Greetings all!  Ok - I know - I'm way overdue for a post here.  No, I didn't fall into a black hole or get lost in another dimension (well... I definitely didn't fall into a black hole!)  I've been on a bit of travel and just busy living life - at least life as our culture defines it.  My wife and I finally got to take a trip to IHOP-KC in Kansas City Missouri. Before you ask, no we didn't travel all that way for pancakes.  We visited the International House of Prayer - a place where prayer and worship has been going continuously 24-7-365 for over 12 years - a place that we share much spiritual DNA with. 


Anyway, it was a fantastic trip and it really stirred some things in my spirit.  So one of the things I did since getting back was to start doing some reading - you know - that pile of books that keeps growing while you keep saying "yea, I gotta read that one"?  One of the books I read was called "The Finisher".  Sounds like the title for some kind of weapons-a-blazing blood and guts action story.  But its not (I don't really care for that genre.)  Its really a book about walking with the One who created the universe and put all the stars that we look at in their place. (See, there is a tie in to astronomy ;-)  So below is a little review for it that I posted on Amazon -- check it out...
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I just finished reading "The Finisher" by Jan Kinne Conway. I must say, it has been some time since a book has been this impactful. My wife (the love of my life after Jesus) met Jan at a YWAM University of the Nations / Kona Writer's Workshop last year and brought home a copy of the book. At her suggestion, I picked the book up and started reading. Not being able to put it down, I finished it in one sitting. This gem of a book was just the tipping point I needed! Our Jesus adventure has been in low gear in recent years, but I know that's all about to change! It's so easy to get caught up in the grind of daily life as defined by our culture. You know the deal - big house, nice cars, etc, etc. Somehow, no matter how much of the so called American Dream that we attain, it just never feels enough - never fulfilling. But this couple took the chance and jumped into real life with both feet. Thru it, they learned and held on to what we had just started to learn - and subsequently forgot; that life is truly found not in the accumulation of things, but in the pouring out of yourself into others. 

The book is very well written and easy to digest. It's easy to see yourself in the midst of Jan and her husband's life events as though witnessing the various adventures. There is a flow and an underlying message that are smoothly woven throughout. I won't reveal any details of the second half, but suffice it to say that after hitting midpoint and reading about the woman in Albania who knew there was a Creator but didn't know His name, I lost it - the rest of the book was read thru tears. What an amazing life story they lived. The most amazing thing is that like many others who have taken that first step, they didn't have to be super-saints who were perfect in order for God to use them in the Kingdom. They just made themselves available and trusted God. 

I can tell you, the American Dream in reality is an empty falsehood at best and a nightmare at worst. Isn't it time you listened to that small voice of the Spirit within and learned what life is really all about? This book will show you how and will encourage you to step into the life that God has for each one of us who will say "here I am - send me". He will -- and you'll find riches everlasting. If you love the Lord, are over 40, and believe there's more to real living, I challenge you to invest the cost of 2 or 3 fancy coffees with Italian names into something that may truly take you from 'making a living' to 'making a difference'... I double dog dare you! 

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So there it is - now take the challenge and read it - it will do wonders for your spirit and soul!  If you can't find it locally, you can get it at Amazon:
---  http://www.amazon.com/Finisher-Jan-Kinne-Conway/dp/1935529102/  ---

Peace & blessings... 

New Periodic Feature: My Favorite Astro Website

Hi All:

Its (again!) been too long since my last post.  I decided to start a more or less irregular feature on my blog called "My Favorite Astro Website" where I'll post an astronomy-related link that really impressed me.  I'll likely add some comments but for the most part, I'll allow the sites to speak for themselves (ie, if you don't follow the link and check it out, you'll not really know what you're missing ;-)  Don't worry, I won't direct you to any bad sites or places that are trying to scam you or sell something.  Nor will there be any links to places where I get something in return for your visit (that would be rather distasteful for a personal blog :-o So slide back into your favorite easy chair and enjoy the first one -- here goes...

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Here is a favorite link of mine that will take you to an album of some of the most beautiful and inspiring astro images I've seen from an amateur astronomer: 

https://picasaweb.google.com/114940395878239509473/AstronomyImages#

The owner Fred Herrmann is an amateur astronomer from Huntsville, Alabama who has been doing some incredible imaging lately as his Google Picasa album attests to.  He's a very experienced and very prolific imager, thanks in part to his permanent observatory and some software called CCD Autopilot.  The software controls the pointing, imaging, focusing and everything else that needs to be done. You just pick your list of objects and exposures and it does the rest.  According to Fred "Most of the image collection is done either while I'm watching TV, reading or sleeping." Nice work Fred! 

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So there you have it!  Make sure you click thru the thumbnails to see the images up close - really very inspiring and very beautiful.  It still amazes me how so many with a deep understanding of science and physics can look at the world and the universe and say 'this was all created by chance' - ruling out the possibility that there is a Creator behind it all (ie, God of the Bible!) When is the last time you saw an incredible work of art or moving piece of music that was created randomly?  Hmmmm...

Peace & blessings,

The AstroMonk  (aka Donn)

Update from the Chill

Hi All:

Well its been waaay too long since I posted any updates.  Actually a couple weeks ago, I came down with this nasty flu that kept me pretty much flat on my back for four days plus another day or two to gradually come back to full vertical status.  About a week prior to that, my observatory PC and DVC100 video grabber both went on the fritz.  I've had some weird nagging problems for months with the PC so I decided to build a new one.  I built up a new system piece-mill based on an ASUS motherboard and an AMD Phenom Quadcore.  I decided to go out on a limb and use Windows 7 Pro 64 versus my mainstay for the past few years - Windows XP Pro.  So far, the system is up and running, fully updated and I'm starting to bring up the various applications like Maxim DL Pro 5 (for control of all the imaging), FocusMax, PEM Pro and Sky Tools 3 Pro (for planning my observation or imaging runs.)

So far, so good - everything seems to be installing properly and booting up right.  The acid test will be when I get the system back out to the observatory POD and hook it up to the mount and cameras.  To date, I've primarily been using the Mallincam Hyper Color Plus astro video camera - an amazing little device! It is really more oriented for vastly enhanced observing than imaging, although getting single frame grabs from it is incredibly easy and impressive, considering the ease of it all.  I'm really getting anxious though to fire up the QHY8, which is a Peltier cooled one shot color camera with an 8 Megapixel APS-C sized CCD comparable to a modern DSLR.

I've seen some incredible results posted on the web from users of this camera, although it is indeed a more involved process.  Data collection typically requires 30 minutes to a few hours of image data, along with a number of "darks", "flats" and other frames used to correct for various common image defects like hot or dead pixels, dust bits on the optics, CCD electronic noise, etc.  Then comes the image processing; for the typical hour or so of collected image data, you will end up spending at least five times that with stacking and photoshop tweaking.  So every time you see one of those beautiful deep space images on the web, remember that you're probably looking at eight, twelve or maybe even many tens of hours of painstaking work.  A lot of the Hubble images you see may be upwards of 100 hours processing per hour of collected data!  In spite of the effort required and the steep learning curve, I'm looking forward to diving in head first.

Well hopefully, the weather will be a little more friendly so I can get the observatory up and running by the end of this next week. (I'm going thru astro withdrawal and really need some telescope time soon!) Well enough for now.  Hopefully you will all have some good weather and free time to get your eyeballs on the heavens!  Ciao...

Trying Out the New 100-400 Zoom Lens

Hi All:

Well in spite of the brutal cold tonight -- 20F / 10 or so with wind chill -- I thought I'd try to get a couple of quick snaps with my Canon T1i and the new lens I just got for it.  The Moon and Jupiter being so close together compelled me to do it!  The lens is a Canon L series 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS/USM.  The thing is a beast!

Here's a quickie shot of it extended to 400mm.  It weighs 3.1 pounds and is quite a handful.  I guess stuffing 17 glass lens elements into a single metal barrel makes for some beefiness.  Fortunately I found one used as I would never have paid list for one - even used it was a stretch.  However from what I've seen so far of it in my own experience and the glowing comments others have made on it, there is a reason they're pricey.  This is nothing like the EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 kit lens that we got prior to this one.  I tried some lunar and assorted evening sky shots and the internal reflections and false color were terrible.  Granted, the little guy isn't bad in the daytime for casual snaps, but the 100-400 L series stomps on it for astro use.  If you really want to see how good a lens is, take some shots of the moon.  Look for signs of internal reflections, false color at the edges of bright objects, lack of sharpness, etc.  This lens excels in those areas.

OK, enough jaw flapping - here's a couple shots with minimal processing that were taken on a tripod in 15-20MPH winds.  First the moon:

Not bad for a quick snap on a tripod in the blowing wind!  Here's one of the moon and Jupiter:

OK - granted, not visually stimulating to most, but the absolute lack of false color is impressive.  Finally, here's a shot of Jupiter.  Now remember, this was extended to its max - 400mm - and in the full frame, it is still just a dot.  I had to crop it to about 10% or less of the full frame:

Again, not too terribly visually exciting, but for a tripod mounted snap, it again shows the sharpness and lack of false color.  I'm hoping for some friendlier weather in the days ahead so I can piggy back the camera and lens on my observatory mounted scope and do some longer exposures of deep space objects.  A planetary lens this is not -- just not enough magnification.  But for the Moon and deep space objects, this should be killer!  At three pounds, it is still light enough that it could be mounted on small tracking mounts like an inexpensive / homemade barn door tracker.  Well enough for now -- but some future deep space shots with this lens should be coming :-)

Oh, one last shot - couldn't resist.  This is our little girl, Penelope (yes, we're empty nesters ;-)  She's a 'teacup' Yorkie and weighs in at  three and a half pounds, full grown.  She's also a diva - and she knows it!  I had to giver her a quick bath and some grooming after I came in from the shoot:

Come on now - you must admit - she's a cutie!  Ciao!

Peace and blessings, Donn

Finally! Got to do Some Video Observing in the POD

Hi All:

Well last night (12/28) I finally got a chance to get out into the POD and do a little video observing as the weather and my schedule finally coincided!  It turned out, my Edge C11HD wasn't showing Jupiter to be quite as nice, round and sharp as I expected.  I decided to do a little tweak of the collimation.  Good thing too - it actually was off a bit.  After the tweak, everything was looking better and I didn't get near as much movement of stars in the field of view as I racked the electronic focuser in and out.  So I decided to get a quick peek at the Andromeda Galaxy (M31).  I first got the focus fine tuned and then slewed the scope around to M31, tweaked the position just a bit and set the Mallincam up for Deep Space mode with 7 sec integration - VOILA! There it was in all its beauty.  I realized I had to do some tweaking of the contrast, brightness, saturation and gamma of my HD video monitor and my computer's screen in order to really make out the dust lanes clearly.  Anyway, this is what it looks like on my computer screen:

I was using WebcamMax (registered) to display and capture the video and to stream it thru Night Skies Network, Mallincam Control to remotely change camera settings and Stellarium to point the scope at different targets.  I rang my wife Marye at this point (she was in the house, nice and warm while I was in the POD shivering ;-) and had her pull up Night Skies Network; she was able to watch the same thing I was seeing and could even do so on the big screen media-pc TV if she wanted to.  After stuying Andromeda for a while, I thought I'd get a peek at the Great Orion Nebula / M42 - always a thrilling sight!  So I pointed to Orion with my mouse, hit Ctrl-1 and wwhhrrrrrrrrrrr - the mount moved the scope to point at the nebula.  Here's what I saw on my observatory PC's screen:

Considering the wind was blowing quite a bit with gusts up to 20mph or more, everything looked quite good!  Now if you're an old hand at this, you'll be wondering how I got away with using an f/3.3 Meade focal reducer with an Edge series SCT (with internally corrected optics.) Well it is true that for optimum results, you need a special reducer only (not reducer / corrector like the Meade I'm using.)  However, since no company, Celestron included, has physically put one on the market yet (although one company is 'really close' (right - like just around the corner, eh?), I decided to try it.  With a CCD chip as small as the Mallincam uses, it actually works quite well.  You can see some out of shape stars at the outer edges, but its really quite reasonable.  Next round, I'm going to have to try the Hyperstar III, which turns the relatively slow f/10 optics into a widefield light eating monster at f/2! I can hardly wait!

Well if you'd like to see a few more of the actual screen capture images, you can take a peek in my web photo album at http://picasaweb.google.com/donnwms/AstroPhotos4FB# (the last few photos at end.)  Keep in mind, these are totally raw unstacked / single screen captures with no processing.  If I put these in Photoshop or GIMP, I'll be able to adjust things so the center portions are not so bright / overexposed and the outer portions show more fine detail.  You can also see a couple short 30 second video clips captured straight from the camera, live, on Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/donnw22.  More to come so check back some time.  

Peace and blessings,

Donn

Lunar Eclipse Dec 21st, 2010 - Clouds!

Hi All:

Well I was up until 1:30am or so preparing my Canon T1i DSLR and my Brandon 80mm Apochromatic refractor for some lunar eclipse photos.  Went to sleep for about an hour and a half in spite of the excitement.  I was able to drift off to sleep in confidence, knowing my gear was ready and the Clear Dark Sky Clock reported the sky would be clear - great!  3am - I pop out of bed at the first chime of my cell phone alarm, throw on a coat and hat and have the tripod mounted camera / refractor assembly on the deck in under 3 minutes - and what do I see?  CLOUDS!  Arghhh!  I watch with futile hope, thinking those pockets of clear sky cloud gaps where I can occasionally see a couple stars would expose the eclipsed moon in it's beautiful orange-brown state.   But nooooo - the sky only teased me with a very occasional porthole of a partial clearing.  A quick snap was all I could get.  Maybe 2 or 3 on one or two tries when the gap would permit.

Well in spite of the conditions, I did manage to snap around 20 or so shots at various stages after totality.  I transferred them to my laptop and took a peek with iPhoto.  Hmmm - pretty bleak for the shots.  Very little info was there, but whatever amount there was, I tweaked within iPhoto and actualy wound up with16 decent  images - not magazine quality mind you, but good enough to post on the web ;-)  Here's one just for grins..

    
It really is quite amazing what you can do with the simplest image editing software to coax out detail that would otherwise be invisible.  This shot and the others (which I posted in the lower online album shown at the right edge of this page) were at best, covered by some degree of clouds  for the whole hour and a half during which I stayed up - waiting for even a tiny break.  If you want to see all 16 shots, you can go to http://picasaweb.google.com/donnwms/LunarEclipse122110#.   Well maybe next time the weather will be a little more cooperative.  Hopefully you had better luck at your spot on the globe ;-)  In any case, Merry Christmas!

Peace & blessings,
Donn (aka The Astro Monk)

Visit to the Hood College Williams Observatory

I had the opportunity to visit the Williams Observatory at Hood College, Frederick, MD - home of a beautiful 8" Clarke refractor!  The astronomy professor there has graciously offered to open the observatory from 8:30pm to 9:30pm every clear Wednesday night thru December 8th, with the exception of Nov 24th.  You can find more info here:
http://www.hood.edu/adminservices/news.cfm?featureID=2462.

I took a couple quick snaps that I'm posting here for your viewing pleasure. (If you appreciate old / vintage refractors, you'll love this one!)

Clarke 8" Refractor - Gorgeous!

Me at the Business End (with Unitron Unihex EP Set ;-)

Myself and Steve Berte, (both members of TriStateAstronomers) had the opportunity to actually view thru this historic instrument.  We saw Jupiter, the Moon (of course!) and the Ring Nebula.  Views were quite impressive, as was manually moving the beast and the heavy dome.  I was surprised to see a bit of false color in this F/14 scope, but in all likelyhood, it may have been from the Unitron Unihex, which was a bit loose and may have even had a slightly tilted prism.  Regardless, the views were great and it was a thrill finally getting my hands (and eyes) on a legendary Clarke refractor.  Great fun!  Make sure you check it out!

Peace & blessings to all...