These images were taken in May 2004 during a site testing mission in the south of Angola.
The objectives of the mission, in line with the scientific cooperation between France and Angola initiated on the occasion of the 2001 and 2002 solar eclipses, were the commissioning of the telescope offered to Angola by France, the training of its future users and the assessment of the observing conditions at Tchivinguiro.
The site of Tchivinguiro is located in a nice province located in southwest of Angola (S 15° 09' 41" - E 13° 18'12" - 1712 m). It is free from light pollution : during the clearest nights, the stars could be seen rising over the horizon and the zodiacal light was visible up to he zenith.
I used a Takahashi FSQ-106 refractor, a SBIG ST10-XME CCD camera, Nikon macro 60 mm F/2.8 and Nikon 180 mm F/2.8 lens, and various Astronomik interference filters.
The optics were installed on a Losmandy Titan German mount, in parallel with the instruments of Thierry Legault (click here for his web page), a small 55 mm refractor with a ST4 autoguider have also been used (click here for a photograph of the instruments).

 

	Eta Carena region : IC 2944 nebula on lower left, NGC 3532 open cluster left of Eta Carena, NGC 3324 nebula on the right, NGC 3114 open cluster on the far right. North is up Technical details : Micro-Nikkor AF 60 mm F2.8 D at F/5.6 ST-10MXE - CFW8A - Steve Mandel adapter  Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 3 h16 mn (98 x 120 s) 1083 x 728 image (343 ko) 1444 x 971 image (663 ko)
	Eta Carena nebula : NGC 3372 and smaller NGC 3324 North is up Technical details : Nikkor AF 180 mm F2.8 D at F/4 ST-10MXE - CFW8A - Steve Mandel adapter  Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 1 h15 mn (150 x 30 s) 1074 x 707 image (313 ko) 1432 x 943 image (745 ko)
	Eta Carena nebula : North is up Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A  Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Mosaïc of 4 images Exposure : 25 mn for each image (50 x 30 s) 675 x 960 image (268 ko) 1350 x 1919 image (746 ko) 1800 x 2558 image (1154 ko)
	IC 2944 North is up Technical details : Nikkor AF 180 mm F2.8 D at F/4 ST-10MXE - CFW8A - Steve Mandel adapter  Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 1 h40 mn (205 x 30 s) 1074 x 707 image (330 ko) 1392 x 945 image (576 ko)
	NGC 3576 North is up Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A  Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 36 mn (24 x 90 s) 1074 x 707 image (421 ko) 1432 x 943 image (590 ko)
	IC 2944-48 with Thackeray's globules : North is up ESO 129-29 planetary nebula on top left Thackeray's globules are the small black clouds seen in front of the nebula. Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A  Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 90 mn (90 x 60 s) 1074 x 707 image (366 ko) 1432 x 943 image (466 ko)
	NGC 5128 (Centaurus A radio source) : North is up Note some faint background galaxies   Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A  L, R, G, B Astronomik Filter Exposure : L = 40 mn (53 x 45 s) R, G, B = 10 mn (16 x 40 s) with 2 x 2 binning 1080 x 724 image (347 ko) 1440 x 965 image (440 ko)
	NGC 5139 (Omega Centaurus) : North is up Note some background galaxies :  PCG47 340 on the east and PGC 47002-3 on the south   Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A  L, R, G, B Astronomik Filter Exposure : L = 36 mn (144 x 15 s) R, G, B = 8 mn (16 x 30 s) with 2 x 2 binning 1092 x 736 image (354 ko) 1456 x 991 image (460 ko) 2184 x 1472 image (823 ko)
	IC 4628 North is up Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A  Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 110 mn (55 x 120 s) 1074 x 707 image (372 ko) 1432 x 943 image (616 ko)
	NGC 6357 and NGC 6334 in scorpius : North is up  Technical details : Nikon AF 180 mm F.2.8 D at F4 ST-10MXE - CFW8A Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 1 h (60 x 60 s) 1070 x 722 image (343 ko) 1426 x 963 image (483 ko)
	NGC 6357 in scorpius : North is on right Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 1 h06 mn (44 x 90 s) 1070 x 722 image (262 ko) 1426 x 963 image (479 ko)
	NGC 6334 in scorpius : North is up Technical details : FSQ 106 mm F/5 ST-10MXE - CFW8A Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 2 h (30 x 120 s) 1092 x 736 image (262 ko) 1456 x 981 image (593 ko)
	M8 - M20 in Sagitarius: North is up Technical details : Nikkor AF 180 mm F2.8 D at F/4 ST-10MXE - CFW8A Hydrogen Alpha Astronomik Filter - FWHM :12 nm Exposure : 1 h14 mn (148 x 30 s) 1092 x 730 image (314 ko) 1456 x 973 image (573 ko)
	Small Magellanic Cloud : North is up Technical details : Nikkor AF 60 mm F2.8 D at F/5.6 ST-10MXE - CFW8A Exposure : L : 17 mn - binning 1 x 1 R, G, B = 10 m, 10 mn, 15 mn - binning 2 x 2 969 x 665 image (206 ko) 1292 x 887 image (335 ko) 1938 x 1330 image (512 ko)
	Comet Neat C/2001 Q4 13 May 2004 15 x 45 s exposures from 20h53mn UT to 21h07mn North is up Technical details : Nikkor AF 180 mm F2.8 D stopped at F/4 ST-10MXE - CFW8A Astronomik Green filter 1065 x 728 image (238 ko) - 15.6 arcsec / pixel 2130 x 1456 image (700 ko) - 7.8 arcsec / pixel
	Comet Neat C/2001 T4 : 13 May 2004 Same as above except with median processing  to reduce contribution from the stars   1072 x 720 image (286 ko) - 15.6 arcsec / pixel
	Comet Linear C / 2002 T7 : North is up 20 May 2004 20 x 15 s exposures from 17h59mn to 18h07mn UT Technical details : Nikkor AF 180 mm F2.8 D ST-10MXE - CFW8A Astronomik L filter 1089 x 724 image (199 ko) 1444 x 963 image (337 ko)
	Comet Linear C / 2002 T7 : Same as above except with median processing  to reduce contribution from the stars

 
 
 

Many Thanks !!!

The achievement of these images would not have been possible without the support and action of :

•      The University of Luanda, and in particular Jaime Vilinga, Manuel Luis and Joaquim Boavida
•      The Astrophysical Institute of Paris, and in particular Serge Koutchmy
•      The French Embassy in Luanda, and in particular Paul Lechuga and Sara Petitpas
•      The Ministery of Research and Technology of Angola
•      The National Center of Technology, and in particular its director Manuel Lopez
•      The Agronomy School of Tchivinguiro, and in particular its director Eng. Ebo and its computer manager José Fernandes

...and all the people who helped us, in Tchivinguiro and Lubango, and whose kindness and hospitality is unforgettable.

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