1st October 2011

ngc6781 in Aquila
A great deal smaller and dimmer than M27!
7x10 minutes taken through hazy clouds



  M101 supernova magnitude 11.055

I have managed to get readings for seven nights in a row.
Most unusual weather conditions!
















12th October

A brief gap in the clouds so I tried a quick shot of M101. Unfortunately the warm temperature
today with rain in the afternoon has caused condensation somewhere in the equipment!
However, I could still get a magnitude reading for the supernova (arrowed) from this image.



The appearance of Vega when the dreaded condensation strikes...



How Vega should look...


  Magnitude 11.793

As the brightness declines, my values are drifting below the AAVSO readings which use a V filter.











  15 October

Very bright Moon.
Supernova magnitude 11.969













18th October

  The M51 supernova is now getting quite dim.

My previous magnitude estimates were very different from the AAVSO values, so I refined my technique.

I altered the aperture, gap width and annulus width so as to more neatly target the stars. Previously I had left them at the default settings.

The result is impressive and my points now follow the general consensus.





  I used the same refinement on the M101 supernova images but do not get such good agreement.

As the brightbness decreases there seems to be more of a departure from the AAVSO values.












19th October

A break from supernovae. This is the start of work on the Veil Nebula, ngc6960.
7x10 minutes