The difference in Jupiter's bands between 2016 and 2020 blew my mind

I was going through my old astrophotography folder last night and found a shot of Jupiter I took in 2016 with my Celestron 8 and a cheap webcam. The bands looked so fuzzy and washed out, like there was barely any detail. Then I pulled up a stack I did in 2020 after I finally figured out how to use AutoStakkert properly and the difference is crazy. The equatorial bands went from this muddy brown to sharp, defined stripes with little swirls and knots in them. I think the 2020 shot was closer to opposition too, so Jupiter was bigger in the frame, but the processing made the biggest difference. Have you guys ever gone back and compared your old planetary shots to newer ones? How much of an improvement did you see?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_linda26d ago

God, don't remind me. I dug up a Jupiter from 2014 I did with a crappy DSLR and a barlow that was basically a magnifying glass. Looked like a fuzzy orange marble. Now I'm using a proper planetary camera and the difference is just embarrassing, like I was taking pictures with a potato before. Processing is the real cheat code, I still look at my old stacks and wonder what I was even doing.

wesleyb2026d ago

@the_linda for real though, it's weird how everything gets better if you just look back a few years.

riley_wood8426d ago

Man that 2014 potato comparison hits home, @wesleyb20 I've got a folder full of those same fuzzy orange marbles. I started with a $30 webcam and a barlow that was basically a magnifying glass from a kids science kit. Processing really is the cheat code, makes you wonder how we ever thought those old shots looked good.