![nebula](http://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7nFm97lO__8/UOZMrErXbkI/AAAAAAAA9o8/a55FOlt9k-c/s600/8343713162_bc5f6d88c5_z.jpg)
One of the great benefits flowing from the $30 annual membership fee of the Canberra Astronomical Society is that you also get free use of the society’s 350mm (14″) telescope up on top of Mount Stromlo. A scope worth more than $10,000, with some gorgeous Nagler eyepieces, in an observatory with a roll-off roof. For $30? The only negative about this bargain is the chronic Canberra light pollution…
You can also attach a DSLR camera to the telescope to do your own beginner-level astrophotography.
![stars](http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QIHLD8CqpDc/UOZNVy2OEnI/AAAAAAAA9pE/dWnKpk-Lgrc/s600/8342643539_b93bccddab_z.jpg)
And that’s just what I did last night. Here are a few of the better shots, with minimal and rushed processing this morning before heading off to work. Hopefully I’ll be able to get a reasonable shot of Juptier out of the collection too.
![stars](http://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-DbE7hTnOlhk/UOZNxps5ROI/AAAAAAAA9pM/zhEIpVoGHBI/s600/8342635469_4aeed0cb26_z.jpg)
The Moon came up after midnight, giving me a chance to get some nice sharp close-ups straight off the camera. I hope to stack a few and mosaic them over the weekend…
![moon](htts://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-xvCjeMRsS-0/UOZOCUgC63I/AAAAAAAA9pU/j3MR6j003Tk/s600/8343685326_f45c2d01ab_z.jpg)
There are more details of the items featured and how to find them over on my blog.
[Photos: Great Orion Nebula, 47 Tucanae globular cluster, Tarantula Nebula, Moon]