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Re: (meteorobs) Hello from Nashville...
In a message dated 97-01-24 17:32:45 EST, you write:
<< Carlos Trenary >>
I have photographed meteors. Its like panning for gold. You put a lot of
time into it and maybe you get some and maybe you don't. Here's what I do.
I had a special adapter build for the clock drive-mount for the telescope I
use. This gives me a pan head (like a camera tripod) on which to mount the
camera. This arrangement gives me tracking of the sky (star points instead
of star trails) and an easy way to point the camera at any part of the sky.
I then drive about an hour to a site with better viewing and hopefully above
the coastal fog. I usually load Kodak (or any other brand -- no comercial)
400 Gold, 36 exposure roll, into the camera. I use a 50 mm lense because of
the few lense I have it provides the least periferal distortion of the star
points. I turn on a radio with short wave range ability and set it to WWV to
get the universal time during the run. I us a remote (10 inch) shutter
open/closure device that enable me to hold the shutter open for usually 2
minutes. Then I open the shutter on the WWV mark minute wait two minutes and
close, roll the film, and open the shutter on the next WWV mark. That's a
three minute cycle. This gives a little over an hour and a have of coverage
of a part of the sky.
One must stay "focused" between the cold and the monotony of process its easy
to loose sync. I also like to document the time the shutter was opened and
closed for each exposure. The film will not capture every meteor you may
see with the eye but the few times it does capture one its treat to see.
More could be said but AOL keeps trying to kick me off for non-use.
Best to all.
STEVE @ Salinas, California