M2, A Fine Heap of Sand
M2 (NGC 7089 ) Globular cluster in Aquarius.
Astronomer John Herschel in 1830 commented “ A most superb cluster … It is like a heap of fine sand!” Smyth commented: “This magnificient ball of stars condenses to the centre and presents so fine a spherical form, that imagination cannot but picture the inconceivable brilliance of their visible heavens, to its animated myriads." Walter Scott Houston said “it is a fine object in any size instrument”
Taken @ Cherry Springs Dark Sky Park, William Optics FLT-110, Astro-Tech Field Flattener, QSI583wsg, Celestron CGE mount, Watec 120N+ used as guide camera off-axis. Guided with PHD Guiding, acquired in AstroArt, preprocessed in Deep Sky Stacker and processed in Photoshop.
Images were shot with oncoming clouds (9/16) and clouds passing through the field (9/18).
Luminance: 20 LRGB @ 2 min each, binned 2 x 2 taken 09-16-09 combined and drizzled combined with 15 luminance taken 09-18-09 15(out of 20) x 5 minutes unbinned.
RGB: used the previous RGB above for 5 frames each 2 x2 @ 2 minutes.
Astronomer John Herschel in 1830 commented “ A most superb cluster … It is like a heap of fine sand!” Smyth commented: “This magnificient ball of stars condenses to the centre and presents so fine a spherical form, that imagination cannot but picture the inconceivable brilliance of their visible heavens, to its animated myriads." Walter Scott Houston said “it is a fine object in any size instrument”
Taken @ Cherry Springs Dark Sky Park, William Optics FLT-110, Astro-Tech Field Flattener, QSI583wsg, Celestron CGE mount, Watec 120N+ used as guide camera off-axis. Guided with PHD Guiding, acquired in AstroArt, preprocessed in Deep Sky Stacker and processed in Photoshop.
Images were shot with oncoming clouds (9/16) and clouds passing through the field (9/18).
Luminance: 20 LRGB @ 2 min each, binned 2 x 2 taken 09-16-09 combined and drizzled combined with 15 luminance taken 09-18-09 15(out of 20) x 5 minutes unbinned.
RGB: used the previous RGB above for 5 frames each 2 x2 @ 2 minutes.
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