Welcome to OakRidge Observatory (25.655°N, 80.350°W,Observatory Code H76, assigned February 17, 2005). My interest is in astrophotography from a suburban location in Miami, Florida. I image with a Starlight Xpress HX916 camera (recently upgraded to an SXV-H9) or a Philips ToUcam 740K (recently upgraded to a PCVC 840K). My telescopes are a MEADE 10" LX200 f/10 classic and a Stellarvue SV 78-S (Nighthawk) f/6 achromat. My equipment is permanently housed in a fiberglass HomeDome observatory, which can be controlled remotely from my house using RealVNC software. Various filters are used to combat light pollution (Lumicon DSF), assemble color images with a monochrome camera (Astronomik Type II LRGB, all IR blocked), and capture photons in different spectra (H-alpha, O-III). Image processing is accomplished with dedicated software, Astroart 3.0 and AIP4WIN. I use TheSky Version 5 Level 4 to control the telescope using a computer-generated virtual sky, and have an SBIG STV camera for guiding extended integrations.
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When I Heard the Learned Astronomer
Walt Whitman

When I heard the learned astronomer,

When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,

When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,

When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,

How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,

Till rising and gliding out I wandered off by myself,

In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,

Looked up in perfect silence at the stars.
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My first Astrophotography book, published by Springer!

CCD Astrophotography: High-Quality Imaging from the Suburbs
Available May 1st, 2006

Click-on the following hyperlinks.

Amazon.com-- http://tinyurl.com/393e6v
Springer Website-- http://tinyurl.com/3bexpd
Springer Review-- http://tinyurl.com/2ktlbv




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"Astronomy...is most impressive where it transcends explanation"-- Garrett Serviss, Curiosities of the Sky, 1909.