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Saturday, December 31, 2011

Last day of 2011, a collection of images.






Happy New Year 2012


Since this is a last day of year 2011, I have made a collection of images from the Autumn season 2011. As usually at this time of year, the weather has been very cloudy, up here 65N. Last couple of months has been blocked 100% by clouds. I managed to use every clear moment, so there are quite a few images from this Autumn, including my main work, a giant 18-panel mosaic from the Cygnus constellation.


A slideshow
click > to start


All images, in this slideshow, can be seen in my portfolio with a technical details:
http://astroanarchy.zenfolio.com/p909207080


First image for the season was the Propeller Nebula in Cygnus

Original blog post, with a technical details, can be seen here:
http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/10/first-light-for-autumn-season-2011.html



Last image for the current season was the 18-panel mosaic from the Cygnus constellation

Original blog post, with a technical details, can be seen here:
http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/12/cygnus-mosaic-18-panels-and-22-x-14.html





Friday, December 23, 2011

Merry Saturnalia and happy new year!




Clear skies to all!

J-P Metsävainio & Astro Anarchy observatory


Ps.
Original image, used in this manipulation, can be seen here:

Ps2.




Monday, December 19, 2011

Cygnus mosaic as a stereo pair 3D






Parallel vision stereo pairs
Cross vision stereo pairs at end of the post

Parallel vision 3D



Closeup 1


Closeup2


Closeup 3

Other 3D-formats:
Original 2D:




Cross vision stereo pairs

Cross vision 3D


Closeup 1


Closeup 2


Closeup 3

Other 3D-formats:
Original 2D:






NOTE! This is a personal vision about forms and shapes, based on some known facts and an artistic impression. 


Cugnus mosaic as an anaglyph Red/Cyan 3D




3D-NOTE!
You'll need Red/Cyan Eyeglasses to be able to see images as 3D.If you have a Red and Blue filters, you can use them! Red goes to Left eye.



Note, a largish file, 1900x1200 pixels and 3,5 meg.

Other 3D-formats:

Original 2D:


Some details from the large image above

Det.1

Det. 2

Det 3.



Ps.

Please leave a comment, I'll like to know, how many of my readers are able to watch my 3D-experiments?
Do you prefer an anaglyph method or stereo pair free view? 

If there are very few readers interested about this kind of "nontraditional" and experimental astronomical  image processing, I'm not going to post them in my blog. 
I will publish them only in my 3D-portfolio under the Zenfolio service:

Monday, December 12, 2011

November Challenge winner, IC 405






This mapped color image of IC 405 & 410 was a monthly challenge winner in CCD imaging and processing forum at Cloudynights.com


Original blog post, with technical details, can be found here: 


Friday, December 9, 2011

Cygnus mosaic, 18-panels and 22 x 14 degrees of sky




Finally finalized, with a lots of work... uh


NOTE! A large image, ~1200x2000 pixels and ~3Mb
Image is in mapped colors, from the emission of ionized elements, 
R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen.
The "noise" in background is not a noise but countless number of stars!

Even larger, 3500 x 2200 pixels and ~10Mb, image can be seen from HERE.
(Original resolution is about 15.000 x 10.000 pixels.)

Some technical information about the image:
  • Original size for the 18 panels mosaic ~15.000 x10.000 pixels
  • Resolution 5,5 arch seconds / pixel
  • Image center, RA 20h 27s, Dec 43d 30m 45s
  • Area of this image is about 22 x14 degrees of sky.
  • Full Moon has an angular diameter of 0,5 degrees, it fits to the area of this image about 1230 times!

A cropped images, to show the resolution
(Image size is reduced)


A detail from the North America and Pelican Nebulae area.
More closeups in this blog post:
http://astroanarchy.blogspot.com/2011/11/cygnus-project-grande-finale.html


A closeup from the "Cirrus" area of the large panorama.



Image in visual spectrum

Image is in Natural color palette from the emission of ionized elements, 
R=Hydrogen + Sulfur, G=Oxygen and B=Oxygen + Hydrogen. this palette is very close to a visual spectrum. NOTE! A large image, ~1920x1200 pixels and ~3Mb

A Gray scale image of Hydrogen alpha emission
can be seen HERE  (Note, about 7,3 meg)


Orientation in the sky
overlay with a star map

Constellation Cygnus



This is a third expansion for this mosaic

I started the Cygnus mosaic project by shooting a three panel mosaic from the "Cirrus area"


Three panel mosaic of Cirrus of Cygnus.


The second phase was an eight panel mosaic. The blog post can be seen from here:


An eight panel mosaic. 



All mosaics, made so far from the Cygnus constellation.



An experimental starless image to show the actual nebula





(NEW) An experimental 3D-study about this area
Note.  This is a personal vision about forms and shapes, based on some known facts and an artistic impression.

3D-NOTE!
You'll need Red/Cyan Eyeglasses to be able to see images as 3D.If you have a Red and Blue filters, you can use them! Red goes to Left eye.

Click an image for a 1900 x 1200 pixels version!

Other 3D-studies and  viewing methods in my portfolio:



Technical details for the 18 panel mosaic


Panels shot for this mosaic.

I have used a very fast camera optics, Canon EF 200mm f1.8, full open to collect all the data in this mosaic. Due that, total exposure time is relatively short, ~22h, there are some very dim formations clearly visible.

Processing work flow:
Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.
Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.
Levels, curves and mosaic combine in PS CS3.

Optics, Canon EF 200mm camera lens at f1.8
Camera, QHY9
Image Scale, ~5,5 arcseconds/pixel
Guiding, Meade LX200 GPS 12" and a Lodestar guider
Filters used, Baader 7nm H-alpha, S-II & O-III

Here are all technical data for the H-alpha emission line:

I had ready made eight panel mosaic with all three emission line, H-a, S-II and O-III  I managed to collect very little new color data but I had some earlier images from this area. I used all of them to finalize this color composition. Gaps between the color data are filled with an averaged colors from surrounding color data.

Here are links to older images used for the missing color data

North America and the Pelican Nebulae: 

Lower parts of previous image:

Sharpless 119, Sh2-119:

The Crescent Nebula, a wide field image:



Thursday, December 8, 2011

Simeis 147, a supernova remnant as a stereo pair 3D






Parallel vision 3D



Cross vision 3D



Closeups as 3D stereo


Parallel vision 3D





Cross vision 3D


Other 3D-formats:

Original 2D:







NOTE! This is a personal vision about forms and shapes, based on some known facts and an artistic impression.

Simeis 147, a supernova remnant as an anaglyph Red/Cyan 3D





3D-NOTE!
You'll need Red/Cyan Eyeglasses to be able to see images as 3D.If you have a Red and Blue filters, you can use them! Red goes to Left eye.



A closeup from above image


Other 3D-formats:

Original 2D:






NOTE! This is a personal vision about forms and shapes, based on some known facts and an artistic impression.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Simeis 147, a supernova remnant





Simeis 147, Sh2-240
In constellation Taurus


Image is in mapped colors, from the emission of ionized elements, R=Sulfur, G=Hydrogen and B=Oxygen. Note, the "noise" in background is not a noise but countless stars!

I shot H-alpha filtered lights for this image at many nights, after I shot lights for my Cygnus mosaic project.
After a midnight, Cygnus and its targets are too low in the horizon so I used rest of the night for this supernova remnant. Total exposure time for H-alpha, ~13h.

Simeis 147 (sharpless 240), is a very faint and very large supernova remnant in constellation Taurus at distance of ~3000 light years. It's constantly expanding at speed of 1000 km/second but due the size of it, we can't see any movement in it. This SN spans over 160 light years and the apparent scale in the sky is about three degrees (Moon has an apparent size of 30" = 0,5 degrees).  Explosion took place approximately 30.000 years ago  and left behind a  pulsar (Neutron star). The pulsar has recently identified.

EDIT
I just did a small calculation, how long it takes to this supernova remnant to expand 1% large when the diameter is 160 light years and it expands at speed of 1000km/second.
Answer is ~480 years.
 (1% of diameter 160/100= 16, as kilometers ~151.372.800.000.00, = Y, km,
1000km/second is ~315.360.000.00, = Z, kilometers/year.
So, X x Z = Y and  X=Z/Y,    X = 480 with given values)

This is a difficult target to image and image above is my second try to capture it. An older version can be seen here. This older image was my second APOD from NASA.

Closeups









Image in visual spectrum

Image in Natural color palette from the emission of ionized elements, 
R=Hydrogen + Sulfur, G=Oxygen and B=Oxygen + Hydrogen.
This palette is very close to a visual spectrum.


An animated image, with and without stars


This is an experimental image, the structure of filaments stands out nicely without stars.




Technical details:

Processing work flow:
Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.
Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.
Deconvolution with a CCDStack2 Positive Constraint, 33 iterations, added at 50% weight
Levels, curves and color combine in PS CS3.

Optics, Canon EF 200mm camera lens at f1.8
Camera, QHY9
Guiding, Meade LX200 GPS 12" and a Lodestar guider
Image Scale, ~5 arcseconds/pixel
H-alpha 34x900s, Binned 1x1
H-alpha 14x1800s, Binned 1x1
Total exposure time for Hydrogen alpha is ~13h

O-III & S-II channels are from an older image, it can be seen here


Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Cygnus Mosaic is getting large, 18 panels now





22 x14 degrees of sky from the constellation Cygnus
The "Chinese Dragon Nebula"

H-alpha emission, 18 panels, mosaic image of Nebulae in Cygnus
Download link for the 2600x3950 pixels image HERE(Note, about 7,3 meg)
The noise in a background, is not a noise but countless number of stars!


I was busy last night

I started to image about Four a clock! Up here, it's dark enough for astronomical imaging at that time.
My previous project, an eight panel mosaic of Cygnus Nebulae, is starting to grow! I was not planning to shoot so large mosaic but since the first one turned to be so good and funny to do, lots of work though, I decided to go on. The Canon EF 200mm f1.8 lens is very fast optically, so the needed exposure time per panel is reasonable. I shot all 12 new panels between Four and Two a clock , Ten hours straight, no pauses.

I will shoot other channels, S-II & O-III, little by little. If weather cooperate, I might have this ready before Christmas. This is the largest mosaic, I have done so far.

The "Chinese Dragon Nebula"

Do you see a Chinese Dragon in upper image?


Some technical information about the image
  • Original size for the 18 panels mosaic 14.000 x 9000 pixels
  • Resolution 5,5 arch seconds / pixel
  • Image center, RA 20h 27s, Dec 43d 30m 45s
  • Area of this image is about 22 x14 degrees of sky.
    Full Moon has an angular diameter of 0,5 degrees, it fits to the area of this image about 1230 times!

    Start of the Cygnus project

    I started the Cygnus mosaic project by shooting a three panel mosaic from the "Cirrus area"

    Image in mapped colors, H-a = Green, S-II = Red and O-III = Blue

    The second phase was an eight panel mosaic. The blog post can be seen from here:

    Eight panel mosaic. This image gives an idea, how the large mosaic will look in colors.


    Relative sizes of mosaics.




Technical details for the 18 panel mosaic

I have used a very fast camera optics, Canon EF 200mm f1.8, full open to collect all the data in this mosaic. Due that, total exposure time is relatively short, ~12h, there are some very dim formations clearly visible.

Processing work flow:
Image acquisition, MaxiDL v5.07.
Stacked and calibrated in CCDStack2.
Levels, curves and mosaic combine in PS CS3.

Optics, Canon EF 200mm camera lens at f1.8
Camera, QHY9
Image Scale, ~5,5 arcseconds/pixel
Guiding, Meade LX200 GPS 12" and a Lodestar guider
Filter, Baader 7nm H-alpha

Exposures for Eighteen panels,

Panel 1
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 2 
H-a, 5x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 3 
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 4 
H-a, 4x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 5
H-a, 5x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 6 
H-a, 8x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 7
H-a, 6x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 8
H-a, 4x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 9
H-a, 4x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 10
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 11
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 12
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 13
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 14
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 15
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 16
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 17
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Panel 18
H-a, 3x900s Binned 1x1

Total exposure time for all panels ~12h

Top of light exposures, there are calibration files shot.
21 Flat frames
99 Bias frames
19 Dark frames

NOTE.
No star or noise reduction, nor sharpening, are used.