Mars - 02 Feb

[brianb]

A somewhat unexpected mostly clear evening last night allowed me to image Mars for the first time for several weeks. Though transparency was good (between patches of drifting low cloud) the seeing was poor, with considerable boiling. However, with only a light wind and much lighter than average dewing, I had to have a go:


2010 Feb 02, 2308 UT. CM 351 degrees. Celestron CPC1100, Meade series 5000 x3 tele-extender (f/30), Astronomik type 2c colour seperation & Planet Pro 742 filters, Imaging Source DMK 21 camera.

Top row: LRGB composite using IR (contrast reduced) as luminance; LRGB composite using red channel as luminance; RGB composite; simulation (Starry Night Pro v6.21).
Bottom row: infra red, red, green & blue channels. (900/6000, 600/3000, 600/3000 & 900/3000 frames)

f/30 was too much for the conditions; I intended to make another sequence with a shorter focal length but the seeing deteriorated to awful shortly after this sequence was completed, an hour or so later the cloud closed in completely, terminating the night's activities.

The dust band over the polar cap can be seen, most clearly in the green image, and both morning and evening haze / cloud can be seen - all along the NE limb and just north of the equator at the W.

[johnmc9929]

Super image Brian, you were lucky with the weather, troublesome high cloud here all evening. That dust band on the polar cap sure does look interesting, can't recall having seen anything like that before, have you?

[brianb]

can't recall having seen anything like that before, have you?

Only in the excellent images that other people have posted in the last few days - Pete Lawrence (Selsey) has taken what I think is the best, they're well worth looking up, he posts on several forums. I keep asking him to send us a skipful of the good seeing they seem to be blessed with but I think maybe I'll have to go & collect some for myself