Hi from Spain

Introductions Español
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barbulo avatar
barbulo avatar
Hi all,
I´ve been a lurker for some time so I´ve decided to present myself properly.
I´m from Madrid, Spain, and I´ve been seduced by astrophotography for 3 years now. 
I live in an apartment and have no chance to do AP from there, so I go out from time to time to tinker with the gear. 
I consider this forum very useful because I get ideas of how to tackle new targets. Also the technical threads are really interesting.
Looking forward to keep on learning! 

Clerar skies to all!

JR.
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Stuart Taylor avatar
Stuart Taylor avatar
¡Bienvenido!

I would think the skies are challenging in Madrid even if you were in a house with a yard. What equipment do you use?
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barbulo avatar
barbulo avatar
Sorry, I'm used to SGL's signature where everybody can see your equipment list.

SW 130PDS - Samyang 135mm - EQ6-R Pro - iOptron Skyguider Pro - ASI294MM - Canon 600D (astro-mod) - ASI224MC

Currently using the Skyguider Pro with the SY135 + 294 + EFW + EAF + guidescope + 224. A bit overwheighted but performs reasonably well when the PA is good enought (rarely due to the rig's instability). I was used to the GOTO capability of the EQ6-R and manual aiming such a weak configuration is a pain in the ***

Since my OCD forces me to peep the corners until the very last pixel in the edges, I'm permanently trying to kill the tilt on the optical path. Perhaps it's cheaper to treat my OCD than to buy new gear.

Regarding AP sites, last year we bought a cottage in the rural northwest coast of Spain (around bortle 3). The weather is British-like though smile
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Chase Newtson avatar
Chase Newtson avatar
Hello and welcome from Minnesota, US!

Hope to see some of your images on here soon!

I would also be curious to hear about your gear, and any travel locations outside of Madrid you travel to for some AP!
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barbulo avatar
barbulo avatar
Chase Newtson:
Hello and welcome from Minnesota, US!


Good friend of mine is from Minesota. Remarkable dark skies if far enought from Minneapolis and Aurora Borealis in the north, right?
Chase Newtson avatar
Chase Newtson avatar
Chase Newtson:
Hello and welcome from Minnesota, US!


Good friend of mine is from Minesota. Remarkable dark skies if far enought from Minneapolis and Aurora Borealis in the north, right?

Absolutely!  I have a bortle 3 location I go to a lot, about 90 minute drive north from where I live (NW suburb of Minneapolis).  I also go camping in the warmer months, and plenty of bortle 4 locations within a 2 hour drive.  My cabin 45 minutes away is bortle 5.  So it's not all bad!

Now, our pride and joy in the astro community (my opinion XD), the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in the north of Minnesota, an absolutely beautiful bortle 1 area.  Except the few lakes around Ely (they're bortle 2), all the lakes are miles away from cities and have 0 light pollution except from your own headlamp!

We also do get auroras pretty often if north enough, but I have seen them on a very rare occasion out west of Minneapolis at my relative latitude.
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