With the Australian Solar eclipse coming in 2028, it’s time to get familiar with solar telescopes. With Lunt telescopes you can see the surface of the Sun using white light, or Hydrogen alpha and Calcium-K filters. These all show different aspects of what’s happening there. If you want to photograph it as well, there are cameras for that too.
Tutorials
Getting an image of a comet using the Benro Polaris
Bill used the Benro Polaris tracking mount to get images of comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS. This post tells the story of the expedition. He also reviews the Polaris.
What on earth do the numbers on the Pegasus adapters mean?
There are lots of different adapters available for all sorts of different jobs. PegasusAstro adapters have a consistent way of defining what’s on either ends, so you don’t end up scratching your head.
Building a truss telescope using truss blocks
Getting a good truss system together is hard. The carbon fibre rods have to be held rigidly, but they also have to be able to change the angle they’re sitting at. These truss blocks and ball joints do all that.
Using the WeMacro Rail to photograph the Sundew, an insectivorous plant
A plant that eats animals Drosera capensis is an insectivorous plant native to South Africa. Sundews thrive in low-nutrient soil because they’re able to gather their nutrients from “other sources”…
Autoguiding: how much is good enough?
Autoguiding has revolutionised astrophotography. While your main imaging camera is off doing its job, a second camera keeps an eye on a star – any star – in the telescope’s…
Your first image with the WeMacro Rail
Macrophotography is the art of getting images of tiny subjects onto a camera sensor. I’ve been asked about getting started in macrophotography, and specifically the least expensive way of getting your first image with the WeMacro Rail. This blog shows you how to go out and get your first image, so I’m going to get down to basics.
Protect your observatory! Setting up safety equipment
With a dome, you can simply open it up and begin imaging. But if you want to sleep as well, you need something keeping an eye on the weather so the dome will close if it’s about to rain. In this blog I’ve described a couple of gadgets that can do all that for you. I also talk about a couple of options to put the system together.
Diffraction spikes – what they are and how to get them right
Have you noticed that some astrophotographs have diffraction spikes coming from bright stars? They’re caused by the secondary mirror holder in reflector telescopes. Spiders, as they’re known, can give you nice spikes, but if they’re crooked or uneven, the spikes can look horrible. Here, I’ll show you how to get perfect spikes.
Asteroids comets and minor planets – find them using orbital data
Asteroids and other objects such as comets and even space junk are hard to find when they pass close to the Earth because their motion relative to us is so fast. Normal planetarium programs can’t track them. This blog shows you how to find and download up-to-date official data so you can locate them with your go-to telescope.
Choosing the right shutter release cable for your camera
With a shutter release cable you can fire your camera remotely without touching it. They’re very useful in photography, especially macrophotography and astrophotography. They are available for a huge range of cameras. Choosing the correct shutter release cable for your camera can be difficult. Here is a list of available cables.
iOptron control programs: Commander and Commander Lite – what’s the difference?
With the release of the free iOptron Lite app for Android (the IOS version has been out for a while), we thought it’s time to explain what this package does,…
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Using Lunt Telescopes to look at the Sun
With the Australian Solar eclipse coming in 2028, it’s time to get familiar with solar telescopes. With Lunt telescopes you can see the surface of the Sun using white light, or Hydrogen alpha and Calcium-K filters. These all show different aspects of what’s happening there. If you want to photograph it as well, there are cameras for that too.
Mars Opposition 2025: what is Retrograde Motion – and what does it mean?
Mars opposition is in mid-January next year. But before that happens, Mars is going to enter retrograde motion, where it stops being overtaken by the background stars and starts overtaking them back. Retrograde motion stumped the ancient astronomers and had a hand in stimulating the rise of modern scientific thought.
What is a moon, and can it be an asteroid?
Inspired by a video of an eclipse of Phobos, Bill wondered about the definitions of moons, planets and asteroids. Why are potato shapes important, and how did Phobos stop being one and start being another?