Astrophotography

At the end of 2009, Nikon managed to secure a nice little order from NASA for a bunch of D3S digital cameras and seven of its AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED lenses. These were destined to be whisked off into space for photographic documentation. Now, humble earthlings are being given the chance to have a look at some of the rather spectacular images taken by astronauts on the International Space Station. To date, NASA has captured more than 700,000 images with its own Nikon equipment, showing off the D3S’ noise suppression features and how well it’s able to cope with the low-light conditions of space. Read More

The Santa Barbara Instrument Group (SBIG) is adding two new models to its line of specialized, high-resolution CCD cameras for astrophotography and spectography. The ST-8300M and ST-8300C both feature an 8.3 megapixel CCD, thermoelectric cooling, and a USB 2.0 interface. The camera bodies accept both standard c-mount and Nikon lenses making them suitable for a variety of applications. SBIG claims the cameras’ antiblooming and microlens technology improves their sensitivity. Both cameras can also be used as autoguiders to control motorized telescope mounts. Read More

SBIG, also known as the Santa Barbara Instrument Group, has announced its latest horizon-to-horizon view cameras, the AllSky-340 and AllSky-340C. The AllSky cameras are designed for extended, unattended sky watching such as monitoring the weather, detecting meteors, or keeping an eye out for ETs. The cameras feature a self-contained all-weather housing, heated dome enclosure, an optional Bluetooth interface, and optional solar power. Read More

June 5, 2007 The US$400 Meade mySKY is a remarkable mash up of technologies that creates a very cool educational toy and the first of a new breed of augmented reality informational products. It is NOT a telescope! mySKY is an interactive, hand-held, point-and-identify multimedia guide to the heavens. It locates, identifies, and describes 30,000 celestial objects in the night sky – every object visible to your unaided eye, as well as many you’ll need a separate telescope to see. If you like this new “browse function for the heavens” ability, it has the added ability to control a Meade computerized telescope. No knowledge is needed - just turn it on and mySKY does the rest. It incorporates full GPS Auto Alignment using a 12-channel GPS receiver which aligns itself on the sky without any input from you. Read More