Date/Time: Feb 27, 2009 1:10am-2:55am CST
Location: La Ensenada Lodge, Gulf of Nicoya, Costa Rica


(L to R)Southern Cross and Coalsack dark nebula, IC2944/8 nebula, Stock 13 cluster, the Eta Carina nebula, and the Southern Pleiades cluster (IC2602).

Details: Hutech-modified Canon XTi dSLR, Canon EF 70-200mm L zoom lens operating at 70mm, ISO 1600, 31 raw exposures at 2 minutes each, f/5. Astrotrac tracking mount on a Manfrotto tripod. 27°C, 70% humidity, no dew, some clouds.

Image processing: ImagesPlus 3.5 – raw digital development, dark frames, auto alignment, average combine, moderate contrast stretch. ACDSee Pro 2 – cropped & size reduced, converted to 24 bit jpg.