Astrophotography by David Gares

Jupiter

Home
Solar System
Planets
Open Clusters
Globular Clusters
Nebulae
Galaxies
Double Stars
Image Index
Weather
Observing Tools
Imaging Tips
My Equipment
Links

jupiterc925fcrop.jpg

jupiterwcam.jpg

jupiterccd.jpg

 Jupiter

Jupiter, the 5th planet in our Solar System, is the largest and easiest to photograph.  It spins on its axis very quickly, so exposure stacks must be limited to about 5 minutes or so.  The Great Red Spot appears in my upper and lower images as a reddish splotch near the limb on the right.  The spot has faded significantly in the past few decades.  The South Equatorial Belt has disappeared in recent years, making the Great Red Spot easier to see (top image).  Jupiter's moon Io is also visible in the lower image, slightly smeared due to its travel during the image capture.  North is up in the views above.

 Planet Details:  
 
 Type:  Gas Giant Planet
 Diameter:  89,000 miles
 Orbit Radius: 483 million miles
 Mass:  318 x Earth

 Image Details - Upper: 
   
 Date: Nov. 27, 2010
 Time: 7:57 p.m. CST
 Site: Harahan, LA
 Conditions: Fair Seeing
 Telescope: Celestron C9.25" XLT / G-11

 Projection: Scopetronix MaxPower (f/16.0)
 Camera: Philips ToUcam Pro II
 Filter: Astronomik IR Blocking

 Capture Speed: 30 fps

 Frames: Approx. 5000 of 6000
 Processing: RegiStax V4.0
 Dubbing: VirtualDub 1.5.10
 Image Capture: Philips VRecord

Image Details - Center: 
   
 Date: May 21, 2005
 Time: 9:38 p.m. CDT
 Site: Harahan, LA
 Conditions: Poor/Fair Seeing, Haze
 Telescope: 10" f/10 Meade LX200

 Projection: TeleVue 2.5x (f/25.8)
 Camera: Philips ToUcam Pro II
 Filter: Astronomik IR Blocking

 Capture Speed: 20 fps

 Frames: 624 of 6000
 Processing: RegiStax 2, AstroArt 3.0
 Dubbing: VirtualDub 1.5.10
 Image Capture: Philips VRecord

Image Details- Lower:
  
 Date:  Mar. 20, 2004
 Time:  12:41 a.m. CST
 Site:  Harahan, LA
 Exposure:  100 x 0.2 sec
 Processing:  MSB Astroart 3.0
 Telescope:  10" Meade LX200
 Projection:  f/44 (resized)
 CCD:  Starlight Express MX7C