David's Images of the Day Photoblog
Views of the sun, moon, and stars
Nine-Years Ago Today. Sunrise, sunburst, crepuscular rays, and clouds over the Pacific Ocean from the aft deck of the MV World Odyssey. (22-Jan-2016, Semester at Sea).
I missed the sun the last several days due to clouds and snow. Apparently yesterday one of the large sunspots (#3967) erupted and sent a CME (coronal mass ejection) towards Earth with the possibility of a minor geomagnetic storm on Friday. Today, I viewed the sun with a Vespera Pro telescope fitted with a solar filter (250 mm, f/5, 1/714 sec).
Nine-Years Ago Today. Sunrise Photography Club waiting for the sun to rise. Aft deck of the MV World Odyssey. (20-Jan-2016, Semester at Sea).
The forecast for the night was mostly clear, but very cold (4°F/-16°C). I only cleared the snow from the previous night for one of the telescope tripods. When it is this cold, I need to keep an external power supply plugged into the telescope. I also set up a camera with a fisheye lens pointed to the south to take images for a time-lapse video. The Orion constellation was visible for a long period of time before the moon showed up. There were lots of jet trails during the night, and when the clouds came in, they remained low in the sky.
Time-lapse video. Best observed in a dark room fully expanded.
Star trails slideshow. Individual images are available in my PhotoShelter gallery.
Nine-Years Ago Today. Afternoon yoga in the sun on the aft deck of the MV World Odyssey. (17-Jan-2016, Semester at Sea)
The forecast for the night was intermittent clouds. The waning gibbous moon is reducing in brightness (86% illuminated) and not rising until later. I programed the “Plan my Night” sequences on the Vespera telescopes to start soon after dark and hoping for long periods with clear skies. with several objects away from the moon and will see what I get depending on the clouds. During later part of the night, I have the telescopes looking at the moon. I also set up the Nikon D9 camera with an 8-15 mm fisheye lens to take a sequence of images of the night sky with the full Vespera family of telescopes in the foreground. These images were then used to create the following time-lapse video. You can see the night starting out cloudy, then clear to a good period of time. Later, when the moon is high in the sky there is a 22° ring or halo around the moon. This is caused by high level ice crystals. The telescopes automatically close before the sun rises. The time-lapse video is best viewed in the dark and expanded to full scale. Images captured by the telescopes to follow.
Nine-Years Ago Today. Statue catching the Rainbow on the aft deck of the MV World Odyssey while crossing the Pacific Ocean. (15-Jan-2016, Semester at Sea)
Today, while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum) I captured images of a jets transiting the sun. This was with a Vespera Classic automated telescope fitted with a solar filter.
Slideshow of Jets Passing in Front of the Sun. Individual images are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
The forecast for the night was for the night sky to be clear, then intermittent clouds, then clear before morning. The waning gibbous moon is reducing in brightness but still very bright (97% illuminated). I programed the “Plan my Night” sequences on the Vespera telescopes to start soon after dark with several objects away from the moon and will see what I get depending on the clouds. During part of the night, I have the telescopes looking at the moon. I also set up the Nikon D9 camera with a 8-15 mm fisheye lens to take a sequence of images of the night sky with the full Vespera family of telescopes in the foreground. These images were then used to create the following time-lapse video. You can see the night starting out clear, then clouds, a brief clearing, then clouds again, and finally clearing before dawn. The telescopes automatically close before the sun rises. The time-lapse video is best viewed in the dark and expanded to full scale. Images captured by the telescopes to follow.
Nine-Years Ago Today. Brown Booby catches a Flying Fish for Lunch. From the deck of the MV World Odyssey while crossing the Pacific Ocean. (14-Jan-2016, Semester at Sea).
Today, while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum) I captured images of a jets transiting the sun. This was with a Vespera Classic automated telescope fitted with a solar filter.
Slideshow of Jets Passing in Front of the Sun. Individual images are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.
The forecast for the night was clouds until near midnight. The waining gibbous moon is getting brighter (99% illuminated). I programed the “Plan my Night” sequences on the Vespera telescopes to wait until after midnight before starting to observe some deep sky observation targets in parts of the sky away from the moon. I also set up a Nikon D9 camera with a 8-15 mm fisheye lens to take a sequence of images of the night sky with the full Vespera family of telescopes in the foreground. These images were then used to create the following time-lapse video. It looks like I could have programed telescopes to start observing a bit earlier. One of the telescopes, the Vespera 2 shut down early when its battery charge went below 5%. This happened despite being plugged into a USB-C power source. I am not sure if there was a problem with the USB-C connection, or if the battery was not getting charged because the outside temperature was below 32°F/0°C. The telescopes automatically close before the sun rises. The time-lapse video is best viewed in the dark and expanded to full scale. Images captured by the telescopes to follow.
