Welcome

Welcome to my blog. This blog is meant to be a companion to my Instagram @astro_shed, where I share my photos of my endeavors in amateur astronomy. The idea of the blog is to add a commentary to the images that I share on Instagram, as well as be a place for the simple ramblings about my images, equipment, or backyard observatory.

The observatory was completed in the fall of 2022. The primary scope that I have been using is a Celestron CPC 800 mounted on a wedge. The scope is guided by a ZWO ASI 120MC camera and image acquisition is done with a ZWO ASI 183MC camera.

My main interest is in Electronically Assisted Astronomy, or EAA. This is done by the substitution of an eyepiece in the telescope with a camera. Software on a nearby laptop takes the images and through a process called stacking, creates an image that is far brighter and more detailed than could be observed though just the eyepiece.

The images are typically of relatively short total integration time, normally about 10 minutes and serve as a visual record of the observation.  The image below is an example of an EAA image of M42 - The Orion Nebula. 

A typical observing session will result in about 5 different objects imaged over a couple of hours. 

I look forward to sharing my images and thoughts through this blog and interacting with the community.

Clear Skies;

rgwood