View allAll Photos Tagged deepspace
Distance: ca.30 Mio. Lj
Equipment:
TS 10" f/4 ONTC Newton
1000mm f4
ZWO ASI 1600mmc
Astrodon LRGB
Skywatcher EQ8
Guding:
Lodestar on TS Optics - ultra short 9mm Off Axis Guider
PHD2
total exposure time: 8 hours
121x180 luminanz
19x180 red
11x180 green
12x180 blue
14/22/23.03.2020
Processing: PixInsight/Capture One
The beautiful Rosette Nebula.
Emission nebula lit by bright ultraviolet light from stars at the center. NGC 2237.
fine detail present.
Captured 12/2020
Telescope
ASA 500N, F-3.8
CAMERA FLI PL16803
50 cm Newtonian telescope
Chile
Telescope Live
2 hours total exposure, SHO false color.
Pixinsight and photoshop, Topaz sharpen ai.
Nebula is 100 ly wide, and located at a distance of 5000 ly.
------------------------------------------------------
• Sky-Watcher Quattro 250P
• Sky-Watcher EQ8-R Pro
• ZWO ASI294MM-Pro
• Astronomik L: 27x300s bin1 gain 0
• Astronomik RGB: 30x300s bin2 gain 125
• ZWO Hα 7nm: 41x600s bin1 gain 200
• ZWO Hα 7nm: 13x300s bin1 gain 200
• ZWO OIII 7nm: 4x600s bin2 gain 200
• ZWO OIII 7nm: 36x300s bin2 gain 200
(total integration 16.3h)
• ZWO OAG & ASI290Mini guide cam
• TS GPU coma corrector
• ZWO EFW, ZWO EAF & Pegasus Astro Ultimate Powerbox 2
Trevinca, Valding, Spain
Bortle 3, SQM 21.8
processed with Pixinsight
Equipment:
Epsilon 130ED dual rig
QHY268m + CFW3M
Touptek IMX571 + ZWO EFW
Astronomik MaxFR
Skywatcher EQ8
September 2022
Processing: PixInsight/affinity photo
63x90s red
62x90s green
64x90s blue
537x180s Ha
382x180s OIII
171x180 SII
total 59,2 hours
Prospetticamente attorno ad una delle più luminose stelle del cielo, la stella multipla e variabile Gamma Cassiopeiae (γ Cas), chiamata Tsih o Navi, si trova la regione di H II (idrogeno ionizzato) conosciuta con la sigla Sh2-185, e al cui interno spiccano due nebulose catalogate con le sigle IC59 e IC63.
Pensavo che riuscire a fotografare questa regione fosse una cosa più semplice invece devo ammettere che la nebulosità più debole di Sh2-185 è veramente molto evanescente e la presenza di gradienti causati da Inquinamento luminoso ha complicato le cose; quindi sono stato costretto mio malgrado ad utilizzare con decisione i tool di denoise per ridurre il rumore.
Ma ciò che ha reso più difficile elaborare questa immagine è stata la presenza della luminosa Gamma Cassiopeiae il cui riverbero abbagliava una parte dell'immagine e attorno alla quale c'era un antiestetico alone penso causato da riflessioni all'interno del riduttore 0.6X.
Ciò malgrado penso di aver raggiunto un discreto risultato.
________
Perspectively surrounding one of the brightest stars in the sky, the multiple variable star Gamma Cassiopeiae (γ Cas), called Tsih or Navi, lies the H II (ionized hydrogen) region known by the acronym Sh2-185, within which stand out two nebulae cataloged as IC59 and IC63.
I thought photographing this region would be easier, but I have to admit that the faintest nebulosity of Sh2-185 is truly very evanescent, and the presence of gradients caused by light pollution complicated matters; so, against my will, I was forced to vigorously use denoising tools to reduce the noise.
But what made processing this image more difficult was the presence of the bright Gamma Cassiopeiae, whose glare dazzled part of the image and which had an unsightly halo around it, I think caused by reflections within the 0.6X reducer.
Even so, I think I achieved a decent result.
____________
Optic: APO Refractor Askar 103APO + 0.6X
Camera: ZWO ASI533MC-Pro
Mount: Sky Watcher HEQ5 Synscan
Seeing: 4 (scala Antoniadi)
Filter: Narrowband Optolong L-eNhance 2" + SVbony UV-IR cut
-199x180s 250gain/ 23dark /27flat /80 bias
-64x300s 250gain/ 35dark /27flat /80 bias
t° sensor: -5°C
Date: 2025-10-25, 27 + 2025-11-12,13
Integration: 15h 17m
Temperature: 16°C (media)
location for : Biancavilla -Catania-(Italy) 515m slm (Bortle 5-6) flic.kr/p/8AWHek
Acquisition: NINA, PHDGuiding
Processing: DSS, SIRIL 1.4, PS, GraXpert
NGC 4565 a.k.a. Needle Galaxy
.....................................................
NGC 4565, better known as the Needle Galaxy, is a spiral galaxy located in the constellation Coma Berenice, at about 40 million light-years from Earth. This galaxy is larger than the Milky Way, with a diameter of 130-150000 light-years, and appears to be brighter than Andromeda. Due to its shape, in addition to Needle, NGC4565 is also known as Flying Saucer Galaxy or Berenice's Hair Clip. Very well known and popular in astrophotography, Needle Galaxy can be imaged with a small telescope, but a longer focal length would lead to a more detailed result.
Equipment and settings:
Mount: SW EQ6R
Telescope: SW 150 PDS
Camera: ASI 533 MC Pro.
Filter: Baader UV/IR cut
Total exposure: 6h26' ( 193 frames x 2 min )
Stacked with Deep Sky Stacker.
Edit in Pixinsight.
Location: my Bortle 6+ backyard.
☄️ La comète ZTF au 135mm !
.
🙏 J’ai eu la chance de pouvoir la photographier alors que la Lune n’était pas encore trop forte et lorsqu’elle était proche de sa luminosité maximale, le 29 Janvier 2023. Après avoir parcouru 200km pour trouver une météo plus favorable, j’ai pu poser 2 setups ici, dans l’Aisne, et imager environ 4 heures. Une nuit très rude à rester éveiller jusqu’à 5h du matin par -5 °C.
.
🌠 On peut remarquer très aisément les 3 différentes queues de la comète : la queue de gaz ionisée est la plus longue et la plus détaillée ici. Elle parcourt plusieurs dizaines de millions de kilomètres de long et recouvre près des 2/3 de mon capteur full frame ! La deuxième, plus diffuse, se situe sur le même plan que la première. Elle contient énormément de poussières qui s'échappent du corps de la comète. On la nomme souvent la “chevelure”. Enfin, la troisième, souvent nommée l’”anti-queue”, est opposée aux 2 autres et permet de connaître le direction dans laquelle la comète file. C’est également un résidu de poussière que la comète a laissé derrière elle. La couleur verte qui émane du cœur de la comète est dûe aux interactions chimiques qui se passent entre le Soleil et elle. La couleur verte à proprement dit, n’existe nulle part ailleurs dans l’univers à part aux travers du noyau des comètes.
.
Photographier une comète pendant plusieurs heures est un vrai défi car elle bouge très vite, vous n’avez donc pas droit à l’erreur. L’image que je vous présente ici contient donc quelques défauts car le “dithering” est presque impossible ce qui induit du bruit numérique. Je suis très content d’avoir pu obtenir de tels détails sur cette comète, c’est très rare de voir la queue aussi développée au 135mm ! Et quelle ne fût pas ma surprise en découvrant sur une image, une étoile filante passant juste à côté de la comète ! Une chance inouïe d’avoir pu capturer ça, mettant en perspective un petit gravillon passant à quelques dizaines de kilomètres au-dessus du sol et une comète à des dizaines de millions de kilomètres de nous..
.
EXIF :
- Canon France EOS R(a)
- Samyang France 135mm f/2
- @skywatcherusa Star Adventurer GTi
- 105*60s ISO1600 f/2
- Pix & PS
- Lune à 53%
- Bortle 4
Complex reflection dust nebulae in the constellation of Cepheus the circumpolar region. The popular name - "The dance of demons".
This picture was photographed durin November 2015 in Rozhen observatory, Bulgaria.
Equipment: home assembled reflector 10 in., f/3.8
Mount WhiteSwan-180 with a control system «Eqdrive Standart», camera QSI-583wsg, Televue Paracorr-2. Off-axis guidecamera QHY5L-II.
LRGB filter set Baader Planetarium.
L = 20 * 900 seconds , bin.1, RGB = 15 * 300-450 seconds, bin.2 each filter. About 9 hours.
FWHM source in L filter 2.03"-2.92", sum in L channel - 2.50"
The height above the horizon from 52° to 46°, the scale of 1"/ pixel.
Processed Pixinsight 1.8 and Photoshop CS6
Theme: Cyberpunk, Deepspace, Fantasy, Steampunk Featuring: Accessories, Apparel, Cosmetics, Decor, Hair, Jewelry, Poses, Shoes, Skins, Tattoos Event Opening Date: May 29, 2022 Event Closing Date: June 22, 2022
I was starting to do the Witches head but the camera would not focus not matter what I did. My thought was where the stars too Faint. so I turned to Orion with it big bright star.
I did get focus but it turned out the program kept asking me to increase the step size . It turned out it was the very opposite I had to make the steps smaller to the perfect curve.
I had planned to do this as a one shot for both which i still will be doing Plus a 50mm shot of the whole area and the Huge Bernard's Loop of the Whole Orion Area.
This is 148 shot 2 min long all night long then the next night I had to take shorter shots 60 sec , 30sec and 15 sec to over come the blown out core of Orion.
QHY 183C -10c 148 shots & 138 shot 2 min over two nights.
MeLE Mini PC
Pegasus Astro Pocket Mini power box
Prima Luce Essato Focus
Optolong LeNhance filter,
Skywatcher Black DiamondED80 OTA
Skywatcher NEQ 6 Pro
SVbony 50MM Guide scope
QHY QHY5L-II-M Guide camera
Guided PHD2, Nina
Pixinsight, Ps PTGui.
I wasn't quite happy with how the original version of this image turned out, so I decided to start all over with it using a new tool called BlurXTerminator, which works to deconvolve astro images using AI that has been fed data from the Hubble and James Webb telescopes for reference models (this is super interesting because these telescopes shoot from outside our atmosphere and therefore have a clearer view of the stars without the distortions of our atmosphere - among other things) - it's crazy such a thing exists. Anyway, I also processed the image using a Hubble palette, instead of the Ha / Oiii palette, which results in a more pleasing coloration (in my opinion). Anyway, here's the new version!
This is the Elephant Trunk Nebula setting behind Scott mountain here in East Tennessee. The scene is shot entirely at 300mm and is astronomically accurate.
Every time you change the space around you, it's worth remembering that this can lead to global changes! And our most insignificant actions can lead to very significant changes! Sometimes even a glance at a spider web in the forest can lead to changes all over the planet ;)
Orion is setting earlier every day now. Time to post another image of my favorite winter constellation, before the "Orion Season" draws to an end.
I captured this 'deep' exposure in early January, when it was still possible see Orion rising.
The night before, I was partially fogged out and even though it cleared again later in the night, I missed the rise if Orion.
I therefore decided to hike to a slightly higher spot the next night and face the cold one more time. Shortly after sunset, the fog started to form again, but thanks to my higher vantage point, the fog top stayed some 200m below my position, enabling my to successfully capture my planned composition.
The low fog not only added a special mood to the foreground, it also blocked a good part of the light pollution and thus enabled me to capture one of my most detailed Orion widefields to date, with a popping Barnard's Loop and an almost 3 dimensional Witchhead Nebula.
Sometimes, landscape astrophotograohers are walking a thin line. A few meters of hight difference or a slight difference in temperature or air pressure can be all that separates a successful shooting from a total failure.
Prints available: ralf-rohner.pixels.com
EXIF
Canon EOS 6D, astro-modified
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 @ 70mm; f/4
iOptron SkyTracker Pro
Sky:
30 x 60s + 10 x 15s + 10 x 5s @ ISO1600
Foreground:
5 x 120s @ ISO1600
Explanation: At the down right, large spiral galaxy NGC 1055 joins spiral Messier 77 in this sharp cosmic view toward the aquatic constellation Cetus. The narrowed, dusty appearance of edge-on spiral NGC 1055 contrasts nicely with the face-on view of M77's bright nucleus and spiral arms. Both over 100,000 light-years across, the pair are dominant members of a small galaxy group about 60 million light-years away. At that estimated distance, M77 is one of the most remote objects in Charles Messier's catalog and is separated from fellow island universe NGC 1055 by at least 500,000 light-years. The field of view is about the size of the full Moon on the sky and includes colorful foreground Milky Way stars (with diffraction spikes) along with more distant background galaxies. (text: apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap141226.html)
This picture was photographed October, 13-17, 2015 in Rozhen observatory, Bulgaria.
Equipment: home assembled reflector 10 in., f/3.8
Mount WhiteSwan-180 with a control system «Eqdrive Standart», camera QSI-583wsg, Televue Paracorr-2. Off-axis guidecamera QHY5L-II.
LRGB filter set Baader Planetarium.
L = 18 * 900 seconds + 18 * 300 seconds, bin.1, RGB = 11 * 300-450 seconds, bin.1 each filter. About 9 hours.
FWHM source in L filter 2.24 "-2.68", summ in L channel - 2.46"
The height above the horizon from 36° to 48°, the scale of 1"/ pixel.
Processed Pixinsight 1.8 and Photoshop CS6
The Veil Nebula is a cloud of heated and ionized gas and dust in the constellation Cygnus. Older data reprocessed. Technical Info:
58 x 300 sec. Astronomik Ha 12 nm filter
51 x 300 sec. Astronomik OIII 12 nm filter
56 x 300 sec Astronomik SII 12 nm filter
Gain 200, Offset 50, Binning 1x1
Total Integration 13.8 hours
Explore Scientific 102mm f/7 APO Refractor
Sensor cooled to -15°C on ZWO ASI1600MM Pro (mono)
Calibration frames: Bias, Darks, and Flats.
Plate Solve-PlateSolver 2 via N.I.N.A. 1.11
Image processing Pixinsight 1.8.9-2 and Photoshop 2024
The colorful Rho Ophichui cloud complex is one the closest star forming regions in our Milky Way and a favorite target for astrophotography. Highlighted by the bright star Antares, the region provides an impressive spectacle of colorful glowing gases, juxtaposed with converging dark rivers of thick dust.
IC 4604 (Rho Ophiuchi Nebula) is a large diffuse nebula of 5th magnitude located in the southwestern corner of the constellation Ophiuchus (Serpent Bearer), surrounding the bright multiple star system ρ (Rho) Ophiuchi. Several regions of bright and dark nebulosity surround the area, which takes its name from ρ Oph.
At the mid-northern lattitudes, I normally work from, it plays a bit hard to get, as it always rides close to the horizon and is only visible for a few hours during nights from spring to mid summer.
During my Namibia trip in 2023, I had the pleasure to shoot this wonderful area riding high in the unspoiled southern hemisphere sky.
EXIF
Canon EOS-Ra
Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM ll @ 135mm
Equatoriallly mounted Skywatcher AZ-GTI
IDAS 12 filter
30x 90s @ ISO1600, unfiltered & 10x 180s @ ISO6400, filtered
A classic shot from my backyard in New Orleans.
Televue NP-101IS
Optolong L-Ultimate Dual Band Filter
ZWO ASI071MC Pro
Takahashi EM-200
35x5m Exposures
Comet:
60x20s red
60x20s green
60x20s blue
180sx20s Luminanz
Stars:
11x180s red
11x180s green
11x180s blue
30x180s Luminanz
Equipment:
Epsilon 130D dual rig
QHY268m + CFW3M
TS2600MP (Touptek IMX571) + ZWO EFW
Astronomik DeepSky RGB
Astronomik MaxFR
Pegasus NYX-101
23.10.2024 19:28 - 20:44
Some weeks ago I published a “widefield” of the Andromeda Galaxy but then decided to take another rendition of it, this time with a smaller FOV and focusing in bringing out the hydrogen clouds (the pink spots) and the dust clouds (the brown filaments) close to the nucleus, which is not so common to see.
In the end I enjoyed it so much that took a crop and also publish as a separated image.
I hope you enjoy.
Shot at Barcarena, Portugal on Sep.28/29, Oct.4/18 of 2021 and Oct.18, Nov.1 2022
Technical details:
RGB: 472x180s (23h36)
Ha: 55x600s (9h10)
LUM: 199x120s (6h38)
Total integraton: 39h24m
RedCat 51 | QHYCCD 268C | Skywatcher EQ6-R Pro | TSOptics IV/IR 2’’ | TS Optics Triplet APO 800/115 | TS Optics TSFLAT2 0.79x | QHYCCD 268C | QHYCCD 268M | Omegon IV/IR Cut 2'' | Astronomik Ha 6nm | RBFocus Myrrdin 2.3 | RBFocus Gaius-S
Acquisition: N.I.N.A. | Processing: Pixinsight
Tout d'abord, bonne année 2023 à tous 😁 ! On commence enfin l'année avec cette première publication qui aura su se faire attendre (traitement galère entre airglow, brume, nuages et givre ).
.
✨ La pluie d’étoiles filantes des “Géminides” est la plus prolifique de l’année avec environ 150 météores/heure lors de son pic d’activité ! Le problème, c’est que ce pic arrive au milieu du mois de Décembre et la météo est souvent mauvaise à cette période. Cet hiver ne fait pas exception. On compte les nuits dégagées de ces 2 derniers mois sur les doigts d'une main 😪. C'est très frustrant de faire de l'Astro en France et encore plus dans ch'Nord ️.
.
🏰 Le Donjon de Bours est un vestige médiéval situé sur la commune de Bours. Classé monument historique depuis 1965, il est érigé au XIVᵉ siècle. Il s'agit de l'un des plus anciens logis nobles de la région.
.
🚗 Il m'a fallu parcourir 600km en 4 nuits pour éviter les nuages et ainsi tenter de capturer des météores. Voici tous les détails de ces nuits d'acquisition (bien-sûr, il faisait nuageux partout en France le 14 décembre, nuit du maximum) :
Triple setup (All Sky Camera, 14mm et 15mm)
All Sky Camera en remote à domicile
Nuits du 11-12-13-15 Décembre sur différents spots
4500 clichés entre 15 et 20 secondes (environ 22h d'acquisition au total)
112 météores confirmés au total (31 dans le champ ici)
20h de tri et de traitement
Bortle 5 à 7
Ciel : pano 9 tuiles, stack de 3x90s ISO1250 f/2 au 35mm chacune
Sol : pano 6 tuiles, pose unique 30s ISO1600 f/2 au 35mm
Orientation ciel-sol conservée, sur le même spot. Météores en position d'origine
Canon France EOS Ra + EOS R6 + EOS 6Da + 35mm f/1.4L II USM
Sky-Watcher USA Star Adventurer GTi
The galactic center is the center of gravity of the Milky Way system. Seen from the earth, it lies in the constellation Sagittarius, where the visible band of the Milky Way appears to be the most dense. The distance of the earth from the center of the Milky Way is about 25,000 light-years. At the center of the Milky Way is a massive black hole.
🌀 M81 & M82 // Galaxies de Bode et du Cigare
.
✅ Tout premier test du télescope avec la caméra refroidie et les premiers résultats sont encourageants ! C’est d’ailleurs également ma toute première mosaïque du ciel profond (2 tuiles). Malgré un échantillonnage juste, le niveau de détail atteint est tout de même assez bluffant. J’ai pu profiter de la qualité du ciel nocturne de notre spot favori avec @otsugaphoto pour essayer d’avoir rapidement du signal. Néanmoins le faible temps de pose induit encore beaucoup de bruit et je ne peux pas tirer les détails au maximum comme j'aimerai. Il y a par exemple les IFN qui apparaissent au traitement si je tire fort sur les curseurs mais je préfère ne pas détériorer la qualité de l'image.
.
🌌 M81 est une galaxie spirale-barrée située qui fut découverte par Johann Elert Bode en 1774. La répartition de la masse de la galaxie n’est pas homogène en raison de l’effet de marée dû à la proximité (~ 150 000 AL) d’une autre galaxie moins massive.
.
M82, la galaxie du Cigare, est une galaxie irrégulière située dans la constellation de la Grande Ourse. Avec M81, ces deux galaxies forment avec d’autres un groupe de galaxies proche du nôtre. M82 représente le prototype d’une galaxie irrégulière. Son noyau, qui semble avoir énormément souffert d’un rapprochement avec M81 il y a quelques centaines de millions d’années, se trouve dans une phase de violente activité stellaire et présente de remarquables raies sombres. Il s’agit d’une galaxie à sursaut de formation d’étoiles. De grandes quantités de matières sont éjectées à environ 1 000 km/s de la galaxie. On suppose que ces éjections sont dues à l’explosion de supernovas.
.
M81 :
-Type d'objet : Galaxie spirale
-Distance : 12 M d’AL
-Dimensions : 96 000 AL
-Magnitude apparente : 6.9
M82 :
-Type d'objet : Galaxie irrégulière
-Distance : 14,7 M d’AL
-Dimensions : 47 000 AL
-Magnitude apparente : 8.4
.
EXIF :
-@zwoasi 533MM Pro
-Newton 250/1000 tube maison fibre/carbone
-@sky_watcher_official AZ-EQ6
-Asiair plus + EAF
-Omegon 50/180
-Zwo ASI 120MM mini
-2 nuits (23 et 24/06/23)
-L = 100*120s
-R/V/B = 3*10*180s
-Ha = 10*600s
-6h30 au total (3h15 par tuile)
-Lune moyenne à 31%
-Bortle 4
-Pix
This nebula also called the Lambda Centauri Nebula is found in the constellation Centaurus.
H: 22x30m
O: 24x30m
S: 25x30m
Total Integration = 35.5hrs
Telescope: PW17
Camera: FLI ML16803
Remote Data from Deepskywest El Sauce Observatory, Chile.
CTB1 is a supernova remnant in the constellation Cassiopeia, located about 9,800 light-years away and spanning roughly 100 light-years.
It consists of the remnants of a stellar explosion that occurred over 10,000 years ago.
A time-consuming project spanning 50 hours.
August and September 2025
french Alps
180x300s h-alpha
288x300s OIII
24x300s red
19x300s green
13x300s blue
78x300s Luminanz
50 hours total
Equipment:
Takahashi Epsilon 130D dual rig
Epsi1:QHY268m (IMX571)
Epsi1: QHYCFW3M-SR
Epsi1: QHY OAG + ASI220m
Epsi2: TS2600MP (Touptek/RisingCam IMX571)
Epsi2: ZWO EFW
Filter: Astronomik LRGB DeppSky
Filter: Astronomik MaxFR
JTD Dual Rig Alignment Saddle
Sywatcher EQ8
N.I.N.A
Pegasus NYX-101
If you've seen my feed, you know I've been working on deepspace landscapes like this basically all winter. This is my most recent effort. The foreground is an old fire tower and observation deck. In the sky, from left to right, is the M38 star cluster, the tad pole nebula (the blueish object), and then the flame nebula just above. I thought the idea of the flame nebula and a fire tower was poetic in a way.
My goal with this series has been to illustrate just how big these objects in the night sky are, by showing them near terrestrial objects. Ah if only our eyes could see this!
After listening to another lecture on quantum physics, I realized that I hadn't spent much time in this area... We will make up for it ! ;)
Equipment:
Scope: GSO 8" f/4 with 2" Moonlite autofocuser, flocked
Coma corrector: TS GPU
Mount: EQ6-R
Camera: Nikon D750 mod
Guide scope: ZWO 280/60
Guide camera: ZWO ASI 120MC-S
Filter: RGB - Baader UV/IR cut, Ha - Antlia ALP-T
Acquisition:
Location: central Poland, Bortle 5/6
Lights:
- RGB: 119x120s ISO 1600 per panel
- ALP-T: 32x480s ISO 1600 per panel
Darks: none
Flats: x80 per night
Darkflats: x80 per night
Bias: x100
Total exposure time: 24h 42min
Orion Nebula / Nebulosa de Orión (M42, Messier 42, NGC 1976)
Second and last attempt in 2021 to shoot the M42 nebula, in this time with the same unmodified Sony A7M3 camera and Sony FE 100-400 GM lens, but I use the tracker Skytwatcher AZ-GTI in EQ Mode and QHY guided camera with 60mm tube to increase exposure times.
The location and the weather conditions were ideal, but everything began to go wrong when I did not carry the AC50s Powerbank with me to power the laptop, badly enough that I always carry another portable Powerbank for the tracker, this except the day. During the session, the Sony A7M3 did not admit to connecting any of the 2 Mini-USB cables that it carried for the remote shutter camera control, so I finally decided to launch the shots with the wireless remote control and keeping track of the exposure time.
Despite all this, for a 54 min. total exposure time, quite a few details of this magnificent nebula have been captured with this equipment. It is definitely worth the effort to use guided mount and tracking, there is a brutal difference in the results obtained compared to using only a tripod and low exposure times.
I will continue in future sessions trying to capture more light by increasing the number of shots and exposure.
Segundo y último intento en 2021 de captar a M42, en esta ocasión con la misma cámara no modificada Sony A7M3 y el objetivo Sony FE 100-400 GM, pero utilizo la montura guiada Skytwatcher AZ-GTI EQ Mode y una cámara de seguimiento QHY con tubo de 60mm para aumentar los tiempos de exposición.
La nueva ubicación y las condiciones meteorológicas fueron las idóneas, pero todo se empezó a torcer cuando no lleve conmigo el Powerbank AC50s para alimentar el portátil, manos mal que siempre llevo para la montura otro Powerbank portable, esto salvo el día. Durante la sesión, la Sony A7M3 no admitió conectar ninguno de los 2 cables Mini-USB que llevaba para el auto disparador, por lo que finalmente decidí lanzar las tomas con el mando a distancia y llevando la cuenta del tiempo de exposición.
A pesar de todo ello, para ser una toma de 54 min. de tiempo total de exposición, se han captado bastantes detalles de esta magnífica nebulosa con este equipo.
Definitivamente merece el esfuerzo utilizar montura guiada y seguimiento, hay una diferencia brutal en los resultados obtenidos con respecto a utilizar trípode fijo y bajos tiempos de exposición.
Seguiré en futuras sesiones intentando captar más luz aumentando el número de tomas y exposición.
- Date/Fecha: 12/30/2021
- Higueruelas 1.010m asl (39° 48' 25" N / 0° 53' 19" O)
Bortle 4 location
GEAR
- Tracker Sky-Watcher AZ-GTi EQ Mode
- Guiding with QHY 5L-II Mono and guidescope EZG-60
- Camera Sony ILC3-A7M3 APS-C Mode
- Lens Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS
IMAGE
- 20 Lights at 600mm, ISO 800, 30seg, f5.6 (for the core)
- 30 Lights at 600mm, ISO 1600, 90seg, f5.6 (for the nebula)
- 17 Darks at 600mm, ISO 800, 30seg, f5.6
- 5 Darks at 600mm, ISO 800, 90seg, f5.6
- 8 Darks at 600mm, ISO 1600, 90seg, f5.6
- Total time of exposition 54m.
SOFTWARE
- Stellarium & PHD2 to guide the tracker
- Stacked with DeepSkyStacker
- Image viewer Adobe Bridge
- Image processing with Adobe Camera Raw and Adobe Photoshop
©2021 All rights reserved. MSB.photography
Thank all for your visit and awards.
On Explore 01/02/2022
Less than a week since our last image, and the tail of Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon is stealing the show! Stretching longer and more vibrant, this comet is a stunning sight as it blazes through its orbit. ✨
Captured on October 22, 2025—just one day after its closest approach to Earth at about 0.60 AU (90 million km)—this latest view highlights the comet’s growing tail.
C/2025 A6 Lemmon is a long-period comet on an elliptical, retrograde orbit inclined at 143.7° to the ecliptic, taking it on a journey of roughly 1,350 years around the Sun. Currently, it’s hurtling toward perihelion on November 8 at a mere 0.53 AU from the Sun (closer than Venus!), where solar heat will vaporize its icy nucleus and fuel even more dramatic displays. This passage will shorten its orbital period to around 1,150 years—a true cosmic wanderer! 🌌
I tested my 500 mm lens with iOptron CEM60EC mount... I am not so satisfied with result, picture is litle bit blury because no auto guiding and noisy because short acquisition. I lookng forward to your comments, advises and tips 🙏
OBJECT: M101, Pinwheel Galaxy, Const. Uma, apparent mag. 7,86, apparent dim. 29 x 27 arcmin. FOV 3,24 x 2,03 arcdeg, sampling rate 1,79 arcsec / px, cropped 1,53 x.
GEAR: Nikon Z7 Kolari Full Spectrum + Nikkor 500/5,6 PF, No filter, Tracking mount iOptron CEM60EC - 3 star alignment, no auto guiding.
ACQUISITION: May 20, 2020, CZ. Lights 13x, Darks 5x, Bias 5x, Flats 5x. Exposure 300 s, ISO 400, f 5,6
POST PROCESSING: Stacking APP, Adobe PS.
SHO processing
Equipment:
Epsilon 130ED dual rig
QHY268m + CFW3M
Touptek IMX571 + ZWO EFW
Astronomik MaxFR
Skywatcher EQ8
July 2022
Processing: PixInsight/affinity photo
276 x 180s Ha
80 x 180s OIII
80 x 180s SII
total: 21,8 hour
New version of the previous M42 without the addition of ionized hydrogen
A mosaic of two panels, combining guided exposures of 30 and 300 seconds each, for a total of about 6 hours per panel with an SV260 broadband filter. 150/600 Newtonian telescope with a Tecnosky 0.95x corrector, Tecnosky Vision 571C camera, EQ6-R Pro mount, and Pixinsight processing.
The Whirlpool Galaxy is one of the most spectacular sights when observing the night sky. Located at about 31 million years from us, it is a grand design spiral galaxy interacting with another one, in a slow dance by which both will merge within several million years. As a result of this, tidal streams of stars are swirling around, here seen as the faint light patch around. The Whirlpool Galaxy has lots of star formation areas - the bluish areas reveal the presence of young and hot stars.
Shot at Santa Susana, Portugal on the 29th and 30th of April, 2022 and at Barcarena, Portugal on the 24th, 25th, 26th and 27th of January 2023.
Technical details:
LUM: 172 x 180’’ (8h36)
RGB: 120 x 180’’ (6h00)
Ha: 119 x 300’’ (9h55)
Total integration: 24h31
SW EQ6-R Pro | TS Optics Triplet APO 800/115 | TS Optics TSFLAT2 0.79x | QHYCCD 268M | Optolong LRGB |Astronomik Ha 6nm | RBFocus Gaius-S | RBFocus Myrrdin 2.3
Acquisition: N.I.N.A. |
Processing: Pixinsight
reworked
The Whirlpool Galaxy is an interacting spiral galaxy in the constellation Canes Venatici
at distance of 23 Mio. Lj
LRGB
Equipment:
TS 10" f/4 ONTC Newton
1000mm f4
GPU Aplanatic Koma Korrector
Moravian CCD G2-8300FW
Astrodon LRGB Filter
Losmandy G11/LFE Photo
Guding:
Lodestar on TS Optics - ultra short 9mm Off Axis Guider
PHD2
16x900s Luminanz
5x900s RGB
total exposure time: 7h 45′
Processing: PixInsight/Affinity Photo
The Spaghetti Nebula is a supernova remnant (SNR) in the Milky Way, straddling the border between the constellations Auriga and Taurus. The nebulous area has an almost spherical shell and a filamentary structure. It is believed that the stellar explosion left behind a rapidly spinning neutron star known as a pulsar in the nebula core, emitting a strong radio signal. Sh2-240 is approximately 3,000 light-years from earth.
Image captured over 3 nights; 2023-02-12, 14, & 16
7 hours 20 minutes total integration
Ha subs 14 * 1,200 sec = 4 hours 40 min
OIII subs 8 * 1,200 sec = 2 hours 40 min
Imaging Equipment:
Canon EF 70-200mm at 135mm
Rainbow Astro RST-135,
ZWOASI294MM Pro camera
SH 3.0nm filters
Volcanic turmoil, radiating out from the propeller nebular . DWB-111 Propeller Nebula is an emission nebula in the constellation Cygnus
This is the next installment of my 2016 Cygnus exploration. This image is made up of two panels and has an integration of approximately 50 hours of photography.
IC 2944, aka the Running Chicken Nebula, is an emission nebula associated with an open star cluster in the constellation Centaurus. Just right of centre are Thackeray's Globules - a group of Bok Globules comprised of dense cosmic dust and gas. Bok Globules are often a site of star formation but not in this case.
Captured at Yass, Australia 5-24 April, 2018.
Scope: Planewave CDK17 @ f/6.8 = 2939mm FL
Mount: Paramount ME
Camera: SBIG STXL-11002/AOX
Filters: Astrodon LRGB gen II, 3nm NB
Image scale: 0.63 arcsec/pixel
Exposures: 14x1800s Ha, 14x1800s Oiii, 14x1800s Sii (21 hours)
Processing: PixInsight 1.8.5
Presenting an M31 Andromeda Galaxy “beginner equipment” side-project. I wanted to capture a deep space object with what is representative of relatively “beginner” equipment and modest exposure times as a sort of “you don’t need to spend heaps of money to make a good image” demonstration. And Andromeda seems like the perfect target for this sort of thing. Something I can share when people argue a basic camera can’t make a nice image, or get caught up feeling as though spending thousands of dollars is the right solution to solve frustrations they are encountering learning this challenging hobby.
As Ed Ting quipped (paraphrased), “You end up spending a lot of money to find out you didn’t need to spend a lot of money.”
Or maybe it’s mainly a “for better or for worse” reminder that experience, process, and (especially) post-processing knowledge and software are valuable parts of the formula. Expensive equipment does not offer an escape from this. Not to say the right sort of equipment (e.g. an interchangeable lens camera with a decent sensor and a tracking mount) doesn’t play a vital role in what is possible.
Hopefully this is helpful.
And in the spirit of this goal, I also spent some time documenting, in detail, the post-processing steps and thought process behind the edits involved. For this I used PixInsight and Adobe Photoshop.
Full Post-Processing Notes
Olympus E-M1 Mk.II M43 Camera
Olympus 40-150 f/2.8 Pro (150mm)
iOptron SkyGuider Pro
Vello Intervalometer
ASIAir Pro, ZWO 30mm Guide Scope, 2x ASI120MM (one as a dummy camera)
Lights RGB 100x90s ƒ/2.8 ISO1000
Calibrated with Darks, Flats, Flat Darks
Antelope Island, Utah, USA (Bortle 4)
Lights Hα 24x300s ISO3200
RedCat 51 & Astronomik 12nm Hα
I wanted to show that a color, stock sensor doesn’t mean Hydrogen-alpha can’t be accented. But had to use the RedCat 51 for this as, unlike a basic Canon DSLR, I don’t have a good means of using a Hydrogen-alpha filter with this Olympus.
More than 38 hours of total exposures went into this 4 panels mosaic covering about 140 square degrees of sky.
Pentax 67 EDIF 300mm f/4 - FLI Proline 16803 - Ha (920m) OIII (890) R (160m) G (160m) B (160m) - Coonabarabran, NSW, Australia
If you would like to see larger sizes of this image or get high quality professional prints please visit my homepage at www.glitteringlights.com
This image shows the tail of the constellation Cygnus (Swan) around the stars Deneb and Sadr.
The left side of the frame is dominated by the famous North America Nebula (NGC7000) and the Pelican Nebula (IC5070). The bright blue star is Deneb. It is the brightest known star in visible light. If it was as close to earth as Vega (25 light years), it would shine as bright as a crescent moon!
The right yellowish-white star on the right side is a supergiant named Sadr. Sadr is surrounded by the emission nebula IC1318 one of the several nebulous regions at the centre of Cygnus. IC 1318 is known as the Gamma Cygni Nebula, Sadr Region or the Butterfly Nebula. It is not physically related to Sadr, but merely lies in the same line of sight. The nebula is located much farther away than the star.
At the very edge of the frame on the right is the Crescent Nebula. The star responsible for the nebula’s shape and glow is the Wolf-Rayet star WR 136. The nebula is formed by the star’s fast, powerful stellar wind that collides with the slower wind ejected by the star about 250,000 years ago, when WR 136 expanded to become a red giant. The collision has produced a dense shell, which continues to expand at a speed of 80 km/s.
Prints available: ralf-rohner.pixels.com
EXIF
ZWO ASI 1600MM Pro, cooled astrocam
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L ll @ 70mm
Baader Hll & Olll ultra narrowband and RGB filters
Skywatcher AZ-GTI, equatorially mounted
ZWO ASI 385MC guide cam
Rig control with a ZWO ASIair
20 x 180s Hll
30 x 120s Olll
20 x 30s RGB
www.starkeeper.it/NGC7822B.htm
Hot, young stars and cosmic pillars of gas and dust seem to crowd into NGC 7822. At the edge of a giant molecular cloud toward the northern constellation Cepheus, the glowing star forming region lies about 3,000 light-years away. Within the nebula, bright edges and dark shapes stand out in this colorful skyscape. The image includes data from narrowband filters, mapping emission from atomic oxygen, hydrogen, and red,blue and green filters. The atomic emission is powered by energetic radiation from the central hot stars. Their powerful winds and radiation sculpt and erode the denser pillar shapes and clear out a characteristic cavity light-years across the center of the natal cloud. Stars could still be forming inside the pillars by gravitational collapse but as the pillars are eroded away, any forming stars will ultimately be cutoff from their reservoir of star stuff. This field of view spans over 40 light-years at the estimated distance of NGC 7822 [Text adapted from APOD]
Optics: Takahashi FSQ-106EDXIII F/5 530mm. - APO Refractor
Mount: AP Mach1 GTO
Camera: Moravian G4-16000 Mark II
Filters: Astrodon E Series Gen II LRGBH 50mm squared
Guiding Systems: SX Lodestar
Dates/Times: 2020-2021
Location: Pragelato - Turin / Italy
Exposure Details: H:R:G:B => 360:60:50:50 = > (24x15):(12x5):(10x5):(10x5) [num x minutes]
Cooling Details: -25 °C
Acquisition: Voyager Astrophotography Automation
Processing: CCDStack2+, PS CC, StarXTerminator
Mean FWHM: 1.21 / 2.05
SQM-L: 20.21
First light with the new scope! IC 1848 - The Soul Nebula in LRGB. The next door neighbor to the well-imaged Heart Nebula, which I imaged in narrowband back in 2020. I've never shot this target before and while initially it was "just a first light target", I was pleasantly surprised with the small structures and Bok globules within the nebula itself as well as the broadband dust that surrounds it.
- Location: Remote Observatory (Bortle 1, SQM 21.99) near Fort Davis, TX
- Total Exposure Time: 30.35 Hours
Equipment:
- Scope: Takahashi FSQ106EDX4
- Imaging Camera: QHY 268M
- Filters: Chroma LRGB (36mm)
- Mount: Astro Physics Mach1GTO
- Guidescope: SVBony 50mm Guidescope
- Guide camera: ASI 120mm mini
- Focuser: Moonlite Nitecrawler WR35
- Accessories: Pegasus Ultimate Powerbox v2, QHY Polemaster, Optec Alnitak Flip Flat
------------------------------------------------------------
Software:
- N.I.N.A for image acquisition, platesolving, and framing
- PHD2 for guiding
- PixInsight for processing
-------------------------------------------------------------
Acquisition:
- L: 319 x 3m
- R: 99 x 3m
- G: 97 x 3m
- B: 92 x 3m
- All images at Gain 56, Offset 25 (Readout mode 1) and -5C sensor temperature
- 20 flats per filter
- Master Dark, Flat & Bias from Library
- Nights: 12/16, 12/18-12/20, 12/23-12/25, 12/27/22, 1/13/23
-------------------------------------------------------------
Processing:
- WBPP for Calibration
- Blink to remove bad subs
- ImageIntegration for stacking
RGB Processing (apply to each master):
- DynamicCrop
- MureDenoise
- DynamicBackgroundExtraction
- StarAlignment to align G and B to R
- ChannelCombination to combine to color image
- Duplicate image and ImageSolver to platesolve
- SpectroPhotometricColorCalibration on platesolved duplicate
- StarAlign both original and SPCC'd image to Luminance
- StarXterminator on original image to extract stars and save for later
- StarXterminator to create starless SPCC'd image
- HistogramTransformation x3 on SPCC'd image to stretch to non-linear
- NoiseXterminator on RGB image for noise reduction
Luminance processing:
- DynamicCrop
- MureDenoise
- DynamicBackgroundExtraction
- StarXterminator to create starless and extract stars
- GeneralizedHyperbolicStretch for initial stretch
- HistogramTransformation x2 for further stretch
- NoiseXterminator for slight noise reduction
- UnsharpMask using RangeMask for sharpening of structures in nebula
Combine Luminance and RGB:
- LRGBCombination with saturation at 0.35
- HistogramTransformation for slight stretch
- CurvesTransformation for slight saturation boost
- MultiscaleMedianTransform for chrominance noise reduction
Add RGB Stars to Nebula and further processing:
- HistogramTransformation x3 to stretch RGB stars and then Luminance stars to approximately the same amount
- LRGBCombination to combine RGB and Luminance stars
- ColorSaturation for saturating blue stars
- PixelMath and HistogramTransformation to add RGB stars to Nebula image
- CurvesTransformation for color balancing
- Slight SCNR green
- NoiseXterminator for noise reduction
- DynamicCrop to remove edges
- Save and Export
Distance: ca.41 Mio. Lj
Constellation Canes Venatici
Equipment:
TS 10" f/4 ONTC Newton
1000mm f4
ZWO ASI 1600mmc
Astrodon LRGB
Skywatcher EQ8
Guding:
Lodestar on TS Optics - ultra short 9mm Off Axis Guider
PHD2
total exposure time: 3,7 hours
29x180 luminanz
15x180 red
15x180 green
15x180 blue
26/27.04.2020
Processing: PixInsight/Capture One
We haven't had a lot of clear skies during the "COVID days", however when we have had some I've tried to take advantage of it. In the mean time though, I've been working on some older images like this one. I captured the pictures that make up this image last year in Arizona, and then recently re-processed them and am SUPER happy with the result. The night sky is just so intriguing!