Earlier, I had posted a blog about the thoughts I put into selecting the right phone & plan for a trip to Tokyo : ipernity.com/blog/stargazer95050/4716358 When traveling to european countries from the US, it becomes easier, as there are very low hardware obstacles. Nearly all modern, UNLOCKED US-pho…

4 years ago / 176 visits

Many people cannot (or don't want to) imagine life without constant connectivity to the Internet -- even during their vacation. When you travel abroad, you need to make preparations for that. The MOST IMPORTANT PRECAUTION to take is to check the terms & conditions and (expensive) charges that can ar…

5 years ago / 221 visits

"Build your own" in this case doesn't mean soldering and writing thousands of line of code. Instead I take advantage of available HW & SW and combine them and hopefully end up with a better (and lower-cost) solution than the off-the-shelf items. This is an ongoing adventure -- come back to see the p…

5 years ago / 1 367 visits

In PART #1, ipernity.com/blog/stargazer95050/4689836 I described the reasons for choosing the Chevy Astro (cargo)-van as the basis for my modifications. And I was able to find one that already had a good amount of camping modifications -- Here I want to show the choices & modifications needed to fur…

6 years ago / 355 visits

This is a list of observations & experiences I have made while building my van. The main use will be to transport my equipment & myself and to get some rest before or after an astro-photography session. Of course, I also will use the van for extended roadtrips and sleep in there, but not all the tim…

6 years ago / 575 visits

My recommendation is using OPEN/FREE SOFTWARE and LOCAL STORAGE (instead of "cloud"). To further simplify usage, the USB-stick will contain separate partitions for the Boot-OS (to run the backup) and for the STORAGE (of the backup snapshots).

6 years ago / 221 visits

To begin with, you can use any tethering software -- only later will you use the advantages of solutions tailored to astrophotography. Here I'll discuss both options.

8 years ago / 1 331 visits

The power requirements will change as you progress from using a tripod + camera to a (small) tracking telescope with a SLR and up to a more complex setup using auto-guiding (with a laptop), a larger mount, CCD-imager & dew- heater(s). In this article, I describe the more successful implementations…

9 years ago / 4 207 visits / 1 comment

I am only recommending items I think they are useful -- it doesn't mean I have purchased & tested each & every item. I will explain, why I think this is a good (or a bad/expensive) choice. Please don't take this "shopping list" too literal -- it is a list I've compiled from my own experience with…

9 years ago / 1 668 visits / 1 comment

The biggest investment needed for astrophotography is _TIME_. It takes time to learn how to use the tools, time to get to places, time to photograph and time to learn from the mistakes and repeat that cycle. An astrophotography setup with lots of quality equipment isn't cheap but you may want to pu…

9 years ago / 5 794 visits

Plate-solving is useful -- especially when you use it to correct a telescope's position in real-time. You also can feed the solver an existing photo and manually read the results but using the output can be cumbersome. Manual copy & paste coordinates of input fields of tools like Stellarium helps, b…

9 years ago / 1 253 visits

I'm going to update this to reflect changes as this project progresses. Naturally there always are multiple options and I will suggest alternatives

9 years ago / 2 088 visits

NASA's images of the sun show so much more detail & texture -- and they can see those not only because they have million dollar equipment and put it into space. These details also are visible to mere mortals -- once you focus onto very narrow bands of light with appropriate filters & technique.

10 years ago / 1 304 visits

Of all the astronomical phenomena, a TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE surely has to be the scariest of all to ancient people. What horrible powers must be at work when they can take away our sunlight. Of course today's explanation of standing in the moon's shadow is far less threatening (and not as imaginative a…

10 years ago / 294 visits

From the ground up : Important / distinguishing features of the Atlas EQ-6 ProTripod12V powerMechanicsattaching & adjusting the mount during polar alignmentabout the mountALT & AZ adjustmentsPolar Scope & alignmentBalancing & Counter-weightsClutchesSaddleCables & connectionsHandcontrollerOrion's Sof…

10 years ago / 1 532 visits