Walter's LogBook
	Thu/Fri, Mar 22/23, 2001

The second clear night this week! Imaging from the backyard in Oshawa again, it was a typical "punky" early spring sky. I have noticed that the Y-shaped Coma Berenices asterism is only visible with averted vision! Twenty years ago from Oshawa, I could see the Rosette Nebula with my C8. Light pollution sure has gotten worse -- thank goodness for CCD!

Temperature range was from +8C to +3C (18:00 to 05:30). I continued with the MX916 camera tongight. I started out by imaging M81 (binned 2x2) and then did M82 in large format.

Just after 23:00, Doug Clapp arrived with a port accelerator and some other goodies. Using his digital video camera with infrared capability, he took some nighttime test footage -- these new video cameras are amazing!

I imaged M101, M53, NGC5053 and then M5, binning 2x2. With a port accelerator hooked in, I then switched over to large format imaging, doing M5 (again), M12 (big and small), M10, M14, and finally (during twilight!) M17. The port accelerator cuts the download time in half (20 sec in large format vs. 40 sec) which saves me 1 hour or more per night with the short exposures I do.

M81, Bode's Nebula	63 minutes (63 x 60s)
Scope: 10" f/6.3 LX200 Camera: MX916 binned 2x2 (23.2x22.4u pixels)

M101, The Pinwheel Galaxy	12 minutes (24 x 30s)
Scope: 10" f/6.3 LX200 Camera: MX916 binned 2x2 (23.2x22.4u pixels)

M53	20½ minutes (41 x 30s)
Scope: 10" f/6.3 LX200 Camera: MX916 binned 2x2 (23.2x22.4u pixels)

NGC 5053	10 minutes (20 x 30s)
Scope: 10" f/6.3 LX200 Camera: MX916 binned 2x2 (23.2x22.4u pixels)

M5	7½ minutes (15 x 30s)
Scope: 10" f/6.3 LX200 Camera: MX916 binned 2x2 (23.2x22.4u pixels)

M12	5 minutes (10 x 30s)
Scope: 10" f/6.3 LX200 Camera: MX916 binned 2x2 (23.2x22.4u pixels)