[ThatDrGuy]

The martians are coming close. I want to try and grab an image - weather
gods permitting of course. A few questions if anyone has advice.

How long would it take for my 11inch scope to cool down ? I keep getting
terrible planetary captures through it compared with the 4inch one, I assume this is due
to the lack of cooling. Its not a modern carbon fiber type, its one of the older
nextstar 11gps's.

Magnification - How much ? Original, 2x barlow, stacked 2x2x barlows ?

Number of captures. Using neximage. How many minutes is optimal and does anyone know what resolution is best ? Ive tried using the RAW hack on my
neximage but keeps giving me errors.
Would a cannon 350d in movie mode be better for imaging ?


Since my house is in the way it looks like ill have to image mars around 2am. Will the affect the quality of the image I get ? Thanks.

[ThatDrGuy]

Ah well. Got all set up. Dew was so bad by imaging time that I couldnt even focus on the moon! My hair dryer failed miserably. For what its worth:

Mars



Venus

[Amtmann]

Venus and Jupiter hung brightly over Cork city center last night. It was quite a sight for anyone with a curious bent.