The year 2013 has brought us some wonderful astronomical events. Lunar eclipses, meteor showers, a few comets and asteroids...it's been a pretty good year. I suspect 2014 will be no different. In a later post, I will share with you a list of major events you can look forward to in the upcoming year. A lot of astro-happenings means a lot of Youtube videos...and this year I've posted more videos than I ever have before! My goal was to reach 100 videos by the end of 2013, and I'm happy to say I've reached that goal. I want to thank all of my subscribers and casual viewers for taking the time to watch them. Over the past few months I have seen a large increase in the amount of subscribers I've gotten on my channel. Thank you! It's because of you that I continue to make these videos, and it's because of you that I will continue to do so and hopefully hit the 200 mark sometime next year. So stay tuned to the channel. I've got a lot planned for 2014. Astronomical observing videos, equipment reviews and how-to tutorials are all planned for the line up.
A new year also means a bit of a funding boost for the hardware side of the operation. Some time in February I'm going to be getting some new equipment for my main telescope, hopefully enabling me to use it quite a bit more and adding increased functionality to it. A new guiding set-up, a focal reducer and a Hyperstar system are all in the works. I also have an equatorial wedge that I obtained earlier in the year, which is long overdue for a review. So expect to see some new videos on my Youtube channel shortly that will discuss these items in depth and how they are used.
This year I am also going to be doing something I've always wanted to do in the past. I'm going to be observing and imaging all 110 Messier objects! That's right, I'm starting Project M-110. The goal is to have this project completed by Christmas 2014. To give myself a better chance of finishing on time I've already started by getting two objects knocked out: M1 the Crab Nebula and M45 the Pleiades cluster. Additionally, each object will get it's own Youtube video that will explain what type of object it is, when it was discovered and some basic information about the object along with my image of it. It is certainly an obtainable goal to have all 110 objects finished by Dec. 25th 2014, but to make it on time I will have to image on average 9-10 objects per month. Stay tuned for updates and videos regarding the M-110 project.
I wish all of you a Happy New Year! Please enjoy yourselves but remember to be safe. I look forward to bringing you more astronomy related content in 2014 and enjoying the wonders of the cosmos together.
M1 the Crab Nebula:
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