Polar Alignment.

I can say I have never been perfectly happy with my polar alignment of my set up. Don't get me wrong it has never been out by more that a gnats bits. But sometimes that is enough to send the mount into a spin. I have moaned a few times about PHD and the Dec tracking, it just seemed to go haywire. The graph plot was up and down worse than the UK economy. So frustrating at times, I could never manage exposures more than 2 minutes at best. I had come to accept this and sat and watched patiently many times as a hundred or so short exposure  images aligned and stacked together. However  I recently came across a programme that Bob http://www.rsamuel.me.uk/astroblog/called Alignmaster. http://www.alignmaster.de/  had used. A clever little programme by Matthias Garzaroll. I wont bother explaining the ins and outs you can see from it's homepage the process and how simple it is. A trial version is activated by a registration key sent via email. After the small adjustments I made, I made on it's recommendation a second alignment to increase accuracy and within 10 minutes I was done. I tightened up all loose screws and made sure nothing had moved. I sent the goto to Mu Cephei and began PHD. After its set up all was well as the star remained central. I like to use the graph function to see where / when  errors are creeping in. I left the observatory for a while and returned 10 minutes later to see the graph had not deviated a pixel's width the entire time. I was amazed to see the difference. The Canon was already connected to balance up the system. So i fired off a couple of 10 minute exposures and was truly amazed at the result. I would have done more but the following day was my first day back after my 18 days holiday with a 7.30 am start. By now it was gone midnight. Before you call me an astronomical lightweight. We have suffered a bit from jet lag.
It looks like I will have to start a new library of darks too now. Here is the result of just 2 x 10 minute exposures tweaked of course in Images plus. I am eager to get back outside and see what 3-4 hours worth of 10 minute subs can deliver.Watch this space.

Polar Alignment

You know that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you you are about to do someting and you are not sure if it is going to work. I had that feeeling this evening. It was the first clear sky since the pier was installed and I wanted to get the mount fitted and do a polar alignment. From day one when I dug the hole I had been relying on the fact that I had found north accuratly. When I poured the concrete and set the bolts that hold the pier. The shape of the building was also set the the north alignment give allow an easy access when scopes are parked. So I cannot put it off any longer it was time to carry out the mount attatch to the new top plate and level it to the pier. It was an agonising 45 minute wait to see polaris. Finally the wait was over and I nervously I peered through the finder scope and wow there she was right there where it needed to be.Success I didnt have any doubts at all what was all the worrying about.Dont know what all the fuss was about.