Add points-budget section to TARGETS.md

The user holds 2,638 iTelescope points. Adds a budgeting section built on the
published standard-plan rate shape (affordable scopes ~$19-54/hr, premium
~$54-118/hr, ranges reflecting moon-phase and plan discounts; exact per-scope
rates live in the login portal planner). Estimates points per finished target
(150-350 narrowband on fast scopes, 300-500 dark-of-moon LRGB galaxies,
200-350 for the T8 Magellanic shot), concluding ~2,600 points covers 8-12
showpiece targets. Stretch tactics: free full-moon weeks for clusters, the
daily free 30 minutes for framing tests, and booking narrowband at bright
moon when rates bottom out.
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Laurence 2026-07-18 21:28:32 +01:00
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@ -115,6 +115,36 @@ so aim within a few hours of culmination; T70 in Chile can go to the horizon.
4. **Book ahead for October-November:** T8 for the LMC (or SMC + 47 Tuc in one
frame): the single most "you cannot do this from the UK" image on the network.
## Budgeting a points balance
Published rate shape (from itelescope.net/standard-plans, 2026-07): affordable
scopes roughly $19-54 per imaging hour, premium scopes roughly $54-118 per hour,
where the range is the moon-phase discount (dark of moon at the top of the range,
bright moon at the bottom) and the plan discount (10% on Plan-40, 20% on Plan-90).
Exact per-scope, per-night rates are shown in the login portal's planner; treat the
numbers below as planning estimates, not quotes.
What a ~2,600 point balance buys, roughly:
- **A strong narrowband image on a fast scope (T71, T75):** 2-3 hours of exposure
is plenty at f/2.8-f/3.8; booked around gibbous moon the rate is at the low end,
so call it 150-350 points per finished target.
- **An LRGB galaxy on T73 or T17:** wants dark-of-moon time at premium-scope rates;
3-4 hours, roughly 300-500 points per target.
- **The T8 Magellanic Cloud shot:** 2-3 hours LRGB at a mid-range rate, roughly
200-350 points.
So ~2,600 points is comfortably 8-12 finished showpiece targets, or a full year of
the seasonal calendar above at one or two targets a month. Stretch it further with:
- **Full moon weeks are free** on the standard plans: use them for bright globulars
and clusters (47 Tuc, NGC 3532, IC 2602) where moonlight matters least, and keep
paid time for faint stuff.
- **The daily free 30 minutes** (T33 south, T68 north) for framing tests and short
targets, never spend points discovering a framing mistake.
- **Moon-phase arbitrage:** book narrowband (Carina, Ara, Cat's Paw) at bright moon
when rates bottom out; the 3 nm filters do not care about moonlight.
## Cost-shape notes
- Fast scopes (T71 f/2.8, T75 f/3.8, T70 f/3.5) reach depth in the least imaging