Grasslands Observatory: NGC & IC Objects

NGC4038/4039

The initial digital color images of NGC and IC Objects were obtained with the original 24-inch f/5 reflector at the Grasslands Observatory from 1998 to early 2000. They were taken with an Apogee AP7 CCD camera.

The Apogee AP7 contained a SITe 24 micron 512 x 512 CCD chip that had excellent quantum efficiency throughout the visible spectrum and into the near-infrared portion of the spectrum. It was attached to an ISIS FW1 filter wheel containing an open slot, a clear filter, and standard R, V, B, and I (near-infrared) photometric filters. Among its accomplishments was the obtaining of black and whites images for all 338 Arp Galaxies and tri-color imaging of all the Messier Objects. In September 2000, the AP7 camera was replaced by a Finger Lakes Instrumentation Dream Machine CCD camera which was in operation until late 2014. The Dream Machine images mostly replaced the older AP7 images, because the Dream Machine had a larger field of view, and upgrades to the observatory drive system and focus system permitted much longer exposures with better results.

Current Imaging at the Grasslands Observatory

Many of the images from the AP7 or Dream Machine remain on this website. Quite a few of the images are mediocre, more due to poor imaging conditions or poor processing of the images rather than any limitations with the equipment. Some of the images from the AP7 and Dream Machine are quite good and difficult to improve upon using the new CCD's and telescopes now availabe at the Observatory (see current Grasslands Operations).

Prior to the AP7, an HPC-1 camera had been used, and a few of its images are still posted on this website. The HPC-1 was a very fine camera with 12 micron pixels and a 1024 x 1024 pixel array. Its quantum efficiency was good in the red and green portions of the spectrum, but it had a relatively low quantum efficiency in the blue portion of the spectrum.

In late 2007 a Quantum Scientific Imaging (QSI) 532 CCD was acquired with an LRGB filter set as well as a hydrogen alpha filter all residing in the QSI 532 internal color wheel. The QSI 532 CCD has a Kodak KAF-3200ME 2184 x 1472 chip with 6.8 micron pixels.  This camera can give very high resolution images with the original 24-inch telescope, but guiding was sometimes problematic, and 2x2 binning was often used for imaging. 

Other equipment includes an 8-inch f/4 Meade LXD55 Schmidt-Newtonian telescope which has been mounted onto the side of the original 24-inch f/5 telescope.  Imaging through the 8-inch telescope is done with a Canon 20Da or Canon 60Da digital camera or the QSI 532 CCD camera. 

The Canon 20Da or Canon 60Da and the QSI 532 can also be used with a Takahashi Epsilon 180 Astrograph which is sometimes mounted on the original 24-inch f/5 telescope.  

At the present time all imaging is done remotely using a PlaneWave CDK24 24-inch f/6.5 telescope and FLI Proline 9000 CCD, an ASA 20-inch f/3.5 astrograph and FLI Proline 9000 CCD, or a Takahasi Epsilon 180 f/2.8 telescope with a Canon EOS Ra camera. See our Operations for more details.

Almost all of the images on this website are displayed with the north to the top and east to the left, standard astronomical orientation. This is to provide consistency in image display and orientation from object to object and from year to year.

tbh revised Tuesday May 21, 2019; revised Tuesday November 24, 2020

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| NGC: 1 - 1000 | NGC: 1001 - 2000 | NGC: 2001 - 3000 |