First Light: A new telescope means a new beginning

August 1, 2026Photonstopper Leave a comment

First light image of Messier 57: The Ring Nebula. For the occasion, only 60 light frames and 30 dark frames, 15 seconds each frame, were captured and stacked. Affinity Photo 2 was used to create the stack and Pixelmator Pro for editing. M57 is a planetary nebula in constellation Lyra and was formed during the death throes of a Sun-like star.

We had been considering what our next step might be in outfitting the observatory with a more-or-less permanently mounted telescope. Would a very long focal length Cassegrain suit our needs? Both the C11 SCT and the Vixen Modified Cassegrain were available, already on hand but both had issues. After struggling with collimation on both telescopes, we were leaning toward a high-quality refractor as the solution. Long focal length on a refractor, though, means a long tube and we have limited space. The incident that damaged the Vixen pretty much forced our hand. Frustrated with collimation issues, and telescope repairs we doubt we could perform, we made the decision to go with a new refractor.

What ultimately steered us toward Askar and helped ease some (not all) doubt concerning focal lengths was the wonderfully high quality image of the “daytime Moon” we had captured with the smaller Askar 103APO — images with that level of quality can be cropped to make up for some lack of focal length. Watching YouTube reviews of some Askar’s bigger telescopes offered further assurance we were headed in the right direction.

The new Askar 151PHQ telescope installed on the observatory’s pier. At the eyepiece end is a ZWO ASIAir Plus computer and ZWO Automatic Electronic Focuser. We anticipate moving the computer to a different location on the telescope as cable management becomes a priority.

Inside doubled shipping boxes, the telescope was delivered in a solid transport case, packed in form-fit dense foam padding. The case is very high quality, very heavy, and bears multiple hand grips; it will now be set aside, stored some place against the day the telescope is taken out of service for some reason. If the case was an optional item, in our case we aren’t sure we would want it.

The Askar 151PHQ is doubtless the highest-quality telescope we have ever owned or used. It is a quadruplet astrograph, featuring a 151mm (six inch) aperture and a 1057mm focal length for an f/7 focal ratio, and designed to produce flat field images without add-on optics.

Taking advantage of a rare, relatively clear night, we went for first light using the big instrument with minimal configuration: no finder scope, no automatic tracking, no camera cooling, etc. While we had installed the ZWO AEF purchased years ago, and the ASI AirPlus, we used them only for manual electric focusing which, by the way, was a big improvement in itself! The optional hand controller was a wonderful thing to have, allowing us to watch through the eyepiece or on the computer screen and make smooth, minute adjustments to focus without telescope vibration. Yes, wonderful!

Under Bortle 6/7 skies pinpoint stars shown brightly through the eyepiece as we focused on Arcturus, then searched for M57. Our hazy skies, made worse by light pollution (maybe a Bortle 8 night), didn’t make things easy but with a little patience, a tiny, ghostly ring appeared in the field of view. We swapped out the eyepiece for the one-shot color camera, refocused, and began the imaging run. While we have much to learn about processing deep sky objects, we were happy to see the quality of the resulting stacked image: round stars and lots of them (many more stars than we’re used to seeing there), good detail in the ring, and decent color — all in 60 light, and 30 dark 15-second frames. The Moon eluded us that night, still down in the trees at midnight, but we tried solar first light the next morning.

First images of our Sun via the Askar 151PHQ were recorded under poor seeing conditions but, with some work, produced some pretty impressive results. A TeleVue Powermate 2.5X Barlow was employed here. We hope to refine our setup for the new telescope for better edge-to-edge focus. The telescope was equipped with a Baader white light solar film filter and monochrome camera; false color applied during processing.

Placing a Baader Solar film filter over the Askar’s objective and aiming the scope at Sun, we quickly saw beautiful detail in the sunspots that marked the surface on July 31. Imaging was routine and easy, though seeing was poor. The telescope’s 1,057mm focal length did not allow a full disk image of our star on the ASI astronomical camera’s sensor but installing a Barlow lens we achieved some dramatic detail views. We can hardly wait to try again under better skies!

Long focal length produces a Solar image too large to entirely fit on the astronomy camera’s sensor. With quality like this, however, we won’t complain. This is Sun on July 31, 2026, imaged via white light solar filter and monochrome camera, false color applied during processing.

Nearly too large! When observing low elevation targets, the telescope fits snugly within the observatory walls. Fortunately, the tall pier and large mount elevate the assembly enough that normal observing is at a comfortable height and (M57 was at the zenith during First Light!) high elevation targets do not cause us to lay on the floor or scrape the camera there! We suspect this scope on a tripod might present some problems for high elevation object observing.

Thus far the only negative, something unanticipated, is that because of the Petzval design, an optical element is located deep within the OTA making use of our beloved Herschel Wedge a risk to the telescope; that optical element is at a point in the light path where focused and unfiltered sunlight could overheat and damage the lens! We’re working around it and will assign the Herschel to the Askar 103 when desired. As we anticipated, we’d love to have much more focal length but without collimation to worry about and high quality images to work with, we’ll hope to get by … maybe with the help of a really good Barlow lens?

A near disaster

July 15, 2026July 30, 2026Photonstopper

*The Vixen VC200L Modified Cassegrain telescope on a good evening in 2020. The Sky-Watcher mount now sits atop a permanent pier inside the observatory, no longer on the grass.*

On July 12, we had just finished installing the Vixen telescope on to a new rack that attached to our Sky-Watcher mount, and were fine-tuning the system’s balance when it happened. There, in front of us, out of reach for rescue, the telescope slid along its railing, down the new rack like a skier down their ramp! Horrified, we watched as it cleared the bottom of the mount, plunged five feet to the floor, bounced, and landed upon its side just outside the observatory door!

Expecting the worst, we lifted the poor thing up and looked down the tube to check the primary mirror … and it was intact. The outside of the tube showed a long, thin scratch and a little scraped spot, and the finder ring was loose and ajar but looked repairable. A set screw for the visual back had sheared off. Fortunately, the finder scope was undamaged, and the flip mirror eyepiece accessory had not been installed so it escaped the crash. Apparently the telescope, which slid bottom end first, struck the polyethylene observatory door threshold, bouncing from there possibly softening the impact — a bit better than directly hitting the concrete floor!

The next day, after thoroughly examining the OTA, straightening out the finder rings, and removing the offending mount rack, it was time to see whether we could see. It being daytime we clamped the scope directly to the solid Sky-Watcher mount atop its pier, attached the solar filter, and aimed skyward. Surprisingly, the two large sunspots present could be seen clearly in full-disk viewing and the edges of Sun looked good; the telescope was actually usable! Higher magnification and later imaging were not as impressive. After dark we attempted photography of M57 — the Ring Nebula — to look at star shapes. Not surprisingly the stars showed distinct signs of a telescope out of collimation. The scope needs work.

We will attempt collimation soon after we receive a replacement visual back for the telescope but would really prefer to have the instrument checked and serviced by professionals.

UPDATE July 30 — The VC200L telescope sustained mechanical damage to its focuser, that part of the scope apparently having struck the ground first; the mechanism operates roughly and shifts the image during operation. Collimation appears possible through we were unable to perfect that alignment. And, thus far, we have been unable to locate any source for professional repair. VIXEN let us know that the scope could be sent to their facility in Japan for evaluation and repair but we feel the transportation cost along with repair charges would be impractical. The instrument is now in storage as we contemplate its future.

Daytime Moon redux

July 15, 2026Photonstopper

*Earth’s Waning Crescent Moon, July 9, 2026, at 15:05 UTC / 11:05 AM EDT. The image was rotated clockwise by 90° for aesthetic reasons. Credit: Stella-Luna Observatory / James Guilford.*

Once again, following a Solar observing session, we turned our telescope to Moon during daytime. This time, we employed the same monochrome camera we used imaging Sun but, after removing the solar protections, added an infrared pass filter. The result, via the Askar 103 APO telescope, was spectacular! Only minimal processing was needed to achieve a sharp, contrasty, detailed image of Earth’s nearest neighbor.

Sun and Moon

July 8, 2026July 8, 2026Photonstopper

The northwestern Solar quadrant shown via hydrogen-alpha light, false color applied, shows the chaotic surface of the chromosphere, with several filaments visible. Along the rim are prominences contrasted against the blackness of space.

The morning presented an excellent opportunity for Solar observing and imaging — the sky was clear and, these days, Sun is rising between trees instead of behind them! While we have been following our star’s singular large sunspot for a few days, it turned out our best image from the morning was of the northwest Solar quadrant. Details in the chromosphere were beautifully rendered and several interesting prominences of various shapes and sizer graced the rim.

During one of the Solar imaging runs, we looked up and out through the dome aperture at the deep blue morning sky. There, floating on the denim background, was the Last Quarter Moon. Once finished with Sun, we aimed the scope at Moon, removed the solar gear from the white light telescope, and did a portrait of old Luna. We’ve done this not so long ago but still get a kick out of our daytime Moon.

*Earth’s Moon in its Last Quarter phase is shown in this two-panel image made at 9:15 AM EDT, July 8, 2026.*

By the way, the latest addition to our setup is a rig by ADM that allows two scopes to be held simultaneously on a single mount; that has been a wonderful way to quickly change between Solar wavelengths, and to use the individual telescopes without swapping out and rebalancing the system. The ADM rack is very well made, fully adjustable, and we have no fear of equipment coming loose and crashing to the ground — possibly the most important feature!

*Multi-telescope rack by ADM allows two telescopes to ride the pier mount at the same time, delivering flexibility and efficiency to our setup.*

Three (very) active regions mark the sun’s surface

July 2, 2026Photonstopper

Whole-disk view of Sun as it appeared late morning July 2, 2026. The sunspots are nearing Sun’s western horizon (right) but still pose a threat of geomagnetic storms from their flares. This image was captured using our Canon EOS 5D Mk. 4 DSLR, 400mm telephoto lens with 2X extender, and white light Baader film solar filter. False color added.

Three active regions nearing the western solar horizon have been busy, exploding with multiple flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). That solar material is expected to reach Earth beginning July 3 and continuing into the U.S. Independence Day weekend. The CMEs impacting Earth’s magnetosphere could produce auroras. Those blessed with clear night skies should be alert for a possible *quiet* fireworks display! Respect.

A closeup view of the three active regions mentioned in this post was recorded using our Askar 103APO telescope, and Baader Planetarium Herschel safety wedge. The image was recorded the morning of July 2, 2026 in monochrome and is reproduced here in that state. Photosphere granulation, faculae, and sunspot details are visible here.

Impressive sunspot commands attention in midday heat

June 30, 2026Photonstopper

*Sunspots at Solar Active Region 4478 imaged with an Askar 103APO telescope, Herschel wedge, and Tele Vue Powermate 5X under poor seeing conditions. Credit: James Guilford*

June 29, 2026 — Morning clouds and the usual trees kept us from working in the cooler, quieter air today so, nearing local (EDT) noon in heat and roiling atmosphere, we took our first shot at Solar Active Region 4478. The region featured a pair of massive sunspots that have been exciting observers lately. Using the Askar 103APO telescope with Baader Planetarium Herschel wedge in white light, we caught the impressive sight. Now aimed squarely at Earth, both AR4478 and 4479 pose a threat of powerful X-Class flares.

*Several of the sunspots in Solar active regions as imaged via Askar 103APO telescope, Herschel wedge, and Tele Vue Powermate 2X under poor seeing conditions. Credit: James Guilford*

Small scope provides big results in moonshot

June 28, 2026Photonstopper

*Full disk image of Earth’s Moon at 97 percent illumination, as imaged on June 27, 2026, at 11:51 PM EDT local time! Askar 103 APO refractor, ProPlanet 642 nM IR pass filter.*

After recent struggles in an effort to get sharp images from the old C11 telescope, it was a pleasure to observe Earth’s Moon through the Askar 103 APO refractor! Clouds drifted through at various densities but — oh, my! — what a fine view! What the little Askar lacks in focal length, it possesses in sharpness. So we excitedly present this image of our Gibbous Moon!  

*Crater Copernicus and vicinity, with Moon at waxing Gibbous phase, 97 percent illumination. Askar 103 APO refractor, ProPlanet 642 nM IR pass filter, Tele Vue 2X Barlow. Image Credit: James Guilford*

Lunar Crater Copernicus (above), with its expansive web of ejecta rays, dominates this scene captured June 27 (local time). To the left of Copernicus is Crater Kepler, with a smaller but still visible “splat” mark, both contrasting well against the dark field of Mare Insularum. Left still farther, on the terminator, is a figure-eight ring feature formed by Craters Cavalerius (top) and Hevelius (bottom). This is our favorite image from the brief Saturday night session.

Southern Moon and telescope trial

June 24, 2026June 25, 2026Photonstopper

*The heavily-cratered south-eastern area of Earth’s Moon is seen here, imaged just before midnight, June 23, 2026. Stella-Luna Observatory / James Guilford*

This is the southern end of Earth’s waxing gibbous phase Moon, as imaged late Tuesday night. The heavily-cratered area along the terminator includes Crater Tycho — with a central peak lit by the rising Sun — and the dark circular expanse of Clavius, with the top of its western crater wall extending into the deep shadows of the terminator. We used the old Celestron C11 for this session as we continue to evaluate its performance and condition. We continue to be concerned about whether the telescope’s focus issue is simple collimation or some more serious combination of problems.

Not in the southern area of our Moon but certainly visible, even without a telescope, is Mare Crisium, shown at the center of this image made light night June 24, 2026. Stella-Luna Observatory / James Guilford.

Afternoon sunshine enjoyed side-by-side

June 24, 2026June 25, 2026Photonstopper

The morning was filled and, though it is best to observe Sun before the heat of the day sets in, the skies were still clear this afternoon so we opened the dome. Happily, there were points of interest, particularly the two plumes of prominences on the northwest rim!

Just emerging over the eastern limb (left edge, above) is a large sunspot which should prove interesting to observe, the next time we enjoy clear skies here!

This was also our first use of a new bracket that allows side-by-side mounting and simultaneous use of two telescopes on the pier. The apparatus, made by ADM Accessories, and purchased from High Point Scientific, is sturdily-built and not excessive in weight. Presently we have the Askar 103APO and the Sky-Watcher 76Ha scopes up but will likely experiment with other configurations.

Two telescopes are installed side-by-side on the observatory mount and pier employing an ADM Accessories mounting system purchase from High Point Scientific. The arrangement allows use of two telescopes simultaneously or separately without the need for rebalancing or alignment when switching between them.

Lunar Blueprints

June 8, 2026June 9, 2026Photonstopper

The northwest quadrant of Earth’s Moon, viewed during morning daylight reveals many wonderful details with an appearance that differs from nighttime views in more than just color. A few points of interest: The crater with impressive ejecta rays at lower left is Kepler; to its right is large, distinctive Crater Copernicus with its central peaks. Just above Copernicus are the peaks of Montes Carpatus. The bright spot at upper left is Crater Aristarchus with Herodotus, just to its left. Finally, at the upper right corner, is the distinctive C-shape of Sinus Iridium.

This morning, before stowing equipment for the duration of upcoming days of cloudy weather, we aimed the 11-inch scope at Earth’s waning gibbous Moon. Images were captured at about 7:50 AM EDT, after the sky had turned to blue, lending its color to Moon as viewed from Earth.

*Celestron 11-inch telescope is shown aimed at Moon — a tiny white dot — in the clear, blue morning sky.*

The big Celestron SCT remains in need of adjustment or, possibly, overhaul but does deliver some pleasing results! We’ve been struggling but have not yet achieved best acceptable collimation, so the scope hasn’t spent much time on the permanent pier in the observatory.

The sort of flaw that one will see from telescopes that are out of collimation — alignment of the light path within the telescope — is stars that look a bit like comets, and focus difficulties. After several efforts we are not where we need to be with the C11 to use it as our primary observatory instrument.

Unfortunately, due to lack of space, we can have only one telescope at a time on a permanent mount beneath the dome. We are considering next steps which include acquisition of a new primary telescope, upgrading of the mount, and means of mounting two instruments at a time on the pier.

As mentioned, cloudy, rainy weather is expected to be the rule for the week ahead so the telescope is parked, and accessories stowed. We’ll be working a bit on our meteor camera and thinking about where to go from here.