The images are made in the prime-focus of a B&W CCD camera module mounted as an eyepiece on a Vixen 114mm f/7.9 newtonian telescope with a RA Drive corrector. For planetary/lunar imaging I used a 47mm objective mask for increased contrast (actual f/19). The camera shutterspeed is a fixed 1/15th second and the sensitivity of the CCD module is 1 lux. The CCD resolution is 500 (h) x 582(v) pixels and the video output of the cameramodule is 380 lines horizontal. The CCD chip is not cooled so my magnitude limit is about 6 for star imaging, but with a solar filter you can also observe sunspots.
NOTE: You can buy these cameramodules almost everywhere. I bought my CCD camera at Conrad mailorder in the Netherlands for about Hfl. 119,-- (ordernr. 11 67 50-01)
The video output of the cameramodule feeds directly into the computer graphics card (an ATI All-In-Wonder 128 with 32MB memory and AGP). I can play around with the brightness and contrast control to get the image I want and can also record the video as an AVI-file or grab the current image as a BMP-file.
Sometimes I (piggyback)mount a digital handicam on the telescope. That way I can get infrared and negative images on the computer screen and all sorts of other fun effects.
Below are some results, the images are enhanced with unsharp masking using Adobe Photoshop 5.0
For remarks you can send email to me: verbed@xs4all.nl
This image shows an area north of Mare Nubium (bottom center).
(using CCD imaging device in prime-focus)
This image shows Mare Imbrium, Montes Apenninus and Montes Carpatus.
(using CCD imaging device in prime-focus)
Pleiades in infrared + negative
(using Sony Digital Handicam)
Pleiades
(using Sony Digital Handicam)
Jupiter with moons (21-11-2000, 00:11 AM) in infrared + negative
(using Sony Digital Handicam)
Jupiter (21-11-2000, 00:22 AM)
(using CCD imaging device + 12,5 mm Ortho eyepiece projection)
Jupiter (21-11-2000, 00:28 AM)
(using CCD imaging device + 6 mm Kellner eyepiece projection)
Saturn (21-11-2000, 00:46 AM)
(using CCD imaging device + 12,5 mm Ortho eyepiece projection)
© Edwin Verburg 2000
last update: 18 December 2000