After traveling recently for the eclipse and to see family in Western Kansas, I decided purchase the AM5. It fit the balance of small and portable for travel, but robust enough to carry the RASA8 with no problem. Also, it allowed easy travel with my Askar 400 and Rokinon 135 set ups. Furthermore, I wanted to free my CGX up to take more images with my Edge 9.25.
Of course clear nights Midwest nights are few and far between during April and May. I tried to take a quick shot with the new rig before the clouds rolled in from the west. I had hoped to get 3 to 4 hours of imaging , but alas only captured 2 hours. The AM5 preformed as expected with RMS in 0.5 to 0.6 range and reached a low of upper 0. 3s for several 2 minutes averages. Here to more use out of this unique mount.
I recently saw widefield image of the Bode Galaxy Group with 135 mm lens and APS-C sensor that showed a large dusty area to the NE of the famous image due of M81 and M82. This image inspired me to frame the duo on concert with the IFN and ISM surrounding area with the RASA8. With only 2 hours, I used composite data from the
RASA8 and Edge 9.25 from a previous image to improve the quality of the two main galaxies on display. I will definitely be coming back to get more data on this subject. I have attached the image with the original galaxies prior to the composite and another with the 2 hours of data with a simple screen stretch.
To my eye, the dust appears like a King (King Bode if you will) with scepter in his right hand over the galaxies. This positioning also does resemble the famous painting of John Brown in the Kanas State Capitol .
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