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 Posts about photography, contract bridge, astrophotography, astronomy, Java development, internet systems. |
Last year, I had some really bad luck with astrophotography. I replaced my old laptop (Dell, Windows XP) and installed a new suite of tools to replace the somewhat ancient and unsupported camera software. At one point during my first “shakeout” evening (October 2014), the new software started spinning my telescope around the declination axis. It made […] The weather forecast for our favorite spot, Amboy Crater, called for decent conditions but high winds. (Why do we care about the wind? Here are four reasons I can think of: simple comfort, blowing charts and equipment, maintaining a target in a telescope, and blowing dust.) The best forecast in the area was at our old favorite […] See Jane’s observing report from the same evening — some great binocular observing with Kemble’s Cascade. The 20D mounted piggyback on the Traveler and Mach One GTO mount, hoping to catch comet PANSTARRS on its first opportunity. Several months ago, David Green of the Santa Clarita Valley Photographers Association invited me to give a talk on astrophotography […] My piggy back shot of Scorpius taken in the early evening. Note the Pipe Nebula near the center left, a dark dusty pipe in silhouette against the Milky Way. Click for the full-resolution image. Observing report for June 16, 2012, Amboy, CA The forecast for Amboy had a high temperature of 104°F and a low of 72°F. […] Jane snapped Mojo waiting for darkness at the Amboy Crater visitor area. Observing report, April 21, 2012, Amboy, CA We’ve had a string of bad luck with new moon weekends for the past six months, so when this new moon Saturday showed nearly perfect conditions, Jane and I were quick to pack the van and get out […] Chuckwalla Bench, Colorado Desert, California, 29 October 2011 As promised, last weekend was the first of two excellent dark sky weekends this month. The weather turned out to be perfect for this one as well. Jane and I went to our old favorite spot off I-10, Chuckwalla Bench, on BLM land south of Joshua Tree in the Colorado […] Observing report, October 22, 2011 It's very easy to miss this sign from National Trails Highway, the delightful old U.S. Highway 66. This month is blessed with two very good dark sky observing weekends, and we opted to take the first one at a spot we’ve been thinking about for a […] Click here for the full photo album with lots more pictures. The snow-capped peaks were beautiful from the Foothill Freeway It had been several months since our schedule, the weather, and the moon phase all cooperated to give us a chance to get out to our favorite astronomy spot. Jane and I, joined by Dave Hasenauer, ventured […] These cumulus clouds were nearly stationary all evening, making quite the light show with an electrical storm Observing report, August 7, 2010 We hadn’t expected to be able to observe during this part of the summer from Chuckwalla Bench in the High Colorado desert south of Joshua Tree, but this August night’s forecast at Desert Center […] Jane snapped this shot of me shortly after sunset, squinting into the bit of wind we had. Happy Independence Day! This weekend wasn’t our usual dark sky new moon weekend; there would be a third-quarter moon rising just at midnight. With summer sunset at 8:00, and no real dark sky until about 9:00, we were looking at […] |
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Copyright © 2024 Morris "Mojo" Jones - All Rights Reserved |
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