I spent some time this afternoon reconfiguring the observatory for Mars. Off with the 8" Newt; on with the C-11.
It is an old orange-tube C-11, that was de-forked by the original owner. I have added a Moonlite focuser with DC motor, and I'll be using it with an ASI120MC camera. With a Barlow, it will be working at 5600mm focal length. It is a beast, and needs 33 lbs of counterweights on the CEM-60.
Last year, I reconditioned the finder. It is a right-angle finder, though probably not a
RACI, with an illuminated reticle. The battery for the illuminated reticle is discontinued, and, when I obtained a substitute battery, I discovered that the original micro incandescent bulb was burned out. The writing was on the wall that the illuminator was obsolete, so I fitted it with an LED and made a dimmer pack that is powered off the pier's 12-volt system. In the process of doing that work, the original finder mount broke. I was able to find an ADM finder mount to fit the curvature and bolt pattern of the C-11, so it has a nice, shiny, new six-point ring mount. I treat my finder well, because I learned that finding planets at 5600mm focal length is
hard!
I will have to do some work out in the dome on the next clear night, to get the finder aligned, and to find an approximate focus on the scope. The Moonlight has a short-stroke tube on it, since it is really just for fine-tuning and for adjusting for the seeing. Most of the focusing has to be done with the C-11's focuser. I obtained a second-hand Bahtinov mask for the C-11, so I should be able to get the focus dialed in pretty quickly.
Also, I will likely have to do a star alignment on the mount. I have never done one before! I use plate-solving for
DSO AP, but that's not going to work for planetary. After that, I'll be able to run a session from in the house.
My plans are to shoot some frames of Mars. Since Jupiter and Saturn are still around, I'll probably shoot them, too. And while I've got the big focal length, I might try a planetary nebula or two.
DSO AP: Orion 200mm f/4 Newtonian Astrograph; ATIK 383L+; EFW2 filter wheel; Astrodon Ha,Oiii,LRGB filters; KWIQ/QHY5 guide scope;
Planetary AP: Celestron C-11; ZWO ASI120MC;
Portable: Celestron C-8 on HEQ5 pro; C-90 on wedge; 20x80 binos;
Etc: Canon 350D; Various EPs, etc.
Obs: 8' Exploradome; iOptron CEM60 (pier);
Helena Observatory (H2O) Astrobin