This is my first effort with the CDK12 from the observatory in New Mexico. I've attempted to shoot M101 from my Bortle 8 back yard numerous times--always with unsatisfying results. I could have gone longer on this, but I felt like this was my best-ever image of this galaxy and I was approaching diminishing returns. I'm very late getting this scope commissioned for galaxy season and there are one or two other shots I'd like to get before it's over.

This placement was extremely challenging. I also placed an FSQ106 at the same time. These two rigs now take their place along with the TOA130 I already had there. I was originally going to take our RV the 660 miles to do these installations, but the road to the observatory is not a good one and the climb is steep. It had just snowed and rained, and the RV is NOT a good mudder, so I felt it was safer to drive my truck. It was quite an effort getting everything safely packed in the covered bed, properly padded for the road, and protected from any moisture I might encounter. But with my wife Christi and her sister Gala's help, we were able to do it. 

Once at the observatory, things went pretty smoothly. Peter, the observatory tech, was a huge help and we at least got everything mounted up, if not connected, on the first day. There were some challenges getting everything connected on the second day, but we overcame them with Garey's (the network tech) help. Polar alignment went smoothly as did guide camera focusing. So I was able to go back to the hotel and start building a model, calibrate guiding, and then begin imaging.

About an hour into imaging, the Moravian C5 spontaneously disconnected and would NOT reconnect. The next morning, I was able to get it reconnected. I had to get home, so I started the 660 mile journey back with the disconnection issue heavy on my mind. That night (Saturday), the same thing happened. It worked for a couple of hours and then disconnected. Same on Sunday night. I contacted Moravian Sunday night and Monday they told me they would rush out a new 150W power supply. What? The camera is rated at 5A. 150W at 12V is 12.5A. That's a LOT of power for a camera to be consuming. I had been powering with the 8A port on the Pegasus Ultimate v3. Apparently that's not enough even though it's 3A more than the stated power requirement. 

Interestingly, I had a run from Monday night through Thursday night where the camera didn't disconnect at all. I suspect humidity plays a role. It was over 60% on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, but starting Monday, it stayed below 40%. I won't know for sure until I get this thing all rewired.

In addition to the camera issue, I also have a cabling issue from the Pegasus to the camera. I need to extend the cable harness about another foot to avoid any wrapping issues during rotation. Unfortunately, I didn't have much time at home to field test this rig--just one night--before I had to load it up to take it out to New Mexico. The cabling and power issues are things I would have seen here with more time. But I only had a two-day window where I would have tech help at the observatory.

So I got the 150W power supply. But the power cable is only 3ft long. Um, no. That won't work. Moravian has a 3m extension cord, but they didn't send one with the new power supply. So now I'm waiting on that to arrive. Once it gets here, I'll head back out and take care of the power supply and cabling issues. This time, I'll let American Airlines do the driving.