Let me set the scene starting around 0400hrs and ending at noon. 0400hrs??? Yup! You see, it gets hot in the Mojave Desert this time of year and I get outta bed at 0300hrs anyway. The noontime temps this past week have been in the 110 - 115 range, so an early start is a wise thing in the summertime when one is only gonna take the shot between 1100 & 1200hrs (UT -8). (I refuse to do a
I'm "Mister Organized" when it comes to solar imaging. I have one mount that stays permanently aligned and covered out by the pool, just hoping I'll come out and play.
So, when I wheeled out the scope and equipment box, one could almost see the mount smile... Not today, Tonto.By 0420hrs, the entire rig, including the imaging computer in its box, was good-to-go. My target today was AR2767... a rare (these days) sunspot that's been coming off the east limb for three days. You're mine, Sucker! Nothing to do for six hours, when I'll jump on that AR like a duck on a June-bug and be having a beer twenty minutes later.
1100hrs (UT -8)... The magic moment has arrived! The air is clean and cloudless with only a slight breeze blowing... Outside Air Temp is only 106 deg (F), still a hot day. Center the sun in the Sol-Searcher; turn on the mount, cam, and Quark... Wait ten minutes for the Quark and cam to reach their set temps and shoot the darn thing. (Don't look... you don't need to.)
About ten minutes later, I sit down and stick my head in the box. The computer had gone to sleep, but a quick movement of the mouse brought up SharpCap that had already been pre-set with the proper cam temp (-4 deg C, check!) and the settings to shoot the target (Easy Peasy, No Problemo!).
As the author, Tom Robbins, once wrote, "“And then the rains came. They came down from the hills and up from the sound. And it rained a sickness. And it rained a fear." The screen view was BLACK! No sun, no skylight, no NUTHIN! Huh? Impossible, I'm thinking.
Software is working fine displaying cam temp, etc. Histogram is crammed to the left (black) side... not good. Pulling my head outta the box, a quick check showed the sun smack in the middle of the SolSearcher, green ready light on Quark is glowing, camera fan whirling away. This can't be, after all I'm a cowboy in this rodeo and it isn't my first.
Back in the box... Driving the
By now, I'm hot... mentally & physically. I should have been done with this capture, but have a black screen. No Problemo! The laptop is somehow screwed up... Light bulb illuminates in my brain. Grab the other laptop (which has all the capture software on-board) and solve the problem. Nope! Same-same-water buffalo!
This all resulted in another hour & a half of "guessing" and sweating. I even pulled the Quark out of the scope... black, no light coming through. The scope is fine... The UV/IR-cut filter is permanently installed. Nothing. By now, I'm really HOT and more than a little frustrated. The only thing that made me give up was the fact that the weight bar was approaching parallel, and I'm not about to to a flip as the sun heads for the hills to the west.
A quick dip in the pool to cool off, and I'm putting everything away. My wife was sitting in the air-conditioned gazebo playing poker. She had been watching my frantic activity and my almost constant cussing the whole time. As I'm removing the computer from the box, she said, "Why is the black cover on the scope?" What!!! The
So, there you have it. My admission of stupidity. Lesson Learned... Don't do that again. LOL
We've all been there John don't worry about it. I'm almost dreading imaging again, it's been so long since my last attempt that Im certain to drop a clanger ! :twitch:
