Going Modular

I owe you all an astrophotography post. This Friday while I was waiting to be hooked up to a bunch of sensors so strangers could watch my bodily functions as I slept, I was reading a book called The New CCD Astronomy. I must admit I was terribly disappointed. The main problem with the book had to do with the fact that it was written in 2002 thus it was for an outmoded world.  Since this book has come along, we now have inexpensive mounts which can carry 40 lbs, and digital SLRs capable of astro imaging. The result is that the book was mostly useless about buying equipment.

My last post on astrophotography was a rant against what is colloquially called Aperture Fever. (Not having to do with inhaling moon dust) Many might be wondering if I am only going to tell people how not to do it. Well, here is my plan for astrophotopgraphy,

Equipment (Block 1) - The idea here is to go with a modular setup that requires a little extra planing before expeditions, so initially we will go with a 5" Apo Refractor, 80mm Guide scope, mount and Digital SLR. This setup will be both portable and sturdy, the mount being weighted about 2x what it is carrying. The goal with this setup will be to capture the nebula in and around M45.

Tech Upgrades (Block 1) - This is just enough gear to be able to take photos and reduce them once we get them back. A Macbook Air with Nebulousity for image capture in the field, then a 4k+ screen for reduction and photoshop finishing.

Equipment (Block 2) - A 180mm Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope for long focal length work, planets along with other objects. This setup will be excellent for my second favor ate deep sky object, M51.

Tech Upgrades (Block 2) - The idea here is to build a bad ass gaming/number crunching/image processing machine.

In case you didn't notice I am a huge fan of the Apollo program, Once all Block 1 purchases have been made I will move onto the Block 2 purchases.