💾 Archived View for shizy.srht.site › daily › 2023-04-20.gmi captured on 2024-09-29 at 00:42:31. Gemini links have been rewritten to link to archived content
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- Condition: VG5
- Location: Home, Spearfish: 44.49, -103.87
Today I decided to make adjustments to my EXOS Nano mount in order to better suite the AT102ED. The first thing I did was add a small roll of magnetic tape around the counterweight. This was a perfect and cheap way to get RA balance for the scope.
Next I wanted to simultaneously stabilize the tripod and raise it in order to make it more ergonomic (I've been sitting on the ground in order to view since I got the AT102ED). I ended up replacing the hollow metal legs of the EXOS Nano with 1-1/4 inch by 4 foot poplar dowels. Since they were the same diameter of the metal legs, they fit with the existing Nano hardware. The only permanent alteration I had to do to the Nano was to drill through a 1/4 inch hole through the center of the collapsible cross brace. This allowed me to replace the mount head locking knob with a 1/4 (M10) threaded metal rod. With the rod screwed into the GEM mount, and the bottom of the tripod head and the cross brace surrounded with fender washers and lock nuts, I then added a threaded coupler with a 1/4 inch hook below the cross brace. That will allow me to attach weights below the cross brace that fall right in the center-line of the tripod head, maximizing stability.
Initial tests with 100x on the moon proved to be successful. With the stock EXOS Nano, legs fully extended it would take about 8-10 seconds for the vibrations to settle. After the adjustments were made, the tripod (at the same height) with about 15-20 lbs of weights added reduced the vibrations to 2-5 seconds. There still might be some improvements I can make with vibration dampening pads on the feet of the tripod.
- Target: α Geminorum
- Const: Gemini
- RaDec: 7h34m 32°53
- Type: Star (Double)
- Scope: AT102ED
- Setting: 34x
Warmed up by viewing the Moon and Venus until Castor was visible. Beautiful and tight split. The 102 resolves neat round pricks of light allowing a discernible split at 34x (with some micro focusing). The color of the pair seems to be a deep blue / purple.
- Target: NGC 5466
- Const: Boötes
- RaDec: 14h05m 28°32
- Type: Globular Cluster
- Scope: AT102ED
- Setting: 60X, AV
Got a detection of 5466. The moon is really bright, but I can still discern about 4 bright stars that pop and a twinkling of many more stars behind them that can only be seen with AV. Going to have to return to this one in darker skies.
- Target: δ Corvi
- Const: Corvus
- RaDec: 12h31m -16°38
- Type: Star (Double)
- Scope: AT102ED
- Setting: 100x
- Double: AB: 220°
Vindicated! I feel so silly for all the trouble δ Corvi gave me last year! Not only was it easily evident (even at 34x), but I was able to discern the split through the finder-scope. The sibling is very faint, but not so faint that I would doubt my ST80 at being able to see it.
- Target: NQ Geminorum
- Const: Gemini
- RaDec: 7h33m 24°27
- Type: Star (Carbon)
- Scope: AT102ED
- Setting: 34x
../images/2023-4-29_NQGeminorum.jpg
Decided to try my hand at my first carbon star from the Astro League Carbon Star challenge. I had no idea what I was doing. All I knew from the rules of the challenge is that I need to sketch all the evident stars in the FOV and mark the location of the carbon star. Given that requirement, I assumed that we have to "identify" the carbon star ourselves. After about a minute of viewing, one star in the area had a distinctly different color. Seems to be a deep orange, marked as an "x" in the image.
After I went in for the night, I looked this star up on the AAVSO site listed in the Carbon Star challenge rules. The site had a "finder chart" that let me verify that the star I picked was correct! I got it on my first attempt!
- Target: M 104, Sombrero Galaxy
- Const: Virgo
- RaDec: 12h41m -11°44
- Type: Spiral Galaxy
- Scope: AT102ED
- Setting: 60x-100x
Could detect M104 without AV, even with a bright moon. I really want to see this under ideal conditions, my very brief glimpse of it last year was really cool. Even tonight, a stark bright line is visible crossing the object length-wise. I tried pushing the magnification up to 100x (1mm exit pupil) and was able to retain clarity. Will revisit this again (soon)!
I can tell that the modifications to the EXOS Nano really helped with the ergonomics of viewing tonight. I had to rely on rotating the diagonal (something I didn't have to do before as the Crayford focuser on the ST80 rotated), however the whole night of viewing felt more comfortable than ever before.
