This is my first test image of Jupiter using a Vixen R114 telescope on a tracking mount. I used a stack of two 2x Barlows to magnify the image. This is a stack of 2000 frames imaged with an ASI 533 camera and a UV-IR filter.
Jupiter, 2000 frames stacked
For a complete list of astrophoto images, click here.
The best time to image and observe Jupiter (and Saturn or any other outer planet) is during opposition, when the planet, as viewed from Earth, is opposite the Sun (as the Sun sets in the west, the planet rises in the east), hence, the term opposition. Two conditions favorable to imaging happen during opposition: (1) Jupiter and Earth will be at their closest point in their orbits around the Sun, thus, making the planet appear largest when observed from Earth, and (2) Since the Sun is opposite Jupiter as viewed from the Earth, the planet is well-illuminated, thus, faster exposures can be taken resulting to sharper images. The Jupiter photo below was taken on August 7, two weeks before the 2021 opposition.
Jupiter imaged during the August 2021 opposition with a 4 inch f/9 refractor, 4x Barlow, and an ASI 533 camera. One of its large moon, Io, the cloud bands, and the Great Red Spot, are visible in this photo. Image processing done in SIRIL.
August is particularly rainy (and stormy) in the Philippines, and we seldom get treated with clear skies at this month.
For a complete list of astrophoto images, click here.