Logbook Icon Walter's LogBook
August 2007

Overview

A motherboard transplant failed to repair my dome, so it continues to limp along.

The SXV-H9 is the imaging camera, with exposures for variable stars of 120 seconds at 4x4 binning (unguided). This month's session notes are below the overview section.

Monthly Statistics, August 2007
Night Imaging
Time (s)		 Exposure
Time (s)		 #
Targets		 #
Exposures
2007-08-042411416800131605
2007-08-166920446062223
2007-08-172361615540167677
2007-08-2113585105002490
4 nights 68235
(18.95 hr)		 47300
(13.14 hr)		 384 1595

Session Notes

Sat/Sun, August 4/5, 2007

Yesterday I put in the loaner motherboard from TI and the motors would not work with the hand pad. Today I put the original motherboard back in and I am back to at least being able to control the motors with the hand pad. So I slept in the dome again tonight (it was pleasantly cool for a change!) and imaged 131 stars -- a new record. The system cranked through a multitude of Mira stars in Oph, Aql, Del, Sge, Cyg, and Peg. My only blunder was that I forgot about the moon and the system shut down just before 4am. So I restarted things and squeezed in a new plan with a few CVs in it that were far enough away from the quarter moon to avoid trouble. I saw a nice satellite go by Deneb and get up to 2nd magnitude at 23:44. All in all, it was a very nice session.

Wed/Thu, August 15/16, 2007

Just a short session tonight -- was 20 minutes late starting, and then it clouded over just before midnight. CSC said it would be clear all night, but the satellite loop looked hopeless, so I shut down the observatory. Turned out to be the right call -- it was still overcast at dawn.

Thu/Fri, August 16/17, 2007

I was almost an hour late starting tonight (was finishing supernova scans and other stuff), but imaged 167 stars tonight! There were a few small puffy scattered cumulus clouds in the evening, so a few frames had to be weeded out. Jupiter was nicely perched in Scorpius. I noticed at dawn that the cloud was already moving in! Mars looked nice just above the Hyades (and Aldebaran) in the east, and I saw Orion at dawn. The transparency was great again tonight, and the Great Rift in the Milky Way was clearly visible again tonight.