Thanks, Dave, and YES, I saw that AMAZING animation Avani's friend made. I knew something fabulous was coming, lol! Wow, 95/75 degrees for Vermont! That's very hot for youze guys!

 

Dust storm notwithstanding, I attempted more images of Mars using the same basic setup: Orion 180 mm Mak, Deep Space Video Camera II, Orion 2x Shorty Barlow, with the addition of the new Orion 5MP StarShoot Solar System Camera. It was about 2 a.m. EDT and Mars was just reaching a suitable elevation. It was pleasantly cool (in the upper 60's F, approximately 18 degrees C) with just me, the resident hoot owl and the beautiful cricket symphony once again. A thunderstorm had just passed a few hours prior and the sky was clearing nicely. The atmosphere had settled down by this time, with only a little turbulence visible at those extreme Mak powers. I did several minutes of high power observing (300x), of a mostly smooth peach orb with hints of bright albedo features near the poles, and some barely visible scattered dark features through the dust (the Orion Mars filter helped slightly with the darker features). This was a more detailed apparition than last week's, and the cameras drew out more detail than I could see visually. There's hope! I took video with and without the barlow and used both cameras alternately to compare the results. Fortunately, there were no computer crashes this time; everything went smoothly. I also included my first official Mars image of the season from June 10 to show how much the dust storm has affected the view over time and how much larger the planet had grown in just a few weeks.

Here is the non-barlowed image with the DSVC II:

Here is the barlowed image:


Here is the barlowed image using the 5MP StarShoot camera (more detail and a little less pinkish):



Now, here is the barlowed image from June 10 using the DVSC II (much smaller and more detailed):


I plan on doing some imaging each weekend right up to perigee to compare size and detail. Things should be interesting in the coming weeks!

 

A comparative view of Mars, its apparent growth in size and the effect of the dust storm:

 

Thank you for the encouraging report! I'll be observing and imaging in earnest over the next few weeks!

 

Even after all this time, Mars is such a mystery. There is so much to learn. The cosmos is truly unbelievable!

 

Thanks for the heads up, Dave! I'll be installing, soon!

 

I did some observing and imaging on the night/morning of July 5/6 of a mostly clouded-over Mars. Through the EP Mars was bold and bright, but with only minor hints of albedo features near the poles; it was still mostly smooth, even more than last time. I created a composite image from several observations since last month using the Orion Deep Space Camera II with my Orion SkyView Pro 180mm Mak, processed in Registax 6:


You can easily see how the dust storm has progressively taken over the Red Planet. You can also see the change in apparent size of Mars as it gets closer.


Here is a composite of two images taken using the Orion SolarShoot 5MP Solar System Camera with the same telescope. This camera teases out a bit more detail, but as you can see, Mars is getting cloudier for the time being:

 

Thanks, Neb, and do please save them as a record if you wish . I plan on getting images up to the opposition and perhaps a few months afterwards to show the progression (and hopefully dispersion) of the dust storm. Please, share your observations and sketches of Mars as well in the Den

 

I couldn't resist this beautiful pairing of the Goddess of Love (Venus) and Regulus. They've been dancing closely over the past few nights!

Nikon D3200, 300mm zoom lens, ISO 800, f/5.6, 1 sec exposure:



Magnifique!
Reggie

 

Thanks, Neb. The two objects will be relatively close for several more nights but are now moving farther apart. They make a striking pair, don't they?

 

Greetings!
I've been away for the past few days from AC, busy under the stars ! Here are the fruits of my labor:

These composite images were taken from video shot on the Orion StarShoot 5MP Solar System Camera (top) and the Orion Deep Space Camera II (bottom) with my Orion SkyView Pro 180mm Mak from 29 June to 21 July, processed in Registax. Slightly more dark detail was visible visually on the 21st compared to a week earlier; the area appeared almost like a shadow on a bright, almost white orb. I couldn't see much albedo in the polar regions through the scope. Transparency was very good and seeing improved from average to very good as Mars gained elevation. The Orion 5MP camera revealed some faint dark regions but very little polar albedo on 21 July:



The Orion Deep Space Camera II didn't reveal as much dark detail as the 5MP but captured some polar albedo on 21 July:



Excited about my newly-arrived Celestron Mars Filter, I was able to compare it with the Orion offering. By looking at the two filters side by side, the Celestron (left) appears lighter in color and pinkish whereas the Orion filter (right) has a rich, purplish hue:






The Orion filter also has a slightly bigger housing. No threading problems with the Celestron to any of my EPs (mostly Orions, a GSO, a Meade, and a BST), and each filter can be attached to the other if so desired for a hot pink experience, lol. In practice (through the scope), however, I couldn't see any noticeable color difference (at least on Mars, I didn't compare them on anything else). As far as detail, the Celestron initially seemed to have the slight edge, but as the night progressed, I could see less difference between the two (possibly eye fatigue). There was some light scatter with both filters but not too bad. I even stacked the two which gave Mars a deeper pink hue and slightly more contrast in the dark regions but still ghostly. With Mars being so bright, pale and un-Mars-like in color, the filters actually made it look more natural!

I also received my ZWO ASI224MC over the weekend, but my initial results were not all that impressive on Mars, but I got a decent Saturn image. I have a IR/UV cut filter on the way, and I'll probably get an ADC, soon. I'm still learning Firecapture so it'll be a minute before I post any ZWO images, lol! I'm also anticipating some filters: #82A, #11, #8, and #23A to add to my growing collection. You guys got me caught up in the filter craze!

LESS THAN A WEEK TO OPPOSITION!

EXCELSIOR!