also got some pics of the Moon.

Got some images - finally!!!

Managed to get some images after previous failed attempt! Pictures were taken with an EOS 300D working at ISO 800 using a 200mm zoom lens exposure times were various. It was amazing to note how long the dust trail extended even through the veil of thin clouded and the scattered sunlight of twilight - no sign of an ion trail though, probably not dark enough.

A new bright comet!! - C/2006 P1 McNaught

Tried last night but failed due to cloud in the wrong place. Thought I would try tonight even though there was more cloud around, went to west shore in Llandudno so I had a clear view to the west. I was about to give up on a clear spot when on one of my scans I spotted it - wow!! This was the first time i had used my lidl bargain 10X50 bressers in battle and what an amazing sight a nice clear head and a lovely tail possibly both ion and dust visible - by the time I had got the tripod and camera set up it had been covered in cloud! - will keep trying until it shoots behind the sun. I will post an image as soon as/if I get one!