2005 YU55 from HUT Observatory
by John Briggs
Hi Folks!
Here is a time-lapse video loop using 80 frames of the many I recorded last night. It was harder to make than I expected, because I was unable convert the FITS files into JPEGs, which is necessary before I can run the images through Windows MovieMaker. The result looked pretty good on my high-definition monitor here, forgiving the background noise resulting from my short, 3-second exposures. With experience, I'm sure I'll find there's an easier way to do it.
And to my horror, the resulting clip proved to be 80 megabytes, so I had to compress it way down to make it work as an email attachment. There is an edge-on galaxy that drifts by on the right-hand side. The images are fully flat-fielded and reduced with 51 darks, 51 flats, and 51 bias frames using CCDSoft. The uncompressed version will be handy at the local astronomy club meeting tomorrow night. --John.
