A session in adverse weather conditions. Most of the data was trashed by clouds and/or skyglow. Again, not enough hours of proper darkness for more than one target. Click the pic to see a larger version...
M71 (aka NGC 6838), a loosely-concentrated globular cluster in the constellation Sagitta.
Subs: 12 light @ 300s, darks and bias frames, ISO400.
1000D on the 6" R-C, guided with PHD.
I had a major panic this morning when I tried to boot up the laptop - all it would do was throw out a series of loud alarm sounds, briefly show the words "fan error" with no other info, and then shut down with a final loud beep. Tried to boot it seven times without success.
On the last three attempts I'd noted that there wasn't any sound from the fan like there usually is. The fan diagnostics are obviously on the laptop, without the ability to boot I couldn't access them so I had to use a bit of brain power instead. My limited diagnostics experience told me that the problem was probably one of the following:
Fearing the worst and an impending bill for a replacement fan, I set off around the house on a rant just to let off some steam, scattering cats everywhere and almost tripping over the Dyson. It's part of my problem-solving process, you see. Lateral motion prior to lateral thinking, if you like.
I knew that the problem wouldn't be dust and fluff - I keep the innards of the fan scrupulously clean after having had a processor fry-up on a previous laptop due to a clogged-up fan assembly. When I blew into this fan's inlet grille I couldn't make the fan rotate so I figured that the motor/rotor was stuck but I had no idea how to free it. There's no way of poking it to get it moving, it's well-protected.
When I'd calmed down I got sidetracked, thoughts drifting off to the next kit review and how I'd deal with it without the laptop... this led to me thinking about the "beer-chiller" that Mike will be reviewing... I remembered that the last time I plugged one of those into my car without the engine running it flattened the battery within 5 minutes, which meant that I had to bump-start the car...
Then a radical idea popped into my head: "Can I bump-start the laptop? Maybe if the system "thinks" that the fan is running, it'll boot and let me get to the diagnostics".
Well, they say that necessity is the mother of invention. I raced back upstairs and grabbed the Dyson. With the crevice-tool attached it was set loose on full whack next to the fan outlet grille while I booted the laptop again... and, in a fine example of how British invention and ingenuity triumphs over Far-Eastern technology, it worked!
The fan diagnostics report no problems, so all looks to be well. Booting is faultless. Looks like the fan was inexplicably stuck but it's running fine now.
This item has been supplied by Adam Smith, representing Go Outdoors.
The sleeping bag being reviewed is the Lifeventure Downlight 900, the Go Outdoors link is here and the Lifeventure link is here.
The first thing to report is what this item's like straight out of the packaging... it's different. There's no traditional strappy compression sack, instead there's a drybag with a roll-top closure and an air-valve air-vent and stopper. The bag has welded seams and the fabric appears to be quite durable with a woven outer face and a coated inner face. Once filled, the drybag is as airtight as any other roll-top drybag - I sat on it and it didn't squeak or leak. I'm not ready to do an immersion-test on it just yet though. When I removed the stopper it was easy to expel the excess air and the contents compressed well to form a shape that would easily slip into a pack, or into a larger mesh pocket on the outside of a pack. When stuffed with clothing the drybag makes a useful pillow which fits neatly in or under the hood of the sleeping bag.
After taking out the sleeping bag and giving it a shake and a rest to allow the fill to loft, I stuck it on the lawn and took a few pics. My observations from this, and a few other notes, are listed below.
For the full spec I'd advise going to the Lifeventure site, but here are some of my observations:
All things considered, this looks like a nice bit of gear and I hope it performs as well as it looks. I was tempted to set up a tent in the garden so I can give this kit a night out, but I've been told that I'm too busy this weekend. Next week, maybe?
UPDATE (7th June, 2011):
I knew that there was something bugging me about what I'd claimed to be an air-valve on the drybag. Eventually the penny dropped and I realised that it's not a valve at all - there's no diaphragm in there. What I looked at and thought was a diaphragm is actually an internal baffle-plate to prevent the fabric of the bag from being pushed through the hole during compression - think of the cargo-hold window scene at the end of Alien Resurrection and you'll get my drift. Without the stopper in the hole, air can flow in or out depending on the pressure-difference. I'm sorry for any confusion caused by my error.
UPDATE (20th June, 2011):
Incoming information provided by Andy Howard (Product Designer, Lifemarque Limited)...
Please find some spec. details for the Downlight 900 that you are interested in:
Shell fabric: 300T nylon diamond ripstop and 290T nylon 6 corner ripstop
Lining fabric: 300T nylon diamond ripstop
Filling: 80% grey duck down, fill weight: 300g, fill power: 500g/m2
As promised, some pics from Ella's birthday zorbing session at SphereMania's BirminghamNorth site (which is nowhere near North Birmingham).
12 pics, click this one to get started:
We're guessing that Ella enjoyed her pressie
Time for more kit reviews. Adam Smith, formerly of Fitness Footwear, is now batting for Go Outdoors. He's starting a new programme of product reviews and he's asked some of us bloggers to test, compare and contrast some kit.
After much deliberation I chose to review a sleeping bag. I'd narrowed it down to a choice of two - both Lifeventure Downlight bags. My preference was for the Downlight 900 as it ticked all the boxes for what I would use for warmer-weather high-up wildcamping where there's always a risk of adverse conditions, but it was over-budget so I opted for the Downlight 600 instead, figuring that I could supplement the reduced insulation by layering-up if necessary.
After all that, it turned out that the 600 wasn't in stock at the warehouse. I don't know how many strings he pulled, but Adam arranged to send me the 900 instead and despite it being over-budget, he wouldn't accept my offer to pay the excess. Cheers, Adam!
The bag arrived today and it looks like an interesting bit of kit. I'll post an initial review with some pics and data sometime soon.
Ella turns 16 on Sunday, as part of the celebrations we thought we'd wake her up early this morning with this:
Cruel harsh parents, that's us 😈
Expect a few stills in a while.
