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How to Make Tape

2012-01-25T15:59:00.001-06:00

1. Get a tape-making machine.

2. Turn it on.

My Poor Child

2012-01-20T16:40:00.001-06:00

Rub some dirt on it. You'll be fine.

Stratocaster

2012-01-04T22:04:00.001-06:00

100% vector art. Drawn with Adobe Illustrator CS5.

M42, The Orion Nebula

2011-12-31T14:26:00.001-06:00

There's a reason this is one the most-photographed deep sky objects.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 20 x 30 sec (10:00) @ ISO 400, 10 x 300 sec (50:00) 10 flat, 10 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: CI-700
Guider: AT80EDT, Meade DSI
Filter: Astronomic CLS
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Stratocaster: Work In Progress

2011-12-20T19:09:00.001-06:00

If I'm not gonna get paid to draw, I'm gonna draw what I want!

Portfolio Pieces

2011-12-13T15:40:00.004-06:00

I was going through some things, thinking about adding them to the portfolio site. I like these, but is something I did 17 years ago still relevant? Everything from the last few years all sorta looks alike.

Job Search

2011-11-13T17:02:00.001-06:00

The updated portfolio is here! If you're in need of a graphic designer/illustrator/tech writer or photographer, I'm available for freelance gigs or a full-time position.

iSad

2011-10-06T09:26:00.002-05:00

The Mac basically made my job possible. Sure, there have been designers and illustrators and photographers and musicians and creative people forever, but it was that box that made it possible to play in so many sandboxes, to explore so many things, to marry technology and creativity. So thanks, Steve.

I'm sad there won't be, "and one more thing" this time.

Jupiter & Europa, 2 October 2011

2011-10-05T17:45:00.000-05:00

Here's one more from the other night, this time with the moon Europa nearby.

It occurred to me; two of the greatest planetary imagers in the world are Facebook friends. Suddenly I'm embarrassed to post these. I sometimes feel like a kid putting his pictures up on the refrigerator and calling them art.

Jupiter, 2 October 2011 Reprocessed

2011-10-02T21:52:00.002-05:00

I don't see any point in making more Jupiter pictures this season!

I take that back--I still want to get detail on Ganymede. I've seen it done, but not often.

Jupiter, 2 October 2011

2011-10-02T03:22:00.001-05:00

This is why I stayed up late tonight.

Jupiter, 1 October 2011

2011-10-01T13:43:00.001-05:00

Jupiter, 1 October 2011

It's been a long, hot summer. When the temperature is still over 90° at 11:00 p.m., my interest in astronomy wanes. But we've finally gotten a little break in the weather, so I pulled out the C11 and stayed up late to make this thoroughly uninspiring shot of Jupiter. The sky looked pretty steady naked-eye, but the focus kept drifting in and out.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 500 frames each L, R, G, B
Camera: Point Grey Research Flea @ 640x480, 16-bit
Scope: Celestron C-11, Televue 2.5x Powermate (f/25)
Mount: Celestron CI-700
Guider: none
Filter: Orion LRGB set
Software: AstroIIDC, Registax 6, Photoshop

Outreach

2011-09-18T23:04:00.000-05:00

If you've ever wondered what it's like trying to "do astronomy" with Cub Scouts, this is pretty close. If only he had a green laser, he could be answering "Is that a real laser? Where did you get it? How much does it cost? Can I use it? Will you point it at __?"

You're Doing It Wrong

2011-09-06T14:26:00.000-05:00

Since Rick Perry asked Texans to pray for rain in April we have seen a continuation of the worst one-year drought in history, the hottest summer on record, and now while Louisiana and Mississippi get much-needed drenching rains we are getting wildfires in Texas.

Just the facts.

First Day of School, 2011

2011-08-29T10:25:00.003-05:00

Welcome to third grade buddy.

Some kids get new clothes to go back to school in. We just wear the same thing three years in a row. (2) (1)

NGC 7293, The Helix Nebula Reprocessed

2011-08-01T20:22:00.003-05:00

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 11 x 300 sec (55 min) @ ISO 1600, 0 flat, 6 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

IC 5146, The Cocoon Nebula Reprocessed

2011-08-01T20:20:00.002-05:00

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 30 x 480 sec (4 hours) @ ISO 1600, 20 flat, 8 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

IC 5146, The Cocoon Nebula

2011-07-31T15:44:00.004-05:00

A disappointing result after 4 hours exposure. First attempt at 8-minute sub-exposures. The mount is capable of it, but I have some flexure somewhere between the guide camera and imaging camera. I have a couple of things to try--it just takes time.

A beautiful night at X-Bar Ranch though. A 2-minute shower about 7:30 knocked down the temperature. Transparency was a little soft, but the seeing was very steady.

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 30 x 480 sec (4 hours) @ ISO 1600, 20 flat, 8 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

NGC 7293, The Helix Nebula

2011-07-30T12:37:00.004-05:00

Not the definitive shot of this planetary nebula, but not awful either. Weather kept me from getting started until almost 0300, so this is just not quite an hour on a very dim object, and it suffered accordingly.

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 11 x 300 sec (55 min) @ ISO 1600, 0 flat, 6 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

The Cygnus Loop

2011-07-24T15:27:00.005-05:00

The visual portion of the Cygnus Loop is known as the Veil Nebula, also called the Cirrus Nebula or the Filamentary Nebula. Several components have separate names and identifiers,including the "Western Veil" or "Witch's Broom", and the "Eastern Veil."

The Western Veil, NGC 6960, is on the left. On the right is the Eastern Veil, NGC 6992. Pickering’s Triangular Wisp is the area in the lower half on the left.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 20 x 300 sec @ ISO 800, 10 flat, 10 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: Zenithstar 66, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: AT80EDT, Meade DSI
Filter: Astronomik CLS
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

M20, The Trifid Nebula

2011-07-03T14:35:00.004-05:00

A beautiful night at the Eagle Eye Observatory. I neglected to completely tighten the guide scope mounting screws, so there's a slight trailing. Dumb mistake.

Eagle Eye Observatory, Burnet, TX
Exposure: 24 x 300 sec (2 hours) @ ISO 800, 0 flat, 8 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Packaging Samples

2011-06-13T15:55:00.002-05:00

I really like the way these turned out.

Zombie Survival

2011-06-02T15:14:00.003-05:00

Somehow I wound up reading a discussion on how to survive the upcoming zombie attack, where I found this cute little item:

Calamities of Nature

2011-06-01T14:05:00.001-05:00

Two More Saturns

2011-05-15T11:30:00.003-05:00

Flea2

DMK21
It's surprisingly difficult to get consistent color.

First Saturn of 2011

2011-05-08T21:42:00.004-05:00

It took way too long to get this shot. Let's just say that between the clouds, the wind (especially the wind) and not wanting to stay up until 0300 and still go to work, this was the first decent opportunity I've had to shoot Saturn this time around.

There are a lot of firsts in this image: first light for the PGR Flea camera, first imaging attempt with the C-11 scope on the CI-700 mount, and first time using Registax 6 to process. I'm pretty pleased with the end result though.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 1500 frames each L, R, G, B
Camera: Point Grey Research Flea @ 640x480, 16-bit
Scope: Celestron C-11, Televue 2.5x Powermate (f/25)
Mount: Celestron CI-700
Guider: none
Filter: Orion LRGB set
Software: AstroIIDC, Registax 6, Photoshop

Queue Management and the TSA

2011-05-03T13:31:00.003-05:00

After visiting Walt Disney World in Florida, coming back through the airport in Orlando showed me just how badly the TSA is managing their queues.

If you fly only once a year like I do, and you arrive at the security line, do you know what you'll need to do once you reach the end of the line? How do you learn that? Apparently, you get to the front of the line to have an irritated, low-wage government employee bark unintelligible commands while the line backs up behind you. And woe if English isn't your native language. Surely there's a better way.

Now, I'm no expert in queue management. Apparently there's an entire discipline of study in that area. But I am a graphic designer, at least sometimes, and I do design materials that help people learn how to complete a task. In this case, the TSA had me in line for about 15 minutes. In that time, I could have watched a video screen show me step-by-step what to do when I reached the screener. Or I could have looked at a series of static displays graphically showing what to do with my bag, my laptop, my phone, my shoes, and whatever else.

Worried about who's going to pay for improved queues? Again, I was a captive audience for 15 minutes. What advertiser doesn't drool at that idea? Come on, this is first year b-school stuff. Either I'm missing something, or someone at TSA doesn't want to do this stuff, because if I can think of a half-dozen ways to improve the process of getting through the line, people who know about this stuff can do better.

And they're not. And that pisses me off.

Playing the Bagpipes

2011-04-19T11:09:00.001-05:00

When I was younger, I played the bagpipes a bit. Many years ago, I was asked by a funeral director to play at a graveside service for a homeless man. He had no family or friends, so the service was to be at a pauper's cemetery in deep East Texas.

As I was not familiar with the backwoods, I got lost and, being a typical male, I didn't stop to ask for directions. I finally arrived an hour late and saw the funeral guy had evidently gone and the hearse was nowhere in sight. There was only the digging crew left and they were eating lunch.

I felt badly and apologized to the men for being late. I went to the side of the grave, looked down and saw that the vault lid was already in place. I didn't know what else to do, so I started to play.

The workers put down their lunches and began to gather around. I played out my heart and soul for this man with no family and friends. I played as if I were playing for the Queen of England.

And as I played "Amazing Grace", the workers began to weep. They wept, I wept, we all wept together. When I finished, I packed up my bagpipes and started for my automobile. Though my head hung low, my heart was full. As I opened the door to my car, I heard one of the workers say, "I never seen nothin' like that before and I've been putting in septic tanks for twenty years!".

M51 Reprocessed

2011-04-06T23:10:00.002-05:00

Better brightness & color.

M51, The Whirlpool Galaxy

2011-04-03T03:03:00.002-05:00

I got a little aggressive with the noise reduction, but I kind of like the painterly effect it created.

Shot this in blowing wind while everyone else was breaking down their gear. Glad I stuck it out.

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 42 x 300 sec (3.5 hours) @ ISO 1600, 20 flat, 12 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

M65, M66: Galaxies in Leo

2011-04-02T15:21:00.004-05:00

Messier 65 and make up part of the Leo Triplet, a small group of galaxies.

Photographed at X-Bar Ranch, between Eldorado and Sonora, Texas. There's no substitute for shooting from dark skies!

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 36 x 300 sec (3 hours) @ ISO 1600, 10 flat, 10 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

New Floors

2011-03-29T10:08:00.003-05:00

Stand by for astronomy: I'm headed to dark skies this weekend. But in the meantime, we got new floors!

A 2-Headed Elephant

2011-03-24T14:02:00.001-05:00

Not like drawing power connections.

This Day In History

2011-03-13T09:53:00.001-05:00

I Want One!

2011-03-12T08:49:00.002-06:00

I Just Can't Resist

2011-03-04T11:06:00.003-06:00

Mike Huckabee, on Jamie Lynn Spears in 2007, unmarried and pregnant:

"Apparently, she's going to have the child and I think that is the right decision, a good decision, and I respect that and appreciate it. I hope it is not an encouragement to other 16-year-olds who think that is the best course of action."

"But at the same time I'm not going to condem her. There'll be plenty of people in line to do that and I always look for the shortest lines. I just hope that she will make another right decision and that's to give that child all the love and kindness and care that she can."

Mike Huckabee, on Natalie Portman in 2010, unmarried and pregnant:

"One of the most troubling things is that people see a Natalie Portman or some other Hollywood starlet that boasts of, hey look, we're having children, we're not married, but we're having children and they're doing just fine."

"There aren't really a lot of single moms out there that are making millions of dollars each year by being in a movie," Huckabee said. "I think it gives a distorted image that not everybody hires nannies and caretakers and nurses. Most single moms are very poor, uneducated, can't get a job, and if it weren't for government assistance, their kids would be starving to death and would not get healthcare."

M81 & M82, Bode's Galaxy & Cigar Galaxy

2011-03-02T21:28:00.003-06:00

It's time once again to take a shot at this pair of galaxies off the Big Dipper. Best one of the lot, for sure. I'm definitely liking the AT6RC on the CI-700.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 60 x 180 sec (3 hours) @ ISO 800, 10 flat, 20 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Observatory Upgrades

2011-03-01T14:12:00.002-06:00

It's been a busy winter here at Heritage Park Observatory. We've retired three telescopes, and added some new equipment.

It all started when I bought the Astro-Tech AT6RC 6-inch Ritchey-Chrétien astrograph. I had mounted it on the Meade LXD-650, but wasn't happy with the results. At the same time, I came across a great deal on a Celestron C-11, an 11-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope. It took a little soul searching, but I decided to sell the LX200 and fund the C11. That left room to add a new mount, a used Celestron CI-700. The short tube 80 went with the LX200, but Mr. Daniel donated a used Zenithstar 66 to the stable. Got all that?

Before: 10" LX200, C6, AT80EDT & ST80, LXD-650 mount
After: C11, AT6RC, AT80EDT & ZS66, CI-700 and LXD-650 mounts

The end result is that the observatory is much more flexible in scope sizes. The CI-700 is semi-permanently mounted on the pier, and is capable of carrying the big C11 with the ZS66 riding piggyback, or any two-scope combination of AT6RC, AT80EDT and ZS66. The C11 should provide higher-resolution planetary imaging than the LX200, the AT6RC is an excellent all-around photography scope, the AT80EDT a good wide-field visual and imaging scope, and the ZS66 a lightweight guide scope also capable of wider fields than the AT80EDT.

The LXD-650 is now the portable setup. It can carry the C11 for visual use, which should make a nice setup for outreach activities, or it's good for imaging with the 80 or 66mm scopes. About the only time I might foresee taking the CI-700 into the field would be to travel to dark skies, like the Texas Star Party or X-Bar Ranch.

NGC 2392, The Eskimo Nebula

2011-03-01T11:41:00.003-06:00

Still working on some differential flexure between the guide scope and the imaging scope, but getting very close now. The CI-700 mount tracks like a dream. I'm tempted to turn the guiding off and see what I can get.

This is a poor target choice for this scope/camera combination. (Too small.)

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 8 x 300 sec (40 min) @ ISO 1600, 10 flat, 6 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Celestron CI-700/Skywalker
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Dark Side of the Horse

2011-02-14T09:56:00.001-06:00

She sounded excited to go star gazing with me; I don't understand why she was so disappointed when I showed up with a telescope.

I Want This Job

2011-02-11T14:41:00.002-06:00

This picture is from a story on space.com, "NASA's First Orion Space Capsule Ships Out for Big Tests." I want to know about the two banners haning up behind the Orion. Who does those, and how do I get that job?

M42, The Orion Nebula

2011-01-22T23:29:00.002-06:00

No matter how many times I shoot this, I'm always amazed at how differently each one comes out.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 30 x 60 sec (30:00) @ ISO 800, 10 flat, 10 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (modified)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Meade LXD 650
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Why Football Announcers Should Stick to Football

2011-01-03T22:46:00.002-06:00

Watching Stanford dismantle Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl and the announcer was listing some notable Stanford graduates: " … Sally Ride, first woman on the Moon …"

(She wasn't even the first woman in space--two Russian women went ahead of her.)

M1, The Crab Nebula

2010-12-30T21:52:00.003-06:00

I had a case of photon fever, and didn't get this quite as focused as it should have been. Not terribly different than the 2006 version, maybe better tracking. Even that wasn't great--I threw out half of the frames for trailing in RA. Not sure where that's coming from.

Second light with the AT6RC, and I'm very happy with the new scope so far. Very little vignetting and a nice flat field with the AT2FF in place.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 15 x 120 sec (30:00) @ ISO 1600, 10 flat, 10 dark
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D) (stock)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Meade LXD 650
Guider: Zenithstar 66, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: Nebulosity, Photoshop

People Of Earth, I Lack Basic Social Skills

2010-12-29T15:40:00.001-06:00

Citizens of Earth! Please, do not be afraid!

I come from a small green home on Edgemore Avenue. There I live in the basement, below my now elderly parents. I have been observing you and your kind for many years, primarily through the shades of my bedroom window and on the television set. Understand, I mean you no harm. I only seek to learn more of your strange earthling ways.

Your customs intrigue me. The casual and lighthearted nature of your conversations, the cultural references you so frequently employ to elicit laughter, the way you will sometimes pat another human on the back to display affection and foster an atmosphere of warmth. These behaviors are entirely foreign to me. For instance, how do you keep yourself from shifting nervously all the time?

Please, do not stare directly into my eyes! You are making me very uncomfortable! Look away, humans! Look away!

Galileo's Roommate

2010-12-20T09:24:00.001-06:00

AT6RC First Light

2010-12-19T21:08:00.005-06:00

After 4 months on back-order, my new AT6RC finally arrived. I built an adapter to attach the LXD 650 mount to the observatory pier, and got everything set up in time for tomorrow's lunar eclipse. We'll know more about how the scope performs on star fields in a couple of weeks, after we get past the full moon. Meanwhile, here's a single exposure of the moon one day before full:

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 1/100 second (0.01)
Camera: Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: AT6RC, AT2FF field flattener
Mount: Meade LXD 650
Guider: None
Filter: None
Software: Nebulosity, Photoshop

I'd Be Perfect!

2010-12-15T15:34:00.000-06:00

I'll Make You A Deal

2010-12-06T13:30:00.003-06:00

If you're a true believer, write me a check dated May 22, 2011, and I promise I won't cash it until then.

Good news, everyone! If you’ve been worried about the rapture and the second coming of Jesus Christ, you don’t have to worry anymore. A date has been set for Jesus’s return, so you have more than enough time to get your affairs in order and get right with the church of your choice. According to a billboard taken out in Nashville, Tennessee, Jesus will return on May 21, 2011.

Astromart™ Sucks

2010-11-30T11:37:00.004-06:00

Why does Astromart™ suck so hard? Here's one reason: You pay your $12, and in return you get "Astromart™ has the sole discretion to amend these terms of use at any time, to terminate your membership account for any reason or no reason at all at any time, to delete posts or ads at any time, and to use or copy material from posts or ads at any time." (Terms of Service 30 November 2010)

So, you send Herb your money, in return he can use your photos or descriptions of your items for any purpose, including marketing his own products, or he can simply take your money and refuse to allow you to use the site.

No thanks--I don't do business with thieves, crooks or liars.

I See A Star

2010-11-14T13:11:00.002-06:00

NGC 7293, The Helix Nebula

2010-11-07T09:23:00.004-06:00

Did you ever have one of those times when nothing worked right? When things unrelated would fail in sequence? That was my night last night. Just finding this stupid thing took nearly an hour, punctuated by the camera battery adapter flaking out, and not being able to figure out how to get the guide scope to focus, to plugging the autoguider into the wrong port on the mount and spending 20 minutes trying to figure out why it's not working. So instead of 4 hours on this, Here's just 12 5-minute exposures stacked with no darks and no flats. How I got as much as I did is beyond me, because I did everything wrong I could have.

EagleEye Observatory, Canyon of the Eagles Park, Burnet TX
Exposure: 12 x 5 minutes
Camera: Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: Celestron C6, Meade f/6.3 focal reducer
Mount: Meade LXD650
Guider: Short Tube 80, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

My Living Will

2010-11-04T09:19:00.000-05:00

Courtesy of my sister:

MY LIVING WILL

Last night, my friends and I were sitting in the living room and I said to them, "I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. If that ever happens, just pull the plug."

They got up, unplugged the computer and threw out my Diet Coke. They are SO on my s**t list ...

My Dream

2010-11-01T22:50:00.006-05:00

My dream is to make a photo like this one that Brad Hill made from Nashville, Tennessee, and recently published in Sky & Telescope magazine. Be sure to click and view it full-size. That's Ganymede on the right, showing detail. Astounding! Thirty years ago it took a spacecraft to see that kind of detail on the moons of Jupiter.

Home, 1983–85

2010-10-31T16:07:00.002-05:00

J324 Prather Hall (Middle window, 1 down from the top).

I didn't feel really old until I realized whoever is living there now wasn't born when I was there.

Darrel K. Royal, Texas Memorial Stadium

2010-10-31T14:40:00.002-05:00

Stitched with AutoStitch on the iPhone.

Jupiter, 29 October 1010

2010-10-31T14:36:00.004-05:00

Again in the C6, but this time from Mansfield Dam, where I'm not shooting over the roof of the house. This is a 1.5X enlargement.
Best 98% of 500 frames LRGB, DMK21AF04, Televue 2.5x Powermate

Jupiter, 15 October 2010

2010-10-15T11:19:00.001-05:00

Thought we needed to see this side of Jupiter for a change. Moon is Io.

Jupiter, 9 October 2010 (C6)

2010-10-10T00:17:00.007-05:00

Actual Size

1.5X Resample

2X Drizzle

I've been unhappy with the last few Jupiters--they just weren't as good as the conditions said they should have been--so I decided to try a different telescope. I set the little 6" Celestron C6 up in the back yard and gave it a go.

Wow.

I don't know what's going on exactly with the bigger 10" LX200, but I'm clearly missing something somewhere when the upscaled image from the 6-inch scope is showing better detail than I'm getting from the bigger scope.

Jupiter, 7 October 2010 (SPC900NC)

2010-10-07T16:07:00.003-05:00

Just for grins, I shot this with the old SPC900NC webcam. It's OK, but you can tell the difference between the cheap camera and the other one.

Jupiter, 7 October 2010

2010-10-07T12:03:00.006-05:00

The angled lines are an artifact on the sensor. I don't know if it's the cover filter or the sensor itself. I tried imaging this with flats, but it didn't take care of it as well as I'd hoped.

I still want to try a different scope as well. I think I'm hitting the limits of my LX200.

No Sleep For the Wicked

2010-10-05T15:48:00.002-05:00

Dark blue is good. Three rows of dark blue is unheard of.

Lex Luthor Fail

2010-10-04T14:40:00.001-05:00

Sent this in to FAILBlog.

Jupiter, 1 October 2010

2010-10-01T13:38:00.003-05:00

These might have been better if I had waited, but I wanted to catch the Great Reddish Spot. First shot was at 9:30, 33° up. Second one was an hour later, 44° elevation. I'm pleased these are as nice as they are for being so low in the sky.

Also tried out a new application (WinJupos) that compensates for the planet's rotation between shots. It take me nearly 2 minutes to complete a series, and in that time Jupiter has rotated enough that the luminance channel I shot first doesn't align perfectly with the the blue channel I shot last. The improvement is subtle, but I'll take whatever I can get.

Jupiter, 30 September 2010

2010-09-30T16:32:00.002-05:00

10" LX200, Best 98% of 750 frames LRGB, DMK21AF04, Televue 2.5x Powermate

I gotta get some sleep. This good weather is killing me.

Jupiter, 29 September 2010

2010-09-29T16:30:00.006-05:00

That's Europa casting the shadow, and Io off to the right (again).

10" LX200, Best 98% of 750 frames LRGB, DMK21AF04, Televue 2.5x Powermate

Not A Picture of Jupiter

2010-09-29T10:18:00.002-05:00

Jupiter, 27 September 2010

2010-09-28T15:32:00.005-05:00

10" LX200, Best 98% of 750 frames LRGB, DMK21AF04, Televue 2.5x Powermate

A little soft. We're forecast for excellent seeing after midnight tonight; we'll see if I make it out.

OU Still Sucks

2010-09-24T15:05:00.002-05:00

Don't forget, the big game is coming up!

I put up a new CafePress store to point out that no matter what the score, OU still sucks.

The lawyers made me change the shirt. They suck too.

Orbital Mechanics

2010-09-24T12:04:00.002-05:00

(Actually, I think Orbital Mechanics is a great name for a band.)

Jupiter, 23 September 2010

2010-09-24T11:39:00.003-05:00

Jove's looking kinda dull this year. The southern equatorial belt is missing, and there's not a whole lot of activity in the equator either.

10" LX200, Best 500 of 750 frames LRGB, DMK21AF04, Televue 2.5x Powermate

Jupiter, 21 September 2010

2010-09-22T11:31:00.005-05:00

A day past opposition, and we got a break in the clouds. That's Europa casting a shadow on the planet, and Io off to the right.

The color on this one is weird, not sure why. Didn't get a good luminance frame, so this is just RGB.
10" LX200, Best 500 of 750 frames RGB, DMK21AF04, Televue 2.5x Powermate

My Role Model

2010-09-12T18:00:00.001-05:00

Have I mentioned how Calvin's dad is my parenting role model?

The new iPod nano

2010-09-01T16:47:00.002-05:00

The new iPod nano says, "Hook 'Em!"

First Day, Second Grade

2010-08-23T13:34:00.002-05:00

At least he's wearing different shoes this year.

More here.

IC 5070, The Pelican Nebula

2010-08-15T18:00:00.003-05:00

The Pelican Nebula is a large area of emission nebula in the constellation Cygnus (the Swan), close to Deneb, and divided from its brighter, larger neighbor, the North America Nebula, by a molecular cloud filled with dark dust.

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 43 x 5 minutes (3:35)
Camera: Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: AT80EDT
Mount: Meade LXD650
Guider: ST80, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

NGC 7000, The North American Nebula

2010-08-14T15:07:00.005-05:00

Wikipedia entry.

Photographed at X-Bar Ranch, between Eldorado and Sonora, Texas.

First time I've dealt with a "meridian flip." With a German Equatorial Mount, when an object passes from the eastern sky to the western sky, you have to turn the mount so that the scope switches sides. Getting the camera realigned close to where it was was a bit tricky, but not terribly hard.

X-Bar Ranch, Eldorado, TX
Exposure: 30 x 2 minutes + 30 x 5 minutes (3.5 hours)
Camera: Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: AT80EDT
Mount: Meade LXD650
Guider: ST80, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Jupiter, 2 August 2010

2010-08-02T15:44:00.004-05:00

First time around for this appearance of Jupiter, and I'm setting the bar high this year. We've had a high-pressure dome settle in on top of us the last couple of days, and the seeing has been, well, astronomical. I set up the gear before going to bed, then rolled out at 0500 this morning to shoot this. CSC said 4/5 seeing, and it may have been better.

10" LX200, Best 500 of 1000 frames LRGB, DMK21AF04, Televue 2.5x Powermate

M17, The Omega Nebula

2010-08-01T15:52:00.002-05:00

Here's a third version (1) (2) of M17, aka the Swan Nebula.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 90 x 90 seconds (2:15)
Camera: Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: Meade LX200 @ f/6.3
Mount: Meade LX200
Guider: ST80, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

NGC 6888, The Crescent Nebula

2010-08-01T15:41:00.004-05:00

Here's another look at NGC6888, the Crescent Nebula.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 90 x 90 seconds (2:15)
Camera: Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: Meade LX200 @ f/6.3
Mount: Meade LX200
Guider: ST80, Meade DSI
Filter: None
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

Chicago Panoramas

2010-07-29T23:11:00.004-05:00

Looking north from Shedd Aquarium.

Looking north from Museum Campus.

Looking east from Sears Tower.

Another Couple of Busy Days

2010-07-08T13:41:00.003-05:00

One of these days we'll get back to astronomy …

Meanwhile, here's a bit of 3D work that's different from the stuff I usually do. Client sends over an image from a video: "Can you copy this?"

Modeled in Sketchup, rendered with Indigo.

Say Hello To My Leeetle Friend

2010-06-27T13:35:00.003-05:00

Colt M4 Carbine, .22
25 yards, standing, iron sights. Not awful for the first time out. Gun shoots great.

A Proposal For Private Spaceflight

2010-06-17T16:13:00.003-05:00

How to pay for a trip to the Moon with private money. Just do it.

A Very Busy Couple of Days

2010-06-16T17:57:00.002-05:00

120,000-volt electrical termination, drawn in Adobe Illustrator.

CVS/Pharmacy Ripped Me Off

2010-06-14T16:48:00.002-05:00

When I asked about the difference, the clerk told me "Maybe that's the price with a CVS card. Do you have a CVS card?"

Wankers.

NGC 4565

2010-06-05T12:55:00.002-05:00

Edge on galaxy in Coma Berenices.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 72 x 2 1/2 minutes
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: Meade LX200 @ f/10
Mount: Meade LX200
Guider: ST80, Meade DSI
Filter: Astronomik CLS
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

It's Funny 'Cuz It's True

2010-05-25T10:37:00.002-05:00

Pretty Dang Amazing

2010-05-24T14:06:00.002-05:00

This close-up of photographer Thierry Legault's snapshot zooms in on the space shuttle Atlantis and International Space Station as they transited across the sun on May 16, 2010. This photo was taken from Madrid, Spain. Full Story.

A Disappointing Saturn

2010-05-06T11:39:00.002-05:00

For whatever reason, I just couldn't get the camera to focus as sharply as I was seeing in the eyepiece.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 1500 frames each L, R, G, B
Camera: Imaging Source DMK21AF04.US
Scope: Meade LX200 10", Televue 2.5x Powermate (f/25)
Mount: Meade LX200
Guider: none
Filter: Orion LRGB set
Software: AstroIIDC, Registax, Photoshop

Sunset at LKY Ranch

2010-04-28T17:15:00.002-05:00

Binocular Astronomy

2010-04-20T23:33:00.002-05:00

My presentation on Binocular Astronomy for the Wine & Starshine benefit is here. (12 MB PDF)

Trade Expert

2010-04-14T09:37:00.004-05:00

I'm talking to you, Mike Rowe. Stop it.

No Really, iDo

2010-04-02T09:15:00.002-05:00

Stirring The Pot

2010-03-30T15:49:00.001-05:00

This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the United States Department of Energy. I then took a shower in the clean water provided by the municipal water utility. After that, I turned on the TV to one of the Federal Communications Commission regulated channels to see what the National Weather Service of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration determined the weather was going to be like using satellites designed, built, and launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. I watched this while eating my breakfast of United States Department of Agriculture inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined as safe by the Food and Drug Administration.

At the appropriate time as regulated by the United States congress and kept accurate by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the United States Naval Observatory, I get into my National Highway Traffic Safety Administration approved automobile and set out to work on the roads built by the local, state, and federal Departments of Transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fuel of a quality level determined by the Environmental Protection Agency, using legal tender issued by the Federal Reserve Bank. On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to be sent out via the United States Postal Service and drop the kids off at the public school.

After work, I drive my NHTSA car back home on DOT roads, to my house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and fire marshal's inspection, and which has not been plundered of all its valuables thanks to the local police department.

I then log onto the internet which was developed by the defense advanced research projects administration and post on freerepublic.com and fox news forums about how socialsism in medicine is bad because the government can't do anything right.

M81 & M82, Bode's Galaxy & Cigar Galaxy

2010-03-14T15:02:00.004-05:00

Third time around for this pair of galaxies. Had a nasty gradient background that I haven't seen before. The scope was awful close to the roof of the observatory--I wonder if that might have had anything to do with it.

Heritage Park Observatory, Cedar Park, TX
Exposure: 30 x 2 minutes
Camera: Modified Canon Digital Rebel XT (350D)
Scope: Astro-Tech AT80ED 80mm APO refractor, AT field flattener
Mount: Meade LX200
Guider: Meade LX200 @ f/3, Meade DSI
Filter: Astronomik CLS
Software: PHD Guiding, Nebulosity, Photoshop

My Code Name

2010-03-05T14:06:00.000-06:00

JCN Splice Illustration

2010-03-03T17:27:00.003-06:00

Trying out the Indigo renderer with Google Sketchup. This is part of a high voltage cable splice. The main conductor in the center needs some work, but the neutral wires around the outside look pretty good I think.

Happy Texas Independence Day!

2010-03-02T09:14:00.002-06:00

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A TEXAN
by ~~Bum Phillips~~ Bob Wheeler

Dear Friends,

Last year, I wrote a small piece about what it means to me to be a Texan. My friends know it means about damned near everything. Anyway, this fella asked me to reprint what I’d wrote and I didn’t have it. So I set out to think about rewriting something. I considered writing about all the great things I love about Texas. There are way too many things to list. I can’t even begin to do it justice.

Lemme let you in on my short list.

It starts with The Window at Big Bend, which in and of itself is proof of God. It goes to Lake Sam Rayburn where my Grandad taught me more about life than fishin, and enough about fishin to last a lifetime. I can talk about Tyler, and Longview, and Odessa and Cisco, and Abilene and Poteet and every place in between.

Every little part of Texas feels special. Every person who ever flew the Lone Star thinks of Bandera or Victoria or Manor or wherever they call “home” as the best little part of the best state.

So I got to thinkin about it, and here’s what I really want to say.

Last year, I talked about all the great places and great heroes who make Texas what it is. I talked about Willie and Waylon and Michael Dell and Michael DeBakey and my Dad and LBJ and Denton Cooley. I talked about everybody that came to mind. It took me sitting here tonight reading this stack of emails and thinkin about where I’ve been and what I’ve done since the last time I wrote on this occasion to remind me what it is about Texas that is really great.

You see, this last month or so I finally went to Europe for the first time. I hadn’t ever been, and didn’t too much want to. But you know all my damned friends are always talking about “the time they went to Europe.” So, I finally went. It was a hell of a trip to be sure. All they did when they saw me was say the same thing, before they’d ever met me. “Hey cowboy, we love Texas.” I guess the hat tipped em off.

But let me tell you what, they all came up with a smile on their faces. You know why? They knew for damned sure that I was gonna be nice to ‘em. They knew it ‘cause they knew I was from Texas. They knew something that hadn’t even hit me. They knew Texans, even though they’d never met one.

That’s when it occurred to me. Do you know what is great about Texas? Do you know why when my friend Beverly and I were trekking across country to see 15 baseball games we got sick and had to come home after 8? Do you know why every time I cross the border I say, “Lord, please don’t let me die in_____”? Do you know why children in Japan can look at a picture of the great State and know exactly what it is about the same time they can tell a rhombus from a trapezoid?

I can tell you that right quick. You.

The same spirit that made 186 men cross that line in the sand in San Antonio damned near 165 years ago is still in you today. Why else would my friend send me William Barrett Travis’ plea for help in an email just a week ago, or why would Charles Stanfield ask me to reprint a Texas Independence column from a year ago? What would make my friend Elizabeth say, “I don’t know if I can marry a man who doesn’t love Texas like I do?” Why in the hell are 1,000 people coming to my house this weekend to celebrate a holiday for what used to be a nation that is now a state?

Because the spirit that made that nation is the spirit that burned in every person who founded this great place we call Texas, and they passed it on through blood or sweat to everyone of us.

You see, that spirit that made Texas what it is is alive in all of us, even if we can’t stand next to a cannon to prove it, and it’s our responsibility to keep that fire burning. Every person who ever put a “Native Texan” or an “I wasn’t born in Texas but I got here as fast as I could” sticker on his car understands.

Anyone who ever hung a map of Texas on their wall or flew a Lone Star flag on their porch knows what I mean. My Dad’s buddy Bill has an old saying. He says that some people were forged of a hotter fire. Well, that’s what it is to be Texan. To be forged of a hotter fire. To know that part of Colorado was Texas. That part of New Mexico was Texas. That part of Oklahoma was Texas. Yep. Talk all you want. Part of what you got was what we gave you. To look at a picture of Idaho or Istanbul and say, “what the Hell is that?” when you know that anyone in Idaho or Istanbul who sees a picture of Texas knows damned good and well what it is. It isn’t the shape, it isn’t the state, it’s the state of mind.

You’re what makes Texas. The fact that you would take 15 minutes out of your day to read this, because that’s what Texas means to you, that’s what makes Texas what it is. The fact that when you see the guy in front of you litter you honk and think, “Sonofabitch. Littering on MY highway.”

When was the last time you went to a person’s house in New York and you saw a big map of New York on their wall? That was never. When did you ever drive through Oklahoma and see their flag waving on four businesses in a row? Can you even tell me what the flag in Louisiana looks like? I damned sure can’t. But I bet my ass you can’t drive 20 minutes from your house and not see a business that has a big Texas flag as part of its logo. If you haven’t done business with someone called AllTex something or Lone Star somebody or other, or Texas such and such, you hadn’t lived here for too long.

When you ask a man from New York what he is, he’ll say a stockbroker, or an accountant, or an ad exec. When you ask a woman from California what she is, she’ll tell you her last name or her major. Hell either of em might say “I’m a republican,” or they might be a democrat. When you ask a Texan what they are, before they say, “I’m a Methodist,” or “I’m a lawyer,” or “I’m a Smith,” they tell you they’re a Texan.

I got nothin against all those other places, and Lord knows they’ve probably got some fine folks, but in your gut you know it just like I do, Texas is just a little different.

So tomorrow when you drive down the road and you see a person broken down on the side of the road, stop and help. When you are in a bar in California, buy a Californian a drink and tell him it’s for Texas Independence Day. Remind the person in the cube next to you that he wouldn’t be here enjoying this if it weren’t for Sam Houston, and if he or she doesn’t know the story, tell them.

When William Barrettt Travis wrote in 1836 that he would never surrender and he would have Victory or Death, what he was really saying was that he and his men were forged of a hotter fire. They weren’t your average everyday men. Well, that is what it means to be a Texan. It meant it then, and that’s why it means it today. It means just what all those people North of the Red River accuse us of thinking it means. It means there’s no mountain that we can’t climb. It means that we can swim the Gulf in the winter. It means that Earl Campbell ran harder and Houston is bigger and Dallas is richer and Alpine is hotter and Stevie Ray was smoother and God vacations in Texas. It means that come Hell or high water, when the chips are down and the Good Lord is watching, we’re Texans by damned, and just like in 1836, that counts for something.

So for today at least, when your chance comes around, go out and prove it. It’s true because we believe it’s true. If you are sitting wondering what the Hell I’m talking about, this ain’t for you. But if the first thing you are going to do when the Good Lord calls your number is find the men who sat in that tiny mission in San Antonio and shake their hands, then you’re the reason I wrote this night, and this is for you.

So until next time you hear from me, God Bless and Happy Texas Independence Day.

February Mars Reprocessed

2010-02-23T22:50:00.004-06:00

Went back over Sunday night's imagines and cleaned up the processing. Turned out better than I first thought!

Enlarged 150%:

I always wonder, "What am I looking at?" Here's a labeled view: