David's Images of the Day Photoblog
Views of the sun, moon, and stars
Ten-Years Ago Today. Ocean Tramp anchored at the harbor in Ushuaia, Argentina. (19-Dec-2014)
Today, I captured an image of a flock of geese transiting the sun while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum). I assume the geese are flying south before the snow predicted for tomorrow. I was viewing the sun with a Vespera Classic automated telescope using a solar filter. The exposure time for solar observations with the Vespera Classic telescope is 250 microseconds (1/4000 sec)
Four-Years Ago Today. American Crow feeding on a cold day. (18-Dec-2020, New Jersey).
Today, I captured images of jets transiting the sun while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum). I was observing the sun with a Vespera Classic and a Vespera Pro telescope fitted with a solar filter. The exposure time for solar observations with the Vespera Classic telescope is 250 microseconds (1/4000 sec) and with the Vespera Pro telescope is 1400 microseconds (1/714 sec). The Vespera Classic takes 51-52 solar images per minute and the Vespera Pro takes 8-9 solar images per minute.
The same jet appears in the first two Vespera Classic images showing the distance it traveled in ~1.2 seconds. The third image from the Vespera Pro shows a jet with condensation trails. Even though the exposure time is longer (1400 vs 250 microseconds) the image of the jet is still relatively sharp.
Fifteen-Years Ago Today. Nakalele Point Blowhole, Maui Hawaii. (17-Dec-2009)
Today, I captured an image of a jet passing in front of the sun while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum). I was viewing the sun with a Vespera Passengers telescope fitted with a solar filter. The exposure time for solar observations with the Vespera Passengers telescope is 300 microseconds (1/3333 sec). The Vespera Passengers takes ~30 solar images per minute. Over an hour that amounts to 0.54 seconds (or 0.015% of the time). I am not sure why the background of the image is blue. Previous observations the background was black and the sun orange. I will be contacting Vaonis support about the strange colors.
The comet is getting fainter and the tail much shorter. You may need to look closely; the comet is in the center of the frame. The magnitude is now 10.7. The first image is a composite of 32 images (5 min 20 sec) and the second one is a composite of 128 images (21 min 20 sec). In the second image there is some movement of the comet head.
Five-Years Ago Today. Indoor Hydroponic Snapdragon Flower. (15-December-2019, New Jersey).
The trolls were keeping watch for drones overnight. The sky was partly cloudy, and it was cold out. Conditions were not good for the telescopes being out for the night. The composite image was taken through a back door window looking south. If you click on the image, you can access a larger (11656 x 6556 pixel) view. Over a four-hour period, there were lots of jet trails, maybe three Geminid meteor trails, and some car lights. No drones were observed.
Twelve Years Ago. Late Fall 02:00 to 03:00 AM Sky Star Trail (with stationary anomaly) in New Jersey. (14-Dec-2012)
Today, I captured images of a jet with a condensation trail and a bird transiting the sun while looking at the sunspots (we are at or near the solar maximum). I was viewing the sun with a Vespera Classic telescope fitted with a solar filter. The exposure time for solar observations with the Vespera Classic telescope is 250 microseconds (1/4000 sec). The Vespera Classic takes ~51 solar images per minute. Over an hour that amounts to 0.765 seconds (or 0.02% of the time).
The comet is getting fainter and the tail much shorter. You may need to look closely, the comet is in the center of the frame. The magnitude is now 10.5. The first image is a composite of 32 images (5 min 20 sec) and the second one is a composite of 128 images (21 min 20 sec). In the second image there is some movement of the comet head.
