Ideas for dealing with Cosmic Rays?

Folks, having been out for the last few nights imaging like mad (its either famine or feast), on review of my images, it seems that I've been getting rather a lot of of cosmic ray hits.

I'm not sure if its to do with the increase in solar activity but its a bit of a pain.

Anyone have a particular strategy to deal with them other than medium combine or simply not use particularly badly affected images?

Is there any way to reduce or even prevent them in the first place? (thinks of tin foil :blush: )

Cheers
Dave

Dave,

I am almost certain they cannot be prevented since they are very high energy events.

The best way to deal with them is via a sigma-clip but this assumes you have a reasonable number of subs to process for the sigma-clip to be possible and effective.

If you are doing your usual sky searches and astrometry, I suspect you will not have the necessary sample for a sigma-clip and which leads us back to your median combine.

Anthony.

Ahh, but what about Kryptonite?

Indeed - with the science stuff, there's really no such thing as a sub - its all data That said, I've been imaging a coupleof galaxies for fun so I'll give sigma-clip a go.

Cheers and thanks for the advice Anthony

Dave

A good thick sheet of lead in the imaging train should do the trick.
Give Don Goldman a call and see if he has them in 50mm square pieces.

I already posted the question on the Custom Scientific website as I'd rather stick with the one vendor and I actually use 50mm round filters. No reply yet to their availibilty nor have Finger Lakes responded to my question regarding whether or not the filter wheel will take the weight.

Alternatively, I've a couple of really nice Gold Sovereign Rings I no longer wear - perhaps I can hammer those out to a thin gold 50mm foil?

http://www.superstock.com/stock-photos-images/4062-1333

Cheers
Dave

dmcdona wrote: I've a couple of really nice Gold Sovereign Rings I no longer wear

Classy guy...