Back in August I posted about making my first batch of beer in some time as a celebration of getting the observatory into a usable state. After a little time to condition, here it is:
First impressions? It’s quite drinkable. Not quite as good as I was hoping, but I think I need a little practice to get back into the swing of things. I look forward to the next few brews, and getting through this one certainly won’t present a problem.
Over the last few weeks I’ve been out harvesting the bounty of the local hedgerows, in particular the blackberries which grow almost everywhere around us. I’ve picked pounds and pounds (or even kilos and kilos if you want to be a bit more modern) of these.
Many will probably be made into blackberry jelly, but for now I satisfy myself with the fantastic smell of the ripe fruit.
I’ve also picked a nice crop of crab apples. These will definitely be turned into crab apple jelly, to be served with roast dinners throughout the winter.
As we get later into Autumn it is becoming obvious that dew control is going to become necessary for my telescopes. To do that for all my OTAs would be quite expensive, so I looked around and found Robert Brown’s open source “myDewControllerPro” project that looks as though it might be quite a practical solution.
I ordered some PCBs which have arrived. Now I need to wait for parts to arrive and I can start soldering.
I first imaged M27 quite some years back and it has always been a favourite, so it being the summertime this planetary nebula was an obvious choice for an early target. This time I used the Skywatcher ED80 and Atik 314L+. In fact I’ve had a few bites of this particular cherry this year, but this is my first: a total of twelve hours LRGB using ten minute subs.
As soon as I get it organised I’ll put a larger version in a new “DSO images” option on the main menu.
Since I captured this image I’ve collected a lot more data including Ha, OIII and SII as 15 minute subs. I’ll post that when I’ve processed it.
Work on the observatory has slowed somewhat as I need to catch up on other domestic jobs, but from the images I’ve already posted it’s obviously being used. I’m not sure I have the arrangement of mounts and telescopes that I really want at the moment, but for now here’s an “action shot”.
I’ve not posted about swimming (nor indeed anything else it seems) for a couple of months. This is not because I haven’t been swimming. However, on her return to school after the summer holidays my daughter managed to catch a horrible cold virus within a couple of days which she then very kindly shared with me. I’ve been struggling to get rid of it for a couple of months now and I’m still not really done. Day-to-day things are fine, but if I get into a swimming pool and try to push myself I’m struggling for breath. I suspect that in fact I might have caught several different cold viruses in rapid succession. Things are getting better, but even two days ago I went to the pool and felt as though my body couldn’t actually remember how to swim properly 🙁
Regardless, I’ve been doing the best I can, trying to keep fitness levels somewhere up where I’d like them whilst working on technique. I’ve also shortened my usual set of 50m reps and added a set of 25m reps at a faster pace afterwards.
I’ll start posting updates on all this next week.
Last session of the week and I really wasn’t feeling very energetic. It was all a bit of a struggle today. Despite three fails I did better than yesterday however, my first failure coming on rep ten. Another low 38 “fast fifty”, too. This 38 second barrier is proving a tough one to break.
USRPT distance this year: 182,100m
Total distance this year: 232,100m
So, a new set for today:
A tough start, though. For some reason I was feeling tired (too many late nights out in the observatory, probably) and couldn’t get into it. Three fails, with the first on rep eight. I couldn’t improve on my “fast fifty” time either, though I was still in the low 38s.
USRPT distance this year: 180,300m
Total distance this year: 230,300m
Same set again today, and I was pleased to be able to complete the full set with a target of 49s once again. In fact I think all but one of the reps were lower than 48 seconds.
Sadly I couldn’t improve on my “fast fifty” time, though I was still in the low 38s.
USRPT distance this year: 178,500m
Total distance this year: 228,500m
Another attempt at my USRPT set with a target time of 49s today.
Like last time I had two fails, but this time on reps ten and sixteen. It wasn’t all bad news though. My “fast fifty” time at the end of the main set has now gone down to 38.07 seconds. So close to getting into the 37s! Hopefully that will come soon.
USRPT distance this year: 176,700m
Total distance this year: 226,700m
