Jove!

It was a hot, clear day in Beaverton, Oregon and the evening was very comfortable for some astronomy. I cleared off the back porch (no tripping tonight!) and got the tripod set up with the brace solidly in place. I should get a safety badge now (purple heart?). I get my stitches out Monday... still suffering a little soreness, swelling and discoloration right now.

About 11:30pm I got the telescope and camera hooked up to observe and photograph Jupiter. The sky became pretty hazy, but as bright as Jupiter is, I could still see it. One of the many photos is shown below and at least three moons are present (not sure about two of the objects that are off the equator). It was very difficult to see any features in the atmosphere, probably because of the haze. I was also photographing in-between gusts of wind, so there could have been some motion.

I'm looking forward to getting some shots in the (hopefully) clear skies of Eastern Oregon next week. It will be very interesting to see if the cloud bands become visible.

Also posted is a picture of Mizar (double star, second in the handle of the big dipper). It is the lower right pair in the image.