Massey / Quirk Deep-Sky Video Astronomy

1. Auflage 2009
ISBN: 978-0-387-87612-2
Verlag: Springer
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 185 Seiten

Reihe: The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series

Deep-Sky Video Astronomy is a concise guide to using modern integrating video cameras for deep-sky viewing and imaging with the kinds of modest telescopes available commercially to amateur astronomers. It includes an introduction and a brief history of the technology, camera types, etc. The authors then examine the pros and cons of this unrefrigerated yet highly efficient technology, which is already beginning to compete with expensive astronomical cooled-chip CCD cameras in quality and ease of use. There is a thorough examination of accessories used to achieve particular results. Examples are focal reducers, Barlow lenses, and optical filters. However, the focus is mostly on the practical side of creating beautiful and detailed astronomical portraits using image-stacking software, enhancement tools like PhotoShop, and creating color images with a black-and-white camera. Practical step-by-step examples supported by tried and trusted tips show how to achieve the best possible deep-sky video portrait!

Deep-Sky Video Astronomy is a concise guide to using modern video cameras for deep-sky viewing and imaging with the kinds of modest telescopes available commercially to amateur astronomers. It is not a beginner's book, but it does include an introduction and brief history of the technology, camera types, etc. More importantly, the authors examine the pros and cons of this unrefrigerated yet highly efficient technology, which is already beginning to compete with expensive astronomical cooled-chip CCD cameras in quality and ease of use. The book also includes a thorough examination of the variety of accessories that are available and can be used to achieve a particular result. Examples of accessories are focal reducers, Barlow lenses, and optical filters. However, much of the book's focus is on the practical side of creating beautiful and detailed astronomical portraits using image-stacking software, picture enhancement tools such as Photoshop, and in creating color images using only a very sensitive black-and-white camera. Practical step-by-step examples, supported by tried and trusted tips, show how it is possible to achieve the best possible celestial deep-sky video portrait! There is also information on how this technology is being used for comet hunting, supernova patrols, lunar and Minor Planet occultations, astrometry, and meteoroid observations.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Massey, Steve

Quirk, Steve

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;About the Authors;6
2;Contents;8
3;Introduction Deep-Sky Video Astronomy;11
4;Using Video for Astronomy;15
4.1;1.1 The Image Sensor;16
4.2;1.2 Efficiency in Astrophotography;18
4.3;1.3 Progressive Scan;18
4.4;1.4 Interlaced TV Images;18
4.5;1.5 Video Resolution;21
4.6;1.6 Low Light Performance;22
4.7;1.7 Hot Pixels;24
4.8;1.8 Color Versus Black and White;24
4.9;1.9 CCD Sizes and Image Scale;26
5;Cameras;30
5.1;2.1 Image Accumulation Cameras;30
5.2;2.2 Cameras Modified for Astronomy;33
5.3;2.3 Basic Camera Features;33
5.4;2.4 Camera Control;36
5.5;2.5 Shutter Speed;36
5.6;2.6 Signal Gain Control;37
5.7;2.7 Gamma Settings;38
5.8;2.8 Accumulation Mode;39
5.9;2.9 Video Cables and Connections;41
6;Video Capture;44
6.1;3.1 Digitizing Video;44
6.2;3.2 Software Capture Tools;45
6.3;3.3 Aspect Ratio;46
6.4;3.4 Capture Resolution;48
6.5;3.5 Image Quality;50
6.6;3.6 RGB Color Spaces;50
6.7;3.7 Recording Directly to DVD;51
6.8;3.8 Bright Object Smearing in Videotape Recordings;52
6.9;3.9 8-Bit Grayscale Images;53
6.10;3.10 Understanding Capture Rates;54
6.11;3.11 Storage Mediums;56
6.12;3.12 File Sizes;57
7;At the Telescope;59
7.1;4.1 Focal Reducers;59
7.2;4.2 Barlow Lens;60
7.3;4.3 Eyepiece Projection;62
7.4;4.4 Filters;63
7.5;4.5 Filter Selectors;63
7.6;4.6 Real-Time Video Observations;66
7.7;4.7 Creating a Video Portrait;67
7.8;4.8 Dark Frames;67
7.9;4.9 Flat Fields;68
7.10;4.10 Avoiding Dust Motes;71
7.11;4.11 Image Scale and Resolution;72
7.12;4.12 A Basic Plan for Your Imaging Session;73
7.13;4.13 Guiding and Tracking Corrections;78
7.14;4.14 How Many Images Should be Captured?;79
7.15;4.15 Framing Multiple Fields to Capture Large Objects;81
8;Initial Processing;83
8.1;5.1 Software for Initial Processing of Video Files;83
8.2;5.2 Stacking with Registax Direct from an AVI File;85
8.3;5.3 Manually Stacking Images;90
9;Final Processing;94
9.1;6.1 Calibrating Your Computer Monitor;95
9.2;6.2 Extracting the Detail;96
9.3;6.3 Vignette/Gradient Removal;101
9.4;6.4 Unsharp Masking;106
9.5;6.5 Making Color from Black 6 and White Images;114
9.6;6.6 Color Balance;118
9.7;6.7 Adding a Luminance Channel to RGB;123
9.8;6.8 Making a Simulated Green Channel;124
9.9;6.9 Adjusting Color Shift in Single CCD Color Camera Images;128
9.10;6.10 Removing Artifacts;128
9.11;6.11 Blending MultiField Images;137
9.12;6.12 Printed Video Images;141
9.13;6.13 Publishing Images to a Website;143
10;Other Video Applications;144
10.1;7.1 Lunar and Minor Planet Occultations;143
10.2;7.2 Astrometry;146
10.3;7.3 Supernova Searching;147
10.4;7.4 Meteor Observations;148
10.5;7.5 Video as a Guiding Tool;148
10.6;7.6 Manual Guiding;151
10.7;7.7 Automatic Guiding;152
10.8;7.8 Video Finderscope;153
10.9;7.9 Video Polar Alignment;155
10.10;7.10 Collimating with Video;155
10.11;7.11 Detecting Faint Planetary Moons;156
10.12;7.12 Near Infrared: Imaging the Unseen;157
11;The Gallery;160
11.1;8.1 Suburban Light-Polluted Skies;160
11.2;8.2 Dark Country Skies;171
12;Glossary;184
13;For Reference and Further Reading;189
14;Internet Sites of Interest;189
15;Index;191