Setting Moon

Here's a shot from about 2 weeks ago during my last run on Kitt Peak. The moon sets next to the Spacewatch 36 inch dome with some cirrus lit by the clouds. This image was taken at 18mm focal length with an exposure of 60 seconds at f/3.5, ISO 400.

B&W sunset

Are we having fun with B&W sunsets yet? Here's another from last week. This was converted to B&W in Picasa using a strong yellow/green filter. This image was taken at 46mm foca length with an exposure of 1/2000 seconds at f/5.6, ISO 400.

color sunset

I was tempted not to put up the original, but finally gave in. Here's the color version of yesterdays image. It was just to pretty, though revealing it may take away from the beauty of the B&W version a little, at least....

B&W Sunset

This view towards the south ridge shows the Spacewatch 36 inch dome at left with the WIYN telescope in the middle distance just before sunset. After yesterdays B&W conversion and after watching the PBS American Experience episode on Ansel Adams last night, I couldn't help but publish this in B&W, though showing off the pretty color version is still very tempting..... This image was taken at 18mm focal length with an exposure of 1/60 seconds at f/8, ISO 400, converted in Picasa to B&W using a moderate red filter. Stronger red causes more grain patterns to appear.

Just before sunrise - B&W

I've always liked looking at sunrise or sunset photos in black and white - the diverse range of shades are quite spectacular and make up for the lack of color. This image is the same as the next one on this page, converted to B&W with a red color selection in Picasa.

Just before sunrise

This image was taken just before the crack of sunrise picture and shows the sunlight clouds above Kitt Peak. The McMath solar telescope and Spacewatch 1.8-meter dome are visible in the right third of the image. Near center on the horizon is the Santa Rita mountains featuring Mt. Hopkins where the MMT telescope is located. A pretty sunrise like this is an indication of a difficult night of observing with all these clouds about. This image was taken at 18mm focal length with an exposure of 1/200 seconds at f/8, ISO 400.

The crack of Sunrise

I got very lucky with this shot. I didn't realize that sunrise was imminent when I set up the shot and as I clicked this first shot, I saw the sun first appear. This image was taken at 55mm focal length with an exposure of 1/800 seconds at f/8, ISO 400.

Rocks and Dome

I know I've published a photo of the Spacewatch 36 inch dome from this angle before, but every shot has a different look with different lighting. The sunset lighting was particularly striking the other night. This image was taken at 18mm focal length with an exposure of 1/125 seconds at f/11, ISO 100.

Domes at sunset

Another shot from last night just before sunset. Here, the Spacewatch 36 inch telescope is in the foreground with the Steward Observatory 90 inch Bok Telescope and the Kitt Peak National Observatory 4-meter Mayall Telescopes in the background.

Sunset tonight

Only a couple nights left of my current observing run and it's a cirrus filled night as this sunset picture shows. Lots of starts and stops tonight. On the bright side, I finally got around to cleaning my sensor, so there aren't too many dust specks now! This image was taken at 18mm focal length with an exposure of 1/200 seconds at f/8, ISO 100.

Mt. Wrightson and Mt. Hopkins

With the air so clear last week, I also got this shot of Mount Wrightson and Mount Hopkins in the Santa Rita mountains south of Tucson. On top of Mt. Hopkins at right, you can even see the white building of the MMT observatory. In between the two peaks is Josephine Peak. Somehow, Josephine rated both a peak and a saddle, as Josephine Saddle is the saddle between the eastern complex which Mt. Wrightson is the tallest point on and the western complex which Mt. Hopkins is the tallest point of. Josephine Saddle is one our favorite areas to camp after about a 4 mile hike from the trailhead down in Madera Canyon. This image is cropped from a frame taken at 300mm focal length with an exposure of 1/400 seconds at f/8, ISO 100.

Last glimpse of the Sun's photosphere

This was one of a sequence of shots of the setting Sun last Wednesday night from Kitt Peak. You can just see the last bit of the suns bright surface as it dips below the distant hills. In fact, the edge of the sun is broken into several bead-like parts. I did get about 2 more images before the sun was entirely gone, but this one had the bead affect best. This image was taken at 300mm focal length with an exposure of 1/640 seconds at f/8, ISO 400.

On a clear day, you can see forever....

...or at least to Mount Graham. The dust from high winds early in the week have gone away and yesterday, I could see very distant mountains from Kitt Peak including Mount Graham where I'll be observing next month again at the VATT. Mount Graham must be at least 100 miles away from Kitt Peak. This view shows the mountains in the foreground very near Kitt Peak. Just left of the top of those foreground mountains is Ryan Field airport along Ajo road. Directly above Ryan Field is Cat Mountain with Tucson behind it. The southeastern end of the Santa Catalina mountains is next and on the horizon above that is Mount Graham. I believe the Galliuros Mountains are visible between Mt. Graham and the Catalinas. This view was taken at 300mm focal length with an exposure of 1/300 seconds at f/8, ISO 100.

Sunset clouds

Last nights sunset was pretty, despite the clouds around, particularly since they were moving out and by the time I started observing, it was pretty clear. This image was taken at 70mm focal length with an exposure of 1/2500 seconds at f/4, ISO 400.

Earth shadow - the wide view

Here's a wider angle view of the Earths shadow and anticrepuscular rays seen in the previous image. This image was taken at 18mm focal length with an exposure of 1/160 seconds at f/5.6, ISO 400.

A mountainous shadow

I was treated to a better than average shadow the other night while getting ready to observe on Kitt Peak. Here is an image that shows our shadow along with some anti-crepuscular rays. The shadow looks a lot like a mountain in this photo particularly when you compare it with the Rincon Mountains that lay east of Tucson and are partly within the shadow. The shadow crosses the southern part of Tucson and the Rincons at this time of year as it moves southward with the northward setting sun from night to night as we approach the equinox. This image was taken at 55mm focal length with an exposure of 1/125 seconds at f/5.6, ISO 400.