From: "milton_aupperle" <milton@outcastsoft.com>

Date: January 5, 2012 11:15:41 PM MST

To: Astro_IIDC@yahoogroups.com

Subject: M82

Hi Folks;

Despite a 50% lit moon, I finally managed to image M82 late on the night of January 1st. I have been trying to image it and M81 for the past several years, but the weather has never cooperated until now.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Astro_IIDC/files/DSO/M82_20120102_MJA.jpg 

RC8" scope @ 1625 mm focal length with the Cooled (to -27°C) Grasshopper camera, 16 minute Luma, 4 minute red, green and blue binned 2x2. It was ~ -18°C that night with sporadic wind gusts and thin haze in the sky. Despite the forecast indicating the Jet stream was right over top of me, seeing was good and is in the range of 3.5 to 4 arc second FWHM - which is better than I expected.

I also imaged M81 earlier that night, but the moon was higher in the sky raising the sky background and seeing was a bit worse too, so I'm still working on it.

TTYL..

Milton Aupperle