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After many months of clouds, wind and/or extreme temperatures, we finally completed this winter target. Imaged from late February to late March as conditions allowed.
The HII region, Sh 2-261, is often called Lower's nebula because it appears on a photographic plate taken by the father-and-son team of Harold and Charles Lower in 1939.
Image captured over 5 nights; 2022-02-25, 2022-03-06, 21, 24 & 29
15 hours 40 minutes total integration
Ha subs 23 * 1,200 sec = 7 hours 40 min
OIII subs 9 * 1,200 sec = 3 hours
SII subs 15 * 1,200 sec = 5 hours
Imaging Equipment:
SharpStar 140PH Triplet 910mm focal length
Mesu 200 MKII mount,
ZWOASI2600MM Pro camera
SHO 3.0nm filters
Located in the constellation Orion and is associated with the open star cluster NGC 2175. NGC 2174 is about 6,400 light-years away from Earth.
Image captured over 8 nights; 2021-03-07 to 2021-03-16.
13 hours total integration
Ha subs 15 * 1,200sec = 5 hours
OIII subs 13 * 1,200sec = 4 hours 20 minutes
SII subs 11 * 1,200sec = 3 hours 40 minutes
Imaging Equipment:
SharpStar 140PH Triplet 910mm focal length
Mesu 200 MKII,
ZWOASI2600MM Pro camera
3nm Ha, OIII & SII filters
A cool region of sky containing (surprise) a lot of dust and reflection. LDN 1355, the helping hand nebula, is rather aptly named. It appears to sit in front of a reflection region, Van den Bergh 9. VdB 7 is visible on the right hand side of the frame.
- Location: Remote Observatory (Bortle 1, SQM 21.99) near Fort Davis, TX
- Total Exposure Time: 33.3 Hours
Equipment:
- Scope: Esprit 100ED w/ 1x Flattener
- 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
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Software:
- N.I.N.A for image acquisition, platesolving, and framing
- PHD2 for guiding
- PixInsight for processing
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Acquisition:
- L: 332 x 3m
- R: 113 x 3m
- G: 112 x 3m
- B: 110 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: 8/2, 8/3, 8/6, 8/7, 8/22, 8/26, 8/27, 8/29, 9/5, 9/6, 9/20, 9/21, 10/3, 10/4/22
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Processing:
- WeightedBatchPreProcessing for calibration
- Blink to remove unwanted subs
- ImageIntegration for stacking of masters
RGB Processing (apply to each master):
- DynamicCrop
- MureDenoise
- DynamicBackgroundExtraction
- StarAlign G and B to Red
- ChannelCombination to combine into linear RGB
- StarAlign to Lum
- HistogramTransformation x 4 to stretch
- NoiseXterminator for NR
- CurvesTransformation for saturation and hue adjustment
- ColorMask to create green chrominance mask - apply to image
- CurvesTransformation to bring down green patches
- Further unmasked CurvesTransformation to neutralize blue hue of image
Luminance Processing:
- DynamicCrop
- MureDenoise
- DynamicBackgroundExtraction
- StarXterminator to make starless and generate star_mask
- GeneralizedHyperbolicStretch for initial stretch to non-linear
- HistogramTransformation x3 for further strethc
- Slight NoiseXterminator for NR with Lum_mask
- CurvesTransformation for contrast
- Additional masked NoiseXterminator for NR
Combine Lum and RGB and further processing:
- LRGBCombination to combine Luminance and RGB
- CurvesTransformation for color balancing
- ACDNR with Luminance mask for chrominance noise reduction
- Slight CurvesTransformation for contrast
- UnsharpMask for slight sharpening
- LocalHistogramEqualization for slight detail boost
Add Stars back in to image:
- HistogramTransformation x3 on RGB stars - save all 3 instances of HT
- Invert -> SCNR -> invert back to remove magenta
- CurvesTransformation to remove green hue and saturate stars
- Apply saved HistogramTransformation instances to extracted Luminance stars
- LRGBCombination to combine luminance stars with RGB stars with saturation at 0.35
- CurvesTranformation on combined stars to increase blue channel
- HistogramTransformation on stars and nebula images to bring to pseudo-linear state
- PixelMath to combine stars and nebula images
- HistogramTransformation to "re-stretch" image with both nebula and stars
Further Processing:
- CurvesTransformation for slight contrast adjustment
- MMT to disable layer 12 for chrominance noise blotching
- Additional CurvesTransformations to color balance
- NoiseXterminator (2 rounds) with luminance mask for additional noise reduction
- Invert -> SCNR Green -> Invert to remove magenta cast
- MMT for debotch and chrominance NR using inverted luminance masks
- Final CurvesTransformation for contrast
- DynamicCrop to remove edges
- Save and export
reworked
Pixinsight with SPCC and BTX
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
La saison d'Orion est bientôt terminée, la Voie Lactée commence à se lever tôt le matin mais j'ai encore quelques clichés du ciel d'hiver à vous partager !
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C'était surement la plus grosse sortie de cet hiver avec @remi.aug . Pas moins de 5 projets photos que j'avais en tête ont étés réalisés. Une nuit qui aura été bien prolifique avec des conditions exceptionnelles du début à la fin.
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Un cliché pensé depuis des mois et des mois et qui m'a rendu la vie un peu difficile au traitement. Ce n'est pourtant pas le projet le plus compliqué que j'ai pu faire lors de cette soirée. La météo m'a clairement empêché de le faire plus tôt dans l'année mais une fois les tempêtes Eunice et Franklin passées, le beau temps est revenu !
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Vous pouvez admirer les principales nébuleuses en Hydrogène (rouge) qui accompagnent notre ciel d'hiver. L'hexagone d'hiver se dessine au centre de l'image, il est formé par 6 étoiles brillantes et permet de connaître le positionnement de la Voie Lactée car elle passe en son centre.
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La Voie Lactée est bien visible au dessus de la mer, c'est grâce à l'absence de pollution lumineuse. On peut quand même remarquer l'énorme pollution de Boulogne-sur-Mer à gauche, quelques villes très éloignées mais avec une pollution lumineuse quand même visible (Le Tréport, Dieppe, etc...), quelques bateaux et sur la droite de l'image, les premières villes des côtes anglaises.
Discovered in 2011 by French astrophotographer Nicolas Outters, the Squid Nebula (Ou4) is distinguished by its elegant bipolar shape and the vivid blue glow of doubly ionized oxygen (Oiii). It is nestled entirely within the reddish hydrogen-rich emission nebula Sh2-129, also known as the Flying Bat Nebula.
Recent research indicates that Ou4 lies roughly 2,300 light-years from Earth and resides within Sh2-129. This makes Ou4 a dramatic outflow, originating from HR 8119, a triple system of hot, massive stars at the nebula’s core. With an enormous physical size of nearly 50 light-years, the Squid Nebula stands as one of the largest and most intriguing emission structures in the night sky.
Capturing the Squid Nebula is a real challenge and requires very long integration times over several nights... The perfect challenge to test my new deep space imaging rig.
Equipment:
Telescope: Sharpstar SQA106
Mount: Sky-Watcher Wave 150i
Camera: ZWO ASI 1600MM Pro
Filter: Baader RGB, 3nm Ha & 4.5nm Oiii with a ZWO EFW
Focuser: ZWO EAF
Autoguider: ZWO ASI 385MC with Artesky UltraGuide 32mm
Rig control: ZWO Astrophotography ASIAir Plus
EXIF
130x 30s with RGB
50x 300s Ha
150x 300s Oiii
Total exposure time: 20h
Explanation: Interstellar dust clouds and bright nebulae abound in the fertile constellation of Orion. One of the brightest, M78, on center in this colorful telescopic view, covering an area north of Orion's belt. At a distance of about 1,500 light-years, the bluish nebula itself is about 5 light-years across. Its blue tint is due to dust preferentially reflecting the blue light of hot, young stars in the region. Dark dust lanes and other nebulae can easily be traced through this gorgeous skyscape. The scene also includes the remarkable McNeil's Nebula -- a newly recognized nebula associated with the formation of a sun-like star, and the telltale reddish glow of many Herbig- Haro objects, energetic jets from stars in the process of formation. (text: apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap131010.html)
This picture was photographed during October 2017 - January 2018 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 and Off-axis guidecamera Lodestar SX-2 by Vasily Oleynik
L, Ha, RGB filter set Astrodon gen.II
L=55*900 + 28*600 seconds, RGB=15*900 + 14*600 seconds, Ha= 13*900 seconds bin.1 each filter, unbinned . About 36 hours.
FWHM source in L filter 2.12 "-3.16", sum in L channel - 2.58"
The height above the horizon from 36° to 48°, the scale of 1"/ pixel.
Processed Pixinsight 1.8 and Photoshop CS6
Photo with labels: olegbr.astroclub.kiev.ua/files/astrofoto/M78/M78_LHaRGB_O...
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
80x180 luminanz
22x180 red
22x180 green
22x180 blue
total exposure time: 7,3 hours
Processing: PixInsight/Capture One
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.
An LRGB image of NGC2403
The image comprises of:
Luminance - 10 hours.
Red - 4 hours.
Green- 4 hours.
Blue - 4 hours.
Total - 22 hours
10 and 15 minute subs.
Acquisition - Planewave 12.5" CDK, PME, QSI 583 8WSG CCD, Lodestar auto guider, TSX, Maxim DL. Astrodon LRGB filters.
Processing Pixinsight 1.8 - I have had this data set around for a while and have never been happy with my processing results.
LDN 1251 - small molecular cloud in the constellation Cepheus. In addition to the dark nebula in this picture is also seen several PGC galaxies that shine through the interstellar dust. Also in this picture I have identified five Herbig–Haro objects.
This picture was photographed during september in Petrivske village, Ukraine.
Equipment: home assembled reflector 10 in., f/3.8
Mount WhiteSwan-180 with a control system «Eqdrive Standart», camera QSI-583wsg with TS 2.5″ 0.95x Wynne corrector. Off-axis guidecamera QHY5L-II.
LRGB filter set Baader Planetarium.
L = 37 * 900 seconds, RGB = 28 * 400-600 seconds in each filter, bin.2. Total of 20 hours.
FWHM source (in the filter L) 2.15″-4.72″, Sum in L channel - 2.95"
The height above the horizon from 64 ° to 48 °, scale = 1.25"/ pixel.
Processed Pixinsight 1.8 and Photoshop CS6
NGC 2359 - better known as Thor's Helmet - is an emission nebula located about 12,000 light-years away in the constellation of Canis Major. Also known as Sh2-198 and Gum 4, NGC 2359 is a “bubble” nebula measuring approximately 30 light-years across in size. It has a very complex structure and is powered by its central star, WR7, a Wolf-Rayet star, an extremely hot star that is thought to be in the pre-supernova stage.
This is my first image of 2022 and results from only 2.5 hours of Narrowband data collected on March 9 and March 29, 2022.
This image was shot with my Astro-Physics 130mm F/8.35 Telescope Platform with the IOptron CEM60 and the ASI2600MM-Pro Camera with Astronomiks 6mm narrowband fitters.
This spring's weather has been problematic, and this target is located very low in the sky between trees on my property, which gives me only about 1.5 hours of access on any given night. I only had two nights clear, allowing the capture of photons, and now it is beyond my reach, so I cannot add to it this year.
So with a paltry 2.5 hours of data - what could be done to pull an image out of the noise?
While far from a perfect image, I was a little surprised that it came out as well as it did, given the low integration time!
The story of the image and complete processing details can be seen on my website at:
cosgrovescosmos.com/projects/ngc2359-thors-helmet
Thanks for looking, and let me know if you have any questions!
CS,
Pat
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! 🌌
NDN 935, NGC7000 HSO RGB
distance: 2000 - 3000 ly
Equipment:
Takahashi Epsilon 130ED
ASI294mmPro
ZWO EFW 8x
Astronomik Deep-Sky RGB und SHO MaxFR
Skywatcher EQ8
September 2021
Processing: PixInsight/affinity photo
This Globular Clusters in the constellation Serpens is one of the brighter in the sky. It photographs nicely at low exposures. Shot from Bortle 8 skies in New Orleans.
Takahashi FSQ-106 / EM-200 / ASI 2600MM
L 188x30s
RGB 60x30s
Lum: Drizzle (2x, 0.9, circular) / DBE / BlurXterminator / MMT (denoise) / HT / HDR
RGB: Drizzle (2x) / DBE / BlurXterminator / NoiseXterminator / RGBComb / ArcSin (8x2) / LRGB (Sat=0.4)
PS: Dfine2 / Curves / Levels
Acquisitions 03/05/2023 : 86 x 180s soit 4h18 seulement au total + DOF (version croppée)
Mᴀᴛᴇ́ʀɪᴇʟ ᴜᴛɪʟɪsᴇ́ ⬇️
Lunette SW 80ED sur HEQ5
Correcteur réducteur 0.85x
ZWO ASI294MC-PRO
Filtre L-Pro 2"
Guidage: ZWO ASI290MM et ZWO guidescope F/4
Lᴏɢɪᴄɪᴇʟs ⬇️
Guidage: PHD2
Prise de vue: N.I.N.A
Empilement et Pré traitement: Siril
Traitement: Photoshop, Starnet
M̲e̲s̲ ̲r̲é̲s̲e̲a̲u̲x̲ ̲s̲o̲c̲i̲a̲u̲x̲ ̲:̲
Ma chaîne YouTube ➡️ youtube.com/channel/UCgUAgzyV4MOHErHTioW0ktQ
Mon Instagram ➡️ www.instagram.com/elsasstronomy/
Le discord ➡️ discord.gg/E9NhKC3UBc
Ma chaîne Twitch ➡️ www.twitch.tv/elsasstronomy
Ma page Facebook ➡️ www.facebook.com/elsasstronomy
is a barred spiral galaxy located 22.5 million light years away
distance 22.5 Mly
exposure time: 13,7 hours
Processing: PixInsight/affinity photo
Equipment:
10" /f4 TS ONTC Newton
ASI1600mmc v2
ZWO EFW 8x
Skywatcher EQ8
Guiding TS9 OAG Lodestar
247x120s Luminanz
55x120s red
50x120s green
59x120s blue
February/March 2021
English below
Nella costellazione del Cefeo si trova l'ammasso aperto IC1396 circondato da una nebulosa ad emissione che fa parte di un'ampio sistema di nubi molecolari HII. Spicca la nebulosa oscura vdB 142 chiamata Proboscide d'elefante.
Ho combinato riprese effettuate con filtri differenti e ho provato a fonderle insieme, ho trovato il risultato gradevole e le informazioni maggiormente complete rispetto alle sigole riprese. Esposizioni da 10 minuti per ciascun filtro, 114 con il filtro broadband SV260, 61 con il dualband Antlia ALP-T 5 nm (Ha e O3) e 16 con il L-Synergy Optolong dualband 7nm (S2 e O3).
Per catturare le stelle è stata aggiunta circa un’ora di integrazione in pose da 60 secondi con filtro broadband SV260.
Il tutto è stato ripreso con un telescopio Newton 150/600 dotato di correttore Tecnosky 0.95x, camera Tecnosky Vision 571C e montatura EQ6-R Pro, elaborazione in PixInsight.
In the constellation Cepheus lies the open cluster IC1396, surrounded by an emission nebula that is part of a large system of HII molecular clouds. The dark nebula vdB 142, known as the Elephant's Trunk, stands out.
I combined images taken with different filters and tried merging them. I found the result pleasing and the information more complete than the individual images. 10-minute exposures were taken for each filter: 114 with the broadband SV260 filter, 61 with the dualband Antlia ALP-T 5nm (Ha and O3), and 16 with the dualband L-Synergy Optolong 7nm (S2 and O3).
To capture the stars, about an hour of integration was added in 60-second exposures with the broadband SV260 filter.
The whole thing was captured with a 150/600 Newtonian telescope equipped with a Tecnosky 0.95x corrector, a Tecnosky Vision 571C camera and an EQ6-R Pro mount, processed in PixInsight.
Old data processing of M106 galaxy ( 24/04/2020 ) .
Processed with the help of sp.la.sh.id, find him on Instagram: www.instagram.com/sp.la.sh.id/
Gear used:
■ Mount: skywatcher neq-6 goto with Rowan modification belt
■ Telescope: skywatcher 200/1000 F/5
■ Autoguiding: Asi 120mm
■ Total exposure: 2H25m || 29 X 300 seconds
■ Camera: modified canon eos 700d astrodon
■ Filter(s): no filter
■ Other optic(s): baader coma corrector
■ Software : Siril / PixInsight / photoshopCC
The Orion nebula (M42) is about 1.350 light years away.
Tri(false)colour composition done with Baader H-alpha, OIII and SII filters. Reduced starfield to highlight the nebula. (Star71/347mm; ATIK 383l+; Celestron AVX)
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• Sky-Watcher Quattro 250P
• Sky-Watcher EQ8-R Pro
• ZWO ASI294MM-Pro
• Astronomik L: 54x300s bin1 gain 0
• Astronomik RGB: 36x300s bin2 gain 125
• ZWO Hα 7nm: 12x300s bin1 gain 200
(total integration 8.5h)
• 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
Continuing my series of deep space objects juxtaposed with terrestrial objects, this is the Elephant Trunk Nebula setting behind a mountain here in the Smokies. The entire scene was captured at 300mm and is astronomically correct, however was obviously not captured in a single photo.
By comparison, the moon at this focal length would fit inside the dark area at the center of the nebula.
First of all, Merry Christmas to all astro folks and friends out there.
This post is about my maiden voyage with the AG14 astrograph (Recently acquired Orion Optics large Newt)
After quite some time spent on a learning to colimate the the beast using the Catseye system and other miscellaneous odds and ends required for basic setup, such as, the need for an additional counterweight. The clouds finally cleared last night and I was able to run some test shots with the new Astrograph. This image is made of a stack 30 un-calibrated 1800 sec bin x 2 subs.
Imaging telescope: AG14 astrograph 1330mm F3.8
Imaging camera: 9.2mp Sony SX814
Mount: Software Bisque Paramount MX
Focus was manually set up once with a mask and the system ran uninterrupted for the night. I am waiting for a Baader steel drive to arrive which will allow full focus automaton.
Located about 5000 light years from Earth, the center image shows the Rosette star formation region
Simeis 147, also known as the Spaghetti Nebula, SNR G180.0-01.7 or Sharpless 2-240, is a supernova remnant (SNR) in the Milky Way, straddling the border between the constellations of Auriga and Taurus. Discovered in 1952 at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory using a large 25" telescope. it is difficult to observe due to its extremely low brightness.
The nebulous area is fairly large with an almost spherical shell and filamentary structure The remnant has an apparent diameter of approx 3 degrees, an estimated distance of approximately 3000 (±350) light-years, and an age of approximately 40,000 years.It is about 1000 light years away and is roughly 15 light years in diameter.
Due to its size this is a 2x2 pane mosaic in order to fit the whole nebula in the frame.
Details
M: Avalon Linear Fast Reverse
T: Takahashi FSQ85 0.73x
C: QSI683 with Astrodon 3nm Ha filter
23x900s in Ha in each pane
Totalling 23 hours of exposure.
Eq:
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: Baader UV/IR cut
Acquisition:
Location: central Poland, Bortle 5/6
Lights: 140x90s ISO 1600, 26x30s ISO 1600, 28x10s ISO 1600
Darks: none
Flats: x80 per night
Bias: x100
Total integration time: 3h 48min
Software: Pixinsight (+rc-astro), Photoshop
Reprocess of old data.
Equipment:
Scope: GSO 8" f/4 with 2" moonlight 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: Antlia ALP-T / Baader UV/IR Cut
Acquisition:
Location: central Poland, Bortle 5/6
Lights:
- ALP-T: 130x300s ISO 400
- Baader UV/IR Cut: 33x90s ISO 400
Darks: none
Flats: x70
Bias: x50
Total integration time: 11h 39min
NGC 4565 a.k.a. Needle Galaxy
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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.
Milkyway mosaic (16-frames) taken under perfect skies in the australian outback (mag 7, sometimes even mag7.5).
Equipment used: Canon EOS 40D (modified), Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 at f/4.0, AstroTrac (generation 1)
Exposure time was 211 times 5min.
Explanation: These two spiral galaxies make a photogenic pair, found within the boundaries of the northern constellation Draco. Contrasting in color and orientation, NGC 5965 is nearly edge-on to our line of sight and dominated by yellow hues, while bluish NGC 5963 is closer to face-on. Of course, even in this well-framed cosmic snapshot the scene is invaded by other galaxies, including small elliptical NGC 5969 at the upper left. Brighter, spiky stars in our own Milky Way are scattered through the foreground. Though they seem to be close and of similar size, galaxies NGC 5965 and NGC 5963 are far apart and unrelated, by chance appearing close on the sky. NGC 5965 is about 150 million light-years distant and over 200,000 light-years across. Much smaller, NGC 5963 is a mere 40 million light-years away and so is not associated with the edge-on spiral. Difficult to follow, NGC 5963's extraordinarily faint blue spiral arms mark it as a low surface brightness galaxy. (text: apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120216.html)
This picture was photographed during April 2016 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 = 31 * 900 seconds , bin.1, RGB = 15* 450-600 seconds, bin.2 each filter. 14 hours total.
FWHM source in L filter 1.86"-2.76", sum in L channel - 2.30"
The height above the horizon from 58° to 75°, the scale of 1"/ pixel.
Processed Pixinsight 1.8 and Photoshop CS6
Image which has exceptional meaning for me. Taken on my last night at the GEO Observatory in Spain with my friend John Griffiths. He'd asked for a printout when I finished processing this image, which sadly I was not able to ever show him. This one is for him.
Atik 4000 CCD. H-Alpha/OIII filters
An open cluster discovered by Caroline Herschel in 1787. William Herschel included his sister's discovery in his catalog. This reasonably large nebula is located in Cepheus. It is extremely difficult to observe visually.
Located 7200 light years away, the Wizard nebula, surrounds developing open star cluster NGC 7380. Visually, the interplay of stars, gas, and dust has created a shape that appears to some like a fictional medieval sorcerer. (I personally don't see that)
Image capture details: (6h 20m)
Ha-9x1,200sec (3h)
OIII-5x1,200sec((1h 40m)
SII-5x1,200sec(1h 40m)
Imaging Equipment:
SharpStar 140PH Triplet
Celestron CGEM II mount (hypertuned),
ZWOASI1600MM Pro camera
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 ! ;)
Located close to the Orion Nebula and usually included in the same frame but not very often given the main stage.
Imaged 17 Dec 2022 on a single night test imaging session after a complete rebuild of the Celestron C11 Edge HD imaging setup.
This is 362 x 60 second subframes totaling 6 hours of integration.
The full details are available on my Astrobin page astrob.in/w1lbb3/0/
Technical summary:
Celestron C11 Edge HD with 0.7 focal reducer.
ZWO ASI2600 MC Pro camera.
Baader Moon and Sky Glow filter.
EQ6 R Pro mount.
200mm guide scope.
No flats, no darks only 50 bias frames for calibration.
Edited with PixInsight and Adobe Lightroom Classic.
In the constellation of Ursa Major, at about 25 million light years from us lies the Pinwheel Galaxy. This beautiful galaxy has 170,000 light years across, about twice of our Milky Way.
In the photo, two types of color clusters hint on the objects present: the red-pinkish ones are the hydrogen rich nebulas where star forming is taking place and the blue ones on the spiral arms are clusters of young and hot blue stars.
This photo is a cropped reprocessing of my previously published photo.
Shot at Santa Susana, Portugal on Mar.26th and Barcarena, Portugal on Apr.1st and Apr.28th 2022.
Technical details:
LUM: 129 x 180’’ (6h45)
RGB: 160 x 180’’ (8h00)
Ha: 82 x 300’’ (6h50)
Total integration: 21h35
TS Optics Triplet APO 800/115 | QHYCCD 268M | Skywatcher AZ EQ5-GT | Optolong RGB | Baader Ha 6nm TSOptics TSFLAT 3’ 0.79x
Acquisition: N.I.N.A. | Processing: Pixinsight
6 out of 9 space cadets... prefer our deep space hot air balloon rides.. they come bit heavy on the saturated side... the air up there is a little bit lighter... the veiw is out of this world...but the b/w effects are taking over now... getting ready for the festival next weekend...we should be arriving at 015..9r a bit later... so see you then.. btw what kinda faces are in the clouds.... up up and away in my beautiful balloon....HSS...
distance: 2400 ly
Equipment:
Takahashi Epsilon 130ED
ASI294mmPro
ZWO EFW 8x
Astronomik Deep-Sky RGB und SHO MaxFR
Skywatcher EQ8
June/July 2021
Processing: PixInsight/affinity photo
The horse head nebula in Orion. This was a tough one to process. Alnitak kept taking over the photo. Next time out I will take shorter exposures on the blue and green filter.
Taken with a ZWO ASI1600mm-cool, R=12 @ 240 sec , G=25 @ 120 sec, B= 45 @ 60 sec, HA=15 @ 240 sec. Clouds moved in before Luminance were taken. Default HDR gain setting. Edit with Pixisight. Taken Nov. 2018
Little Bright Blue Stars
My Interplanetary Memories
Interplanetary Travel
As the two suns illuminating the planet set behind the mountains, bright blue stars began to illuminate the sky. They looked like little blue light bulbs. They were like those little blue light bulbs that light up the scene on a wedding night. I really felt like I was at a country wedding while watching the sparkles of the stars. But I was the only guest at this wedding. There was no one around me to dance with. There was neither a groom nor a bride in this country wedding, illuminated by the stars in the sky. There was only me. Maybe this was the wedding of my eternal solitude. That night, under the stars, the whole universe witnessed this agreement that would last forever with my loneliness. It was a night when I blessed my loneliness. Thanks to this wedding, my loneliness would not bother me for many years and I would be able to continue my journey in space without any problems. It was as I thought. For many years, I never thought of my loneliness. I was very healthy mentally. Until the end of these long years. For the past year, all I've been thinking about was no longer the lost civilization of Plutonia. There was one more profound thing occupying my mind. My loneliness. I couldn't help but think about this situation. Maybe I should have made myself a new wedding of solitude. I should have remarried my loneliness. It is very difficult to make a decision in this huge vacuum of space. I want to get to the ending without hurting myself any further. I don't know yet what this ending will be. All I want is an end.
Camera: Canon EOS Kiss X7i
Photograph by Yusuf Alioglu
Location: Outer space (space)
The Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex is one of my favorite spring targets. Not only is the region extremely colorful, it also consists of many interesting astronomical objects:
- Rho Ophiuchi is the star within the blue reflection nebula. If you zoom into the image you can see that it is actually a 3-star system. The blue color of the nebula is produced by Rayleigh Scattering, the same process that colors our daylight sky blue.
- The Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex on the other hand is the dark nebula south of the star Rho Ophiuchi. At a distance of 427 light-years, it is one of the closest star forming regions to the solar system.
- The yellow star within the yellow nebula is Antares, the brightest star of the constellation Scorpius. It is a red supergiant, nearing the end of its live. The star has depleted the fuel supply of hydrogen within its core and is now bloated to monstrous proportions. As it goes through its death throes, the star has expelled a lot of its mass as shells of gas and dust into space. The nebulosity surrounding Antares is created by this gas and dust which is reflecting the dying star’s yellowish light.
- To the right of Antares is the globular cluster M4. Globular clusters are massive, tightly packed spheres that contain thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of individual stars.
- Above M4 you find Sigma Scorpii. It is multiple star system of hot, young stars, emitting of UV radiation. As this high energy UV light hits the hydrogen atoms it energizes them, and the electrons separate from the atomic nucleus. When they recombine, the electrons give off a reddish-pink light which makes the gas cloud glow.
- Below Antares is Tau Scorpii, surrounded by another faint emission nebula of energized hydrogen.
- Both Sigma and Tau Scorpii share the same name: Al Niyat. They got their name from ancient Arabic astronomers and it means, "the arteries". Seeing how these stars with their red nebula flank Antares, the heart of Scorpius, it makes sense that they could be viewed as the arteries of that colossal, dying heart.
As you can see, the region around Rho Ophiuchi has it all. Its colors tell a story of darkness and light, of peaceful coexistence and violence and of birth and death.
EXIF
Canon EOS 6D, astro-modified
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 135mm
iOptron SkyTracker Pro
Sky:
15 × 60s @ ISO1600
Foreground:
7 x 60s @ ISO3200
Distance ca. 12 Mio. light years
diameter of 90,000 light years
Equipment:
TS 10" f/4 ONTC Newton
1000mm f4
ZWO ASI 1600mmc
Astrodon LRGB
Losmandy G11/LFE Photo
Guding:
Lodestar on TS Optics - ultra short 9mm Off Axis Guider
PHD2
70x180s Luminanz
25x180 red
26x180 green
38x180s blue
total exposure time: 7,9 hours
February 2020, February 2021
Processing: PixInsight/Capture One
CTB 1 is a supernova remnant (SNR) in the constellation Cassiopeia and a source of optical, radio, and X-ray emissions. A recent study reports that a pulsar was born from the supernova that produced CTB 1 and ejected into the galaxy.
CTB 1 is approximately 9784 light years away and physically spans another 98 light years in diameter while it is dated to be approximately 10,000 years old.
Image captured over 5 nights; 2021-11-06, 07, 08, 10, & 11
20.5 hours total integration
Ha subs 18 * 1,800 sec = 9 hours
OIII subs 12 * 1,800 sec = 6 hours
SII subs 11 * 1,800 sec = 5 hours 30 min
Imaging Equipment:
SharpStar 140PH Triplet 910mm focal length
Mesu 200 MKII mount,
ZWOASI2600MM Pro camera
SHO 3.0nm filters
2.4 hours of 3 min stacked exposures. 120mm Skywatcher , Canon Rebel 6ti mod, My first great astrophoto. 1,500 light-years away. The left star is the left star in Orion's Belt.
Located in the constellation of Cygnus, this nebula is approximately 5000 light years from Earth.
This is a combination of mono Ha and OSC data.
Details
Mount: HEQ5 / Avalon Linear Fast reverse
Telescope: Takahashi FSQ85 with 0.73x reducer
Camera: Atik 460EXM, 3nm Astrodon filter and Starlight Express Trius M25C
This is a combination of mono Ha data and OSC data for the colour.
11x1800s Ha
33x600s OSC
Total integration time 11 hours
The Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way, is a true wonder of the cosmos. From its location in the southern sky, the Large Magellanic Cloud offers a breathtaking view of a celestial spectacle - two big, bright smudges of light hanging over the southern horizon like two stubborn clouds refusing to dissipate.
With the help of a telescope and camera, its glowing gas clouds and vibrant colours reveal a dazzling display of cosmic artistry. The colourful regions peppered across the galaxy are a massive collection of supernova remnants, stellar nurseries and star clusters. Intense radiations from those active targets energise the nearby hydrogen gases, causing them to glow like neons. Perhaps the most striking target is the Tarantula Nebula (the largest nebula seen in the pictures), a sprawling gas cloud resembling a giant spider dancing in the night sky.
(The data was acquired from Telescope Live, which I processed using Pixinsight and Photoshop).