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A multi-band receiver from 1970 in a special version. Size 375 x 250 x 135 mm, weight 6 kg. As standard there are long wave, medium wave, marine band, shortwave, VHF high, AIR radio, FM broadcasting, FM low. In addition, there is a subsequently built-in UHF converter for the frequencies from 398-500 MHz. Adjustable on the right side with a separate regulator. Fine tuning is done using the normal tuning on the front panel. With the BFO control an SSB single sideband signal can be demodulated. The squelch is not adjustable. There are two telescopic antennas, connections for wire antennas and a jack for coaxial cable. A port for audiotape and headphones is on the left.
I've tried it and it still works. But apart from a few radio stations, I couldn't hear anything. For the Swiss IBBK radio it is still usable. A 50 year old rarity whose value I cannot estimate. Switzerland, March 4, 2021.
This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows the Helix nebula, a cosmic starlet often photographed by amateur astronomers for its vivid colors and eerie resemblance to a giant eye.
The nebula, located about 700 light-years away in the constellation Aquarius, belongs to a class of objects called planetary nebulae. Discovered in the 18th century, these cosmic butterflies were named for their resemblance to gas-giant planets.
Planetary nebulae are actually the remains of stars that once looked a lot like our sun.
When sun-like stars die, they puff out their outer gaseous layers. These layers are heated by the hot core of the dead star, called a white dwarf, and shine with infrared and visible-light colors. Our own sun will blossom into a planetary nebula when it dies in about five billion years.
In Spitzer's infrared view of the Helix nebula, the eye looks more like that of a green monster's. Infrared light from the outer gaseous layers is represented in blues and greens. The white dwarf is visible as a tiny white dot in the center of the picture. The red color in the middle of the eye denotes the final layers of gas blown out when the star died.
The brighter red circle in the very center is the glow of a dusty disk circling the white dwarf (the disk itself is too small to be resolved). This dust, discovered by Spitzer's infrared heat-seeking vision, was most likely kicked up by comets that survived the death of their star. Before the star died, its comets and possibly planets would have orbited the star in an orderly fashion. But when the star blew off its outer layers, the icy bodies and outer planets would have been tossed about and into each other, resulting in an ongoing cosmic dust storm. Any inner planets in the system would have burned up or been swallowed as their dying star expanded.
The Helix nebula is one of only a few dead-star systems in which evidence for comet survivors has been found.
This image is made up of data from Spitzer's infrared array camera and multiband imaging photometer. Blue shows infrared light of 3.6 to 4.5 microns; green shows infrared light of 5.8 to 8 microns; and red shows infrared light of 24 microns.
Kavinė Magdė is a quirky roadside cafe in rural Lithuania. Magdė has decorated it in vintage radios, among other things.
The frequencies are labeled with the names of Soviet-bloc cities: Moscow, Odessa, Tallinn, Tashkent, Alma Ata, Novosibirsk, Leningrad, and a couple dozen others. And also some European capitals & Beijing. The farthest east Russian city I see so far is Chita, east of Lake Baikal; no Vladivostok. Maybe the signal from there didn't carry to Europe, even over short wave?
I did a search on the model name, Ural (Урал), and it was manufactured at the Sarapoul Orjonikidze Radio Works, at the foot of the Ural Mountains, around 1963; see www.radiomuseum.org/r/sarapoul_ural.html. The factory had been near Moscow up until WWII, but it was relocated in haste deep into Russia as the Germans closed in on the capital. The radio receives AM, FM/UHF, short wave, and long wave, and there is a record turntable under those coffee cups. Judging from the icons at bottom left and right, it has separate adjustments for bass & treble.
The region around the center of our Milky Way galaxy glows colorfully in this new version of an image taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
The data were previously released as part of a long, 120-degree view of the plane our galaxy (see www.spitzer.caltech.edu/images/2680-ssc2008-11a-Spitzer-F...). Now, data from the very center of that picture are being presented at a different contrast to better highlight this jam-packed region. In visible-light pictures, it is all but impossible to see the heart of our galaxy, but infrared light penetrates the shroud of dust giving us this unprecedented view.
In this Spitzer image, the myriad of stars crowding the center of our galaxy creates the blue haze that brightens towards the center of the image. The green features are from carbon-rich dust molecules, called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are illuminated by the surrounding starlight as they swirl around the galaxy's core. The yellow-red patches are the thermal glow from warm dust. The polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and dust are associated with bustling hubs of young stars. These materials, mixed with gas, are required for making new stars.
The brightest white feature at the center of the image is the central star cluster in our galaxy. At a distance of 26,000 light years away from Earth, it is so distant that, to Spitzer's view, most of the light from the thousands of individual stars is blurred into a single glowing blotch. Astronomers have determined that these stars are orbiting a massive black hole that lies at the very center of the galaxy.
The region pictured here is immense, with a horizontal span of 2,400 light-years (5.3 degrees) and a vertical span of 1,360 light-years (3 degrees). Though most of the objects seen in this image are located near the galactic center, the features above and below the galactic plane tend to lie closer to Earth.
The image is a three-color composite, showing infrared observations from two of Spitzer instruments. Blue represents 3.6-micron light and green shows 8-micron light, both captured by Spitzer's infrared array camera. Red is 24-micron light detected by Spitzer's multiband imaging photometer. The data is a combination of observations from the Galactic Legacy Infrared Mid-Plane Survey Extraordinaire (GLIMPSE) project, and the Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer Galactic survey (MIPSGAL).
Identical to Realtone TR-970, "Voyager": large and very well constructed multi band receiver with its characteristic cabinet in the form of a slightly pronounced "V" and thin for its size.
The chassis has nine NEC transistors, distinguishing the two large/round black audio output transistors, NEC 2SB165, powered by four "AA" size batteries.
This particular item is in very good condition and functioning, but requires fresh electrolytic capacitors.
This majestic view taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope tells an untold story of life and death in the Eagle nebula, an industrious star-making factory located 7,000 light-years away in the Serpens constellation. The image shows the region's entire network of turbulent clouds and newborn stars in infrared light.
The color green denotes cooler towers and fields of dust, including the three famous space pillars, dubbed the "Pillars of Creation," which were photographed by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in 1995.
But it is the color red that speaks of the drama taking place in this region. Red represents hotter dust thought to have been warmed by the explosion of a massive star about 8,000 to 9,000 years ago. Since light from the Eagle nebula takes 7,000 years to reach us, this "supernova" explosion would have appeared as an oddly bright star in our skies about 1,000 to 2,000 years ago.
According to astronomers' estimations, the explosion's blast wave would have spread outward and toppled the three pillars about 6,000 years ago (which means we wouldn't witness the destruction for another 1,000 years or so). The blast wave would have crumbled the mighty towers, exposing newborn stars that were buried inside, and triggering the birth of new ones.
The pillars of the Eagle nebula were originally sculpted by radiation and wind from about 20 or so massive stars hidden from view in the upper left portion of the image. The radiation and wind blew dust away, carving out a hollow cavity (center) and leaving only the densest nuggets of dust and gas (tops of pillars) flanked by columns of lighter dust that lie in shadow (base of pillars). This sculpting process led to the creation of a second generation of stars inside the pillars.
If a star did blow up in this region, it is probably located among the other massive stars in the upper left portion of the image. Its blast wave might have already caused a third generation of stars to spring from the wreckage of the busted pillars.
This image is a composite of infrared light detected by Spitzer's infrared array camera and multiband imaging photometer. Blue is 4.5-micron light; green is 8-micron light; and red is 24-micron light.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/N. Flagey (IAS/SSC) & A. Noriega-Crespo (SSC/Caltech)
The New General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars (abbreviated as NGC) is a catalogue of deep-sky objects compiled by John Louis Emil Dreyer in 1888 as a new version of John Herschel's General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars. The NGC contains 7,840 objects, known as the NGC objects. It is one of the largest comprehensive catalogues, as it includes all types of deep space objects and is not confined to, for example, galaxies. Dreyer also published two supplements to the NGC in 1895 and 1908, known as the Index Catalogues, describing a further 5,386 astronomical objects.
This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows the Helix nebula, a cosmic starlet often photographed by amateur astronomers for its vivid colors and eerie resemblance to a giant eye.
The nebula, located about 700 light-years away in the constellation Aquarius, belongs to a class of objects called planetary nebulae. Discovered in the 18th century, these cosmic butterflies were named for their resemblance to gas-giant planets.
Planetary nebulae are actually the remains of stars that once looked a lot like our sun. .
When sun-like stars die, they puff out their outer gaseous layers. These layers are heated by the hot core of the dead star, called a white dwarf, and shine with infrared and visible-light colors. Our own sun will blossom into a planetary nebula when it dies in about five billion years.
In Spitzer's infrared view of the Helix nebula, the eye looks more like that of a green monster's. Infrared light from the outer gaseous layers is represented in blues and greens. The white dwarf is visible as a tiny white dot in the center of the picture. The red color in the middle of the eye denotes the final layers of gas blown out when the star died.
The brighter red circle in the very center is the glow of a dusty disk circling the white dwarf (the disk itself is too small to be resolved). This dust, discovered by Spitzer's infrared heat-seeking vision, was most likely kicked up by comets that survived the death of their star. Before the star died, its comets and possibly planets would have orbited the star in an orderly fashion. But when the star blew off its outer layers, the icy bodies and outer planets would have been tossed about and into each other, resulting in an ongoing cosmic dust storm. Any inner planets in the system would have burned up or been swallowed as their dying star expanded.
The Helix nebula is one of only a few dead-star systems in which evidence for comet survivors has been found.
This image is made up of data from Spitzer's infrared array camera and multiband imaging photometer. Blue shows infrared light of 3.6 microns; green shows infrared light of 5.8 microns; and red shows infrared light of 24 microns.
The ExoMars rover’s Panoramic Camera (PanCam) includes ‘small items’ to aid the calibration and operation of the camera once on Mars.
In the foreground is the PanCam calibration target, comprising six 18 mm diameter coloured glass patches. The two 30 mm diameter white and multiband calibration patch will be used for calibration of the infrared spectrometer in addition to PanCam. The calibration set is mounted on the front of the rover deck in a region as clear as possible from sources of shadowing and stray light, and will be viewed by PanCam from an angle of about 23º from vertical.
Together with the calibration target, three ‘fiducial markers’ (back left) will form two right angle triangles on the rover deck to allow in situ geometric calibration.
At the back right of the transport plate is the ‘rover inspection mirror’, a 50 mm diameter convex spherical mirror that will allow the high resolution camera to monitor the drill spoil heap while drilling is taking place, as well as inspect the underside of the rover for diagnosis in the event of problems with uneven surfaces, for example. The mirror will also allow the PanCam to take ‘selfies’ of the rover.
The engineering models are shown here, mounted on their transport plate provided by Aberystwyth University, Wales, UK.
Credits: M. de la Nougerede, UCL/MSSL
I got this General Electric Monitor 10 ten-band radio for my 14th birthday in 1978. It was a good starter set which got me into the hobby with two shortwave bands, three public safety bands, aircraft, weather, AM and FM broadcast and even Citizen's Band - which was still popular at that time, and a large speaker.
In the K1DOD shack and mobile: Yaesu FT-2000, FT-8900 (satellite and packet), FT-817nd (portable HF), FT-1802, FTM-10R (Vespa Scooter mobile) , VX-8R (APRS/GPS enabled), VX-5R, VX-150, Kenwood TS-2000x, ICOM IC-92-AD (D-Star), Yaesu Aviator Pro II (aircraft transceiver), Motorola MTS 2000 (California State Parks), Iridium 9505A satellite phone, IC- R20, IC-RX7, Bearcat BCT15, Sony Wavehawk, Cobra 38 WXST (CB HT), MFJ 993B, Force 12 GT5 vertical dipole, homebrew copper pipe J-pole, Radiowavz G5RV center fed multiband, Rigblaster Plus, Rigblaster Plug and Play, DV Dongle, Echolink, Macs and PCs.
This was taken in the very early 80s on The Twin Towers. I was up there with my brother and my Mom. My mother, usually afraid of heights, and never having been on a plane said, "It looks so high up that it looks fake." Commenting on the spectacular view below of course. The antenna coming out of my head is actually on the other tower that is located NW of the SOUTH TOWER for visitors. I visited here about a dozen times. In the late 80s or early 90s, the roof was closed to visitors. My brother left his job at AIG in 1989. He worked on the 93rd floor of the Nort Tower, the one with the antenna behind me. I visited him once at work. Minolta XE-7 Sigma 16mm fisheye lens on tripod. Kodacolor 100. P.S. Hams: My monoband ICOM U16 HT fared well up here as did my pal's Motorola. Modern multiband HT's RX would be destroyed up here with their "full featured" wide coverage front end switched diodes/xsistors/ics combinations would create "intermod city". Note: There is nowhere to land a rescue helicopter here just for the record. Even if there was, the violent convective air currents during the 2001 attack would not have made it possible.
This infrared image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows what astronomers are referring to as a "snake" (upper left) and its surrounding stormy environment. The sinuous object is actually the core of a thick, sooty cloud large enough to swallow dozens of solar systems. In fact, astronomers say the "snake's belly" may be harboring beastly stars in the process of forming.
The galactic creepy crawler to the right of the snake is another thick cloud core, in which additional burgeoning massive stars might be lurking. The colorful regions below the two cloud cores are less dense cloud material, in which dust has been heated by starlight and glows with infrared light. Yellow and orange dots throughout the image are monstrous developing stars; the red star on the "belly" of the snake is 20 to 50 times as massive as our sun. The blue dots are foreground stars.
The red ball at the bottom left is a "supernova remnant," the remains of massive star that died in a fiery blast. Astronomers speculate that radiation and winds from the star before it died, in addition to a shock wave created when it exploded, might have played a role in creating the snake.
Spitzer was able to spot the two black cloud cores using its heat-seeking infrared vision. The objects are hiding in the dusty plane of our Milky Way galaxy, invisible to optical telescopes. Because their heat, or infrared light, can sneak through the dust, they first showed up in infrared images from past missions. The cloud cores are so thick with dust that if you were to somehow transport yourself into the middle of them, you would see nothing but black, not even a star in the sky. Now, that's spooky!.
Spitzer's new view of the region provides the best look yet at the massive embryonic stars hiding inside the snake. Astronomers say these observations will ultimately help them better understand how massive stars form. By studying the clustering and range of masses of the stellar embryos, they hope to determine if the stars were born in the same way that our low-mass sun was formed -- out of a collapsing cloud of gas and dust -- or by another mechanism in which the environment plays a larger role.
The snake is located about 11,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius.
This false-color image is a composite of infrared data taken by Spitzer's infrared array camera and multiband imaging photometer. Blue represents 3.6-micron light; green shows light of 8 microns; and red is 24-micron light..
The Zenith Royal 1000 was Zenith's first transistorized Transoceanic radio. It was released in 1957. There had been several tube Transoceanics beginning in 1942.. Zenith actually continued to make tube Transoceanics until 1962.
The Royal 1000 was a big step for the company. Thanks to the smaller solid state technology the Transoceanic got smaller and (in my opinion) more stylized with the addition of the brushed metal and chrome trim.
When new this radio retailed for $275. This multiband radio was high tech/top of the line in its day. The tube Transoceanics sold for half that price.
It is powered by eight D cell batteries. This example came from a fellow collector who picked it up at an auction for me. It works perfectly and sounds great.
Pictured below is the next generation Transoceanic, the royal 3000. It was the first Transoceanic radio to feature the FM band and was released in 1963.
A Faint Comet Rising Over the Arizona Horizon
What happens when a comet barely clears the horizon before dawn? On April 9, under the dark skies of Arizona, Comet C/2025 R3 was captured just moments after rising into view. From the Desert Bloom Observatory, the comet appeared extremely low in the sky—its faint glow filtered through thick layers of Earth’s atmosphere.
Despite the challenge, only seven exposures of 120 seconds each were secured before the comet was lost again to the brightening twilight. The result reveals a delicate, diffuse coma with hints of a developing tail, softly emerging from the horizon’s glow. Atmospheric extinction and scattering near the horizon reduce contrast and color, giving the comet its subdued and ghostly appearance.
Comets like C/2025 R3 are icy visitors from the outer Solar System. As they approach the Sun, solar radiation causes their volatile materials to sublimate, forming glowing comae and streaming tails that can stretch millions of kilometers across space.
Capturing such a fleeting target requires precise timing, patience, and a bit of luck. This image stands as a testament to the challenge of low-altitude astrophotography—where even a few frames can preserve a moment otherwise lost to the horizon.
Technical Details
Location: Desert Bloom Observatory, Arizona, USA
Date & Time: April 9, 2026 — 4:53 AM
Total Exposure: 7 × 120 seconds
Telescope: Celestron NexStar Evolution 9.25" (235mm f/10 Schmidt-Cassegrain)
Camera: ZWO ASI2600MC Pro
Mount: Sky-Watcher EQ6-R Pro
Guiding: ZWO 30mm f/4 Mini Guide Scope + ASI462MC
Accessories: Starizona HyperStar, ZWO EAF, ASIAIR Plus
Filter: Optolong L-Pro 2" Multiband
Processing: PixInsight and photoshop
U.S. Airmen with the 52nd Combat Communications Squadron work together to assemble a ground multiband terminal during Vigilant Shield 15 at the Royal Canadian Air Force 5 Wing at Canadian Forces Base Goose Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador province, Canada, Oct. 15, 2014. Vigilant Shield is a weeklong annual exercise designed to emphasize an integrated Department of Defense and civil response in support of the national strategy of aerospace warning and control, defense support of civil authorities and homeland defense. (DoD photo by Staff Sgt. Matthew B. Fredericks, U.S. Air Force/Released)
The Messier Catalog, sometimes known as the Messier Album or list of Messier objects, is one of the most useful tools in the astronomy hobby. In the middle of the 18th century, the return of Halley's comet helped to prove the Newtonian theory, and helped to spark a new interest in astronomy. During this time, a French astronomer named Charles Messier began a life-long search for comets. He would eventually discover 15 of them. On August 28, 1758, while searching for comets, Messier found a small cloudy object in the constellation Taurus. He began keeping a journal of these nebulous (cloudy) objects so that they would not be confused with comets. This journal is known today as the Messier Catalog, or Messier Album. The deep sky objects in this catalog are commonly referred to as Messier objects.
The New General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars (abbreviated as NGC) is a catalogue of deep-sky objects compiled by John Louis Emil Dreyer in 1888 as a new version of John Herschel's General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars. The NGC contains 7,840 objects, known as the NGC objects. It is one of the largest comprehensive catalogues, as it includes all types of deep space objects and is not confined to, for example, galaxies. Dreyer also published two supplements to the NGC in 1895 and 1908, known as the Index Catalogues, describing a further 5,386 astronomical objects.
Looking like a pair of eyeglasses only a rock star would wear, this nebula brings into focus a murky region of star formation. NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope exposes the depths of this dusty nebula with its infrared vision, showing stellar infants that are lost behind dark clouds when viewed in visible light.
Best known as Messier 78, the two round greenish nebulae are actually cavities carved out of the surrounding dark dust clouds. The extended dust is mostly dark, even to Spitzer's view, but the edges show up in mid-wavelength infrared light as glowing red frames surrounding the bright interiors. Messier 78 is easily seen in small telescopes to the naked eye in the constellation of Orion, just to the northeast of Orion's belt, but looks strikingly different, with dominant, dark swaths of dust. Spitzer's infrared eyes penetrate this dust, revealing the glowing interior of the nebulae.
The light from young, newborn stars are starting to carve out cavities within the dust, and eventually, this will become a larger nebula like the "green ring" imaged by Spitzer
A string of baby stars that have yet to burn their way through their natal shells can be seen as red pinpoints on the outside of the nebula. Eventually these will blossom into their own glowing balls, turning this two-eyed eyeglass into a many-eyed monster of a nebula.
This is a three-color composite that shows infrared observations from two Spitzer instruments. Blue represents 3.6- and 4.5-micron light and green shows light of 5.8 and 8 microns, both captured by Spitzer's infrared array camera. Red is 24-micron light detected by Spitzer's multiband imaging photometer.
This image from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope shows infant stars "hatching" in the head of the hunter constellation, Orion. Astronomers suspect that shockwaves from a supernova explosion in Orion's head, nearly three million years ago, may have initiated this newfound birth.
The region featured in this Spitzer image is called Barnard 30. It is located approximately 1,300 light-years away and sits on the right side of Orion's head, just north of the massive star Lambda Orionis.
Wisps of green in the cloud are organic molecules called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs are formed anytime carbon-based materials are burned incompletely. On Earth, they can be found in the sooty exhaust from automobile and airplane engines. They also coat the grills where charcoal-broiled meats are cooked.
Tints of orange-red in the cloud are dust particles warmed by the newly forming stars. The reddish-pink dots at the top of the cloud are very young stars embedded in a cocoon of cosmic gas and dust. Blue spots throughout the image are background Milky Way along this line of sight.
This composite includes data from Spitzer's infrared array camera instrument, and multiband imaging photometer instrument. Light at 4.5 microns is shown as blue, 8.0 microns is green, and 24 microns is red.
The Type-202-I Starfighter is a multirole strike fighter in service with KosmoFleet, the military wing of the Kosmotron Faction.
Crew: 1 Pilot
Length: 18 m
Wingspan: 6.5 m
Max Accelleration: 8.7g
Propulsion: Single K113 High performance nuclear rocket
Armament: 2 linear particle cannons
1 tactical antimatter missile
1 multiband EW pod
Shown in photos is Type 202-I in Ice Planet livery.
This is my first and only receiver from Turkey that I incorporate into my collection. Very similar, both inside and out, to the typical European designs of that time, in fact the modular chassis has six Telefunken transistors (TFK) and requires four D-size batteries.
Unfortunately it does not work and is a bit mistreated but it is still a good piece to collect.
It was given to me by my friend Armando Pous, collector of phonographs and radios, and that was part of the exhibition: MEMORIA DE OTRO TIEMPO SONORO (Sound memory of other times), sample of radios and old gramophones, that was held during July and August 2017 in the "FONOTECA NACIONAL", Francisco Sosa 383, Barrio de Santa Catarina, Coyoacán, Ciudad de México.
A multiband crystal set receiver (crystal radio) I built. The design of the case was inspired by old English crystal sets while the circuit was based on a unique Australian design of 1932. The set covers long wave, medium wave (AM broadcast), and shortwave. The external Philmore crystal detector is a dummy as there are 1N34A's inside that do the work. For the wooden case, I repurposed old quarter sawn oak hardwood flooring (purchased from a demolition salvage store), gluing the pieces to require sizes. Check out www.alvenh.com/misc-projects/crystalset for more info.
I finally revived my shortwave radio listening (SWL), an on-and-off pastime since I was about seven years old.
It's by far the earliest hobby that I could remember and often sat in front of my dad's Sanyo Transworld multiband radio, turning all the knobs, staring into the dial's backlight in the dark, listening to all kinds of weird sounds from it.
Long wave band was pretty fascinating as I heard mysterious stations that went on beeping the same sounds over and over again. It wasn't until I was in my teens that I learnt that those signals were in Morse code and they were non directional navigational beacons. 😁
Ever since my old Sony ICF-SW7600G breathed its last legs, I've been without a fully functional shortwave receiver for quite a while.
I did some research on YouTube and finally settled on this fairly inexpensive Tecsun PL-660 radio. It's not the best portable receiver but it is the best one for its price point.
Sadly shortwave listening is not that much fun compared to the 1980s. Many of my favorite English speaking radio stations have gone off the air, no thanks to digital radio, Internet streaming services and lack of funding.
BBC's English broadcasts for Southeast Asia have very limited airtime, Voice of America is now difficult to tune in while Radio Australia - my most favorite station ceased its shortwave service back in 2017 without my knowledge!
Today Radio China International has such a commanding presence on the airwaves - they have powerful transmitters with good quality reception in many languages.
The Messier Catalog, sometimes known as the Messier Album or list of Messier objects, is one of the most useful tools in the astronomy hobby. In the middle of the 18th century, the return of Halley's comet helped to prove the Newtonian theory, and helped to spark a new interest in astronomy. During this time, a French astronomer named Charles Messier began a life-long search for comets. He would eventually discover 15 of them. On August 28, 1758, while searching for comets, Messier found a small cloudy object in the constellation Taurus. He began keeping a journal of these nebulous (cloudy) objects so that they would not be confused with comets. This journal is known today as the Messier Catalog, or Messier Album. The deep sky objects in this catalog are commonly referred to as Messier objects.
The New General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars (abbreviated as NGC) is a catalogue of deep-sky objects compiled by John Louis Emil Dreyer in 1888 as a new version of John Herschel's General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars. The NGC contains 7,840 objects, known as the NGC objects. It is one of the largest comprehensive catalogues, as it includes all types of deep space objects and is not confined to, for example, galaxies. Dreyer also published two supplements to the NGC in 1895 and 1908, known as the Index Catalogues, describing a further 5,386 astronomical objects.
This majestic view taken by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope tells an untold story of life and death in the Eagle nebula, an industrious star-making factory located 7,000 light-years away in the Serpens constellation. The image shows the region's entire network of turbulent clouds and newborn stars in infrared light.
The color green denotes cooler towers and fields of dust, including the three famous space pillars, dubbed the "Pillars of Creation," which were photographed by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in 1995.
But it is the color red that speaks of the drama taking place in this region. Red represents hotter dust thought to have been warmed by the explosion of a massive star about 8,000 to 9,000 years ago. Since light from the Eagle nebula takes 7,000 years to reach us, this "supernova" explosion would have appeared as an oddly bright star in our skies about 1,000 to 2,000 years ago.
According to astronomers' estimations, the explosion's blast wave would have spread outward and toppled the three pillars about 6,000 years ago (which means we wouldn't witness the destruction for another 1,000 years or so). The blast wave would have crumbled the mighty towers, exposing newborn stars that were buried inside, and triggering the birth of new ones.
The pillars of the Eagle nebula were originally sculpted by radiation and wind from about 20 or so massive stars hidden from view in the upper left portion of the image. The radiation and wind blew dust away, carving out a hollow cavity (center) and leaving only the densest nuggets of dust and gas (tops of pillars) flanked by columns of lighter dust that lie in shadow (base of pillars). This sculpting process led to the creation of a second generation of stars inside the pillars.
If a star did blow up in this region, it is probably located among the other massive stars in the upper left portion of the image. Its blast wave might have already caused a third generation of stars to spring from the wreckage of the busted pillars.
This image is a composite of infrared light detected by Spitzer's infrared array camera and multiband imaging photometer. Blue is 4.5-micron light; green is 8-micron light; and red is 24-micron light.
Philips multi-band transistor radio. This is my first "portable". Lots of tlc and cosmetic refurbishing presents it as you see it. Like many European portables it has excellent tonal fidelity.
Ferguson is one of the older electronics companies, alongside Ultra, Dynatron, Pye and Bush in the United Kingdom. It was originally an American–Canadian pre-War company making radio sets for the U.K. market based upon contemporary American models. After World War II, it became Ferguson Radio Corporation, making radio receivers and, later, televisions. Later still, it became part of the British Radio Corporation. It was taken over by Thorn Electrical Industries in the late 1950s, but the Ferguson name continued to be used by Thorn, and its successor Thorn EMI.
Throughout the company's early history, Ferguson products were very popular across its wide customer base. By the early 1960s its wide product range included a most comprehensive range of audio and TV equipment. Small, battery-operated portable transistor radios to solid oak 6 ft wide hydraulic lid radiograms sporting fully automatic stackable Garrard turntables, multi-channel radios and 2-foot-wide stereo speakers were commonplace in many UK households. Open reel tape recorders and hi-fis followed.
Elegant and slim, as well as solid construction, typical of audio equipment from Germany, is what distinguishes this multiband receiver/cassette player that still works very well. It has Socket for microphone/radio/record player/earphone; Socket for remote and power supply; Socket for external speaker and Recesses for microphone TD-24 c.
The circuit has a total of 15 TFK transistors: AF 106, 2 x AF 121, AF 137, AF 136, 2 x BC 239, 2 x BC 238, 3 x BC148 B, BC177, AC178, AC179; and requires 5 "D" size batteries or, as an option, a rechargeable battery pack.
This equipment comes with its original box, although battered, and documents: Operating Instructions, Magnetophon Service and Guarantee Policy.
Upcoming project: I will be building an old English style crystal set for AM/Shortwave/Longwave. The set will be housed in a wooden box with a lid with lock and key. It will have a signal strength meter. The dials and meter will be mounted on a sheet of black acrylic (can't find phenolic sheets at an affordable price). The circuit will employ the Australian "Mystery" design because it's easy enough to be built as an oat-box crystal radio while giving high quality performance (it's called a "Mystery Set" because no one knows why it works; the design defies the laws of circuitry and yet outperforms many crystal set designs). The detector will be a 1N34A germanium diode; the pyrite detector is a dummy for looks only. I plan to use it as an AM/SW/LW tuner with my hi-fi set.
UPDATE: See www.flickr.com/photos/14275763@N08/25747832566 for schematic diagram.