1. Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Planetary observing and Imaging

2. Last time Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Lunar observing using a telescope: Using charts / maps of the Moon Things to look out for Grazing occultations Drawing / sketching Safe Solar observing using binoculars and a telescope: Do’s and don’ts Ways to observe safely What to see in white light Other ways to view the Sun

3. This week: Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Observing the planets Naked eye Telescopically:Eye Camera Webcam

4. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society The ‘classical’ planets have been known since ancient times. They were noted as different from other stars because they were not ‘fixed’ and the Greeks called them ‘Asteres Planetai’ or wandering stars. The ‘classical planets are: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn although the Greeks would have included the Moon and Sun with these. All of the classic planets can be viewed with the naked eye. Naked eye

5. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society

6. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society

7. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society

8. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Why do we only see Mercury and Venus in the morning and evening twilight sky? Venus can be seen in the day light sky when well placed.

9. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Why when we observe the planets naked eye can we not see them as disks? The unaided eye can generally only resolve about 3 arc minutes at best. Celestial bodyAngular diameter Sun31.6′ – 32.7′ Moon29.3′ – 34.1′ Venus9.565″ – 66.012″ Jupiter29.800″ – 50.115″ Saturn14.991″ – 20.790″ Mars3.492″ – 25.113″ Mercury4.535″ – 13.019″

10. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society What you will see will be very much determined by: With a telescope The seeing. Magnification The physical properties of the telescope

11. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Seeing The better the seeing the more detail you will see. Good seeing is generally associated with misty foggy weather when the air is very still. The higher the object is in the sky the better the seeing. Seeing is often disturbed around trees and over buildings. Observing planets is not so affected by light pollution. With a telescope

12. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope Observing using a long focal length telescope will normally give best results. Magnification – how to work it out. F f Magnification = F divided by f Example: F = 500 f = 10500/10 = 50

13. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Resolution. The finest detail that a telescope can see is its angular resolution. It is equal to 1.22λ/D (radians). Where λ = wave length in meters. D = the diameter of the object glass / primary mirror in meters. What this says is that to see more detail you need a bigger diameter. With a telescope The physical properties of the telescope

14. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope Features on Jupiter's surface Shadow transits and the motion of the Galilean moons Phases of the inner planets Venus and Mercury and any visible surface detail. Things to observe and do: Keep notes / drawings in your observing log book Observe Saturn's beautiful ring system and moons Make use of tables and charts to aid and plan your observing

15. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope

16. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society

17. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society

18. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and camera The cameras automatic metering needs to be over ridden. The ISO needs to be set to 100 or 200 – experiment. Note that the higher the number the grainier the image will be i.e. less detail. Exposures between 1/5 sec and 1/60 are normal. If your camera has a histogram use it to help you get the best exposure. How to:

19. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and camera Jupiter

20. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and camera Saturn

21. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and camera Image of Jupiter taken using film (1990).

22. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and webcam (Lucky dip imaging) What you need: A webcam with CCD sensor Adapter and infrared blocking filter A laptop and free software from the internet – Registax or Avistack.

23. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and webcam (Lucky dip imaging) How does it work?

24. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and webcam (Lucky dip imaging)

25. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and webcam (Lucky dip imaging) Registax in action – hopefully!

26. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and webcam (Lucky dip imaging)

27. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society With a telescope and webcam (Lucky dip imaging)

28. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Images by Simon Dawes With a telescope and webcam (Lucky dip imaging)

29. Observing the Planets Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society Any questions?

30. Martin Crow Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society