 |
||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
While Scott Hammonds’ career as an airline pilot often has him working at night and during many new moon evenings, the naked-eye view from 35,000 feet often makes up for not being at his telescope. This is Scott’s story…
“My interest in Astronomy started at an early age, but it wasn't until 1999 that I became active in the hobby. When I was six years old, my family moved to the small town of Titusville, Florida. This town sits directly across the Indian River from Kennedy Space Center. It was there that a life long interest in space and space exploration began. A number of my friends' fathers were engineers on the Apollo program and it was through one of them that I got my first look through a telescope, a small refractor. I can still remember gazing into the little scope at a fuzzy object whose name now escapes me. It’s amazing how I can remember the detail of that night, but can’t remember what I had for dinner last week. That night had an impact on me. But since then, many years passed in pursuit of career goals which put off my being active in astronomy until six years ago. I did get a chance to work on a project during my senior year at college associated with the International Space Station. That's about the last time I really used my degree in Mechanical Engineering . I spent the next 8 years flying various airplanes in the US Navy. I had been threatening to buy a telescope for a number of years when my wife bought me the Meade ETX-90. I think she now questions the wisdom of her purchase; she calls my hobby an obsession, the other woman, or even a sickness when I’m out freezing my fingers off. “Currently, I own two telescopes, a 10-inch LX200 SCT, OTA only, and a Tele Vue NP-101 apochromatic refractor. I use the refractor most of the time now for observing and astrophotography. I custom made an oak tripod to use with the NP-101 and I’m very pleased with the solid steady platform. While the oak tripod is great for quick setup my recent acquisition of an Astro-Physics AP1200GTO German equatorial mount provides a great platform for astrophotography. Eventually I hope to set it up in an observatory. “I enjoy observing with a scope or even binoculars. While flying all-nighters back from the West Coast I will search for naked eye objects at 35,000 feet and higher. This has really helped in developing my recognition of the constellations. The skies are so crisp and clear at that altitude it makes my light polluted yard almost depressing. I’m currently working through several of the Astronomical League observing clubs, but weather, time, and my schedule make it difficult complete an observing program in a timely manner. “Astrophotography has also become a very serious part of this hobby. I really enjoy the challenge of long exposure imaging. It is very satisfying to get even mediocre results, which is what I seem to get most of the time. I have discovered that post processing is at least 50 percent of astrophotography and is truly an art form all by itself. Having knowledge of Adobe Photoshop or other premier image editing tools is essential. Many people on the Astrophotography Mailing List (APML) have been extraordinarily helpful for film-based astrophotography, Bobby Middleton, Matt BenDaniel, Jerry Lodriguss, Jim Janusz, John Mirtle and Tony Hallas just to name a few. “Speaking of failures, I’ve had a few regarding astrophotography. Forgetting to remove the lens cap on an hour-long exposure, camera battery dying during an exposure, tripping over the power cord in the dark and unplugging the scope, should I go on? For one exposure, I was experimenting with a 300mm zoom lens. During the 30 minute exposure the lens slid backward while imaging at the zenith creating the effect that resembled a jump to light speed in a Star Wars movie. Not what I was after! “The best films I’ve used to date are Kodak E200 slide film and Kodak Royal Gold 200 Select; E200 yields outstanding results right out of the box and is the preferred film among many of the best astrophotographers. For color negative film, Royal Gold 200 and 400, and Supra 400 are among the best I have used. Recently I have begun to use Kodak Technical Pan 2415 black and white film. Its sad, but all of the best negative films for astrophotography have been discontinued over the last couple of years including Kodak Technical Pan film. This seems to be a continuing trend due to the popularity of digital cameras. Eventually I will make a move to CCD imaging. Recently I have used a Canon Digital Rebel and have achieved satisfying results “After spending the first three years of my newfound activity in astronomy mostly on my own I joined a local club, the Flint River Astronomy Club in Griffin, Georgia. Although I haven’t been able to attend many meetings due to the capricious nature of my work schedule, it has been helpful getting to know others who share the same interest in Astronomy. My wife, Alisa, will observe with me occasionally, but it must be above 60 degrees with no real threat of bugs before she’ll venture out. She would much rather be watching any sporting event live or on TV. She enjoys the moon and planets; of course, Saturn is her favorite. She has been very patient with my ever-increasing investment in this hobby and I appreciate her support and encouragement. “I have thoroughly enjoyed sharing my newfound passion with friends and family. Watching someone observe Saturn’s rings or Jupiter’s cloud belts and moons for the first time is, as the MasterCard commercial says, ‘priceless’. Recently I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days with my sister and parents for the first time in 20 years. We spent a couple of hours by the pool while I pointed out celestial binocular targets to my family. They were amazed at what could be seen, not to mention dazzled by my ‘deep’ knowledge of astronomy. I will never forget that evening spent with my family under the stars. Times like that are very special and to few!” Scott Hammonds A revised version of this article appeared in Amateur Astronomy issue #38 Summer 2003 |
