Combination of 90, 0.05 second images, using red, green and blue filters.
SBIG ST-8XE CCD. 20" f/6.8 Dall-Kirkham cassegrain with a 2x barlow lens.
During the month of June, 2011, Saturn made a close approach the the bright star Porrima. It made an interesting sight to watch the planet approach the star to less than 1/2 degree, stop, and then start to move away again. On June 16, the two objects were close enough to fit into the field of the 20" telescope when using the STL-1001E CCD.
The bright star below Saturn is Porrima. Camparing the image above with the one below taken 6 days later, the motion of Saturn is evident.
Between May and July, Saturn and Porrima were in the same field of view of my wide-field 5" refractor. As a result I was able to take a series of images and compile them into an animation showing Saturn approaching Porrima and then retreating away. This animation is shown below. As well as the motion of Saturn, the brightest moon, Titan, is also visible circling around Saturn.
Saturn motion towards and away from Porrima. May 12, 2011 - July 25, 2011.
Each image a combination of 5, 50 second images. Modified Canon Digital Rebel DSLR camera.
5" f/5 refractor at prime focus.