2025 The Year In Pictures

January 1, 2026 by grahamrob in Broadband, Deep Sky Objects, DSLR, Earth, Equipment, Galaxy, General Astronomy, Imaging, Narrowband, Night Scapes, Solar system, Widefield Imaging and tagged astronomy, Astrophotography, Cygnus, DSO Imaging, Galaxies, Milky Way, Nebulae, Orion, Photography, Science, space | Leave a comment

The year 2025 was like no other. Starting with a knee replacement operation in January, shortly after we finally found a new house in March and moved to the lovely dark skies of Somerset at the end of June. Unfortunately, the ensuing turmoil left only a limited time for astronomy. Notwithstanding, I was able to supplement images from Redhill and our new home in Wookey, with some excellent data from Texas, USA and Chile to produce, what I hope you will agree, is an exciting 2026 calendar.

For other pictures and information, go to my website https://watchthisspaceman.com/ or a video of the calendar can be found here on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gn3ls_s71lQ and is best accessed on a PC or smart TV screen. Background music this year is Massive Attack’s track Atlas Air.

COVER	*NIGHT SKY MONTAGE AT CASTLE FARM OBSERVATORY:* All these images (at the top of the page) were taken at various times from the same location at our house in Wookey, Somerset. Clockwise from bottom left: (1) Nightscape of a small coppice looking south (2) Double Cluster – a pair of open star clusters in the Perseus constellation (3) Star trails (4) Sunset looking west.
JANUARY	THE GREAT ORION NEBULA, M42 ⁽¹⁾ The Orion Nebula is a gigantic cosmic cloud of interstellar dust and gas, which is the basis for the birth of numerous new stars or a “star nursery”. Being the brightest nebula in the northern hemisphere and just over 1,300 light-years distance from Earth, it can be seen with the naked eye on a clear night.
FEBRUARY	FLAMING STAR NEBULA, IC405 ⁽¹⁾ This nebula is illuminated by a powerfully bright blue variable star, AE Aurigae. The object’s epithet comes from the brightly lit ripples of gas and dust at the top of the image, illuminated by AE Aurigae and glowing hydrogen gas. This “runaway star” was ejected by a collision two million years ago from the Triangulum region of The Great Orion Nebula.
MARCH	CRAB NEBULA, M1 ⁽³⁾ This small but beautiful supernova Remnant (SNR) was the result of the explosion of the star CM Tau just over 970 years ago. Located at the centre of the nebula, the remaining Crab Pulsar neutron star spins at the rate of 30 times per second.
APRIL	PINWHEEL GALAXY, M101 ⁽³⁾ At nearly twice the size of the Milky Way and containing at least an estimated trillion stars, M101 is the second largest galaxy of the Messier catalogue and certainly one of the highlights of the spring galaxy season.
MAY	SCULPTOR GALAXY, NGC 253 ⁽³⁾ One of the advantages of obtaining data from Texas, USA, is that it enables views of objects in the Southern Hemisphere that are impossible from the UK. Also known as the Silver Dollar, it is one of the brightest galaxies in the night sky, which results from very high rates of star formation that are fed by the abundance of thick dust lanes.
JUNE	NEEDLE GALAXY, NGC 4546 ⁽³⁾ Seen edge-on from Earth, the Needle Galaxy is thought to be a barred spiral galaxy, some 33% larger than the Milky Way. It has at least two satellite galaxies and 240 globular clusters. Seen through a telescope the Needle Galaxy appears like a thin streak drawn across the dark night sky but look closer and its detailed magnificence is revealed.
JULY	WIZARD NEBULA, NGC 7380 ⁽²⁾ Formed only a few million years ago, the gases of this young emission nebula glow due to intense radiation from hot, massive stars within. Interwoven within this glowing gas are dark, dense regions of dust that sculpt the nebula’s dramatic and somewhat mystical appearance, in this case a wizard – which marks my first image from Somerset.
AUGUST	LOBSTER CLAW & BUBBLE NEBULAE, SH2-157 & NGC 7635 ⁽²⁾ Located in the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way, the Lobster consists of ionized hydrogen gas energized by ultraviolet radiation from nearby hot, young stars. The nebula’s distinctive claw-like shape arises from intricate filaments of glowing gas and dark dust. Nearby the Bubble Nebula owes its distinctive looks to a single, massive star, which emits fierce stellar winds that sweep up the surrounding gas into a nearly perfect, glowing shell.
SEPTEMBER	MILKY WAY ⁽²⁾ The night sky in Somerset is three times darker than Redhill, providing significantly better astronomy views. In this case a spectacular image of the Milky Way’s galactic centre.
OCTOBER		THE CYGNUS WALL ⁽²⁾ The Wall is a prominent ridge located within the much larger North America Nebula in the Cygnus constellation. It is an active star-forming region, about 20 light-years long, composed of gas and dust that glows from the energy of young stars.
NOVEMBER		GREAT BARRED GALAXY, NGC 1365 ⁽⁴⁾ A double-barred spiral galaxy located 56-million light-years away, spans over 200,000 light-years across, twice the Milky Way. The most distinctive feature is its massive central bar, which plays a crucial role in channelling gas and dust into the galactic core. As a Seyfert galaxy the nucleus is extremely bright due to energetic processes around its black hole.
DECEMBER		CORONA AUSTRALIS, NGC 6729 ⁽⁴⁾ This spectacular image is a combined reflection and emission nebula, set within the Australis Molecular Cloud. This wonderful, hazy looking nebula unusually exhibits both variable brightness and morphology over time.
*Image Data Source:* ⁽¹⁾Redhill, Surrey ⁽²⁾Castle Farm, Somerset ⁽³⁾USA ⁽⁴⁾Chile
HAPPY NEW YEAR + CLEAR SKIES FOR 2026

Twinkle, Twinkle………

December 7, 2025 by grahamrob in General Astronomy, Star Cluster and tagged astronomy, Astrophotography, DSO Imaging, Perseus, space | Leave a comment

Astronomy is full of surprises, and learning of the mere existence and nature of globular clusters was a revelation to me. Perhaps less spectacular and much younger but no less interesting and attractive are open clusters. The so-called Double Cluster is something of a highlight of autumn and winter skies that I had not, until now imaged; not by neglect but because until recently moving to Somerset my previous view of the north sky in Surrey was completely obscured by my house! Their combined luminosity makes the Double Cluster visible to the naked eye from dark locations, appearing as a hazy patch to the east of the Cassiopeia constellation and are excellent imaging objects too.

NGC 869 and NGC 884, known as the Double Cluster or h and χ (chi) Persei, is one of the most striking celestial pairings visible in the northern sky. Located in the Perseus spiral arm of the Milky Way, these two open star clusters are located about 7,500 light-years away but separated by only a few hundred light-years. Their proximity, similar age, and shared motion through space suggests that they formed from the same giant molecular cloud, making them a physically associated pair rather than a chance encounter.

Each cluster contains thousands of stars*, many of which are hot, blue and massive, thereby indicating an early stage of stellar development; estimates indicate an age of approximately 12 to 14 million years. Their youth explains the abundance of B-type and even O-type stars—stellar heavyweights that shine intensely but live only briefly.

The resulting image shows the Double Cluster as a dazzling field of stars. NGC 869, slightly denser and more compact, contains a bright core of hot blue stars. In contrast, NGC 884 appears more loosely concentrated, with a distinctive scattering of bright stars across its central region. Both clusters show subtle hints of red and orange from K-type supergiant stars, evidence that even at their youthful age, some massive stars have already begun to leave the main sequence.

*processing software identified 22,000 stars in the image!

COMPARISON: GLOBULAR v OPEN CLUSTERS
Feature	Globular Clusters	Open Clusters
Typical Stars	Old, metal-poor	Young, metal-rich
Number of Stars	10⁵–10⁶+	10²–10³
Shape	Spherical, dense	Irregular, loose
Location	Galactic halo	Galactic disk
Age	10–13 billion years	1 million–few billion years
Longevity	Very long-lived	Short-lived (astronomically)

Image Details
Object	The Double Cluster NGC 869 & NGC 884
Constellation	Cepheus
Distance	7,500 light-years
Size	60 arc minutes (each 70 light-years)
Apparent Magnitude	+3.8

Scope	William Optics GT81 + Focal Reducer FL 382mm f4.72
Mount & Control	ZWO AM5 + ASIair
Guiding	William Optics 50mm guide scope
	+ ZWO 120MM Mini
Camera	ZWO ASI294MM CMOS sensor
	FOV 2.87^o x 1.96^o Resolution 2.50”/pix Max. image size 4,144 x 2,822 pix
EFW	ZWOx8 EFW & 31mm Chroma Ha, OIII, SII 3nm & RGB filters
Capture & Processing	ASIair & PixInsight v1.9.3 Lockhart
Image Location & Orientation	Centre = RA 02:20:32.57 DEC +57:12:56.0 Top Left = North
Exposures	L x 21 + R x 28 + G x 28 B x 24 @ 120 sec + Total Integration Time: 3hr 22 min
	@ Gain 120 & 30 Offset 21 @ -15^oC
Calibration	10 x 120 sec Darks + 20 x LRGB Flats & Dark Flats @ ADU 32,000
Location & Darkness	Castle Farm Observatory, Wookey, Somerset – UK Typically Bortle 4
Date & Time	25^th November 2025 @ +18.30h
Weather	Approx. ❤^oC RH >=<80% 🌙 New Moon

Somerset Magic

October 19, 2025 by grahamrob in Deep Sky Objects, General Astronomy, Narrowband and tagged astronomy, Astrophotography, Cepheus, DSO Imaging, Nebulae, space, stars | Leave a comment

I try to ensure that since Watch This Space (Man) blasted off in August 2014, it does what it says on the tin (top of the page): A personal discovery of the Universe through astronomy and astrophotography. Naturally, alongside this journey life goes on, which this year has been a significant challenge for me in many ways. Shortly after imaging the Flaming Star Nebula at Fairvale Observatory, Surrey, in early January, I underwent major surgery to replace my right knee and inevitably, all physical astronomy came to a halt; latterly I managed to remotely obtain and process data from sources in Texas, USA and Chile, which was good fun.

Just two months later, whilst still in early recovery (which can take over a year), serendipity made an unexpected appearance, and by at the end of June, after 40-years living in Redhill, Surrey, we moved to a new house just outside England’s smallest city of Wells (population 11,145), in the beautiful countryside of north Somerset. This upheaval, combined with my recovery, has led to a protracted absence from astrophotography imaging but, at last, I’m now very pleased to present my first image from the new Castle Farm Observatory, in Somerset, of course.

Astronomically speaking, only one thing counts when imaging and that is the quality of viewing conditions (and clear skies), which I can already attest to be excellent here in Somerset. At my previous location just south of London in Surrey, conditions were poor, with an SQM value of 19.82 that was further complicated by low flying aircraft from three nearby airports. In comparison, the SQM at Castle Farm Observatory is 21.11, which being a log scale equates to a difference of x3.28 better sky darkness than before and, moreover, overflying aircraft are no longer a problem. Given this setting, combined with clear skies and a new moon in early September, I had high expectations for my first imaging session since moving to Somerset and was not disappointed by the results obtained of the object chosen for this auspicious occasion, the Wizard Nebula.

The Wizard Nebula, designated by the central star cluster of NGC 7380, is an emission nebula, in which its gases glow due to intense radiation from hot, massive stars from within the aforesaid embedded cluster. Interwoven within this glowing gas are dark, dense regions of dust that sculpt the nebula’s dramatic and somewhat mystical appearance, in this case a wizard. NGC 7380 was only formed a few million years ago and within it, young and massive O- and B-type stars generate strong stellar winds that shape and erode the surrounding material.

Thus, after an unprecedented break of some 257 days, I’m more than pleased to return to my own backyard astrophotography again, now based in the magic county of Somerset. The quality of the subs obtained on this first occasion confirmed the outstanding sky conditions, which were literally saturated by stars (see starless image above). Altogether, it was significantly better than experienced in Surrey and bodes well for what I hope will be an exciting time here at Castle Farm Observatory – Watch This (new) Space!

IMAGING DETAILS
Object	NGC 7380 The Wizard Nebula
Constellation	Cepheus
Distance	>= 7,200 light-years
Size	25 arc minutes (110 light-years)
Apparent Magnitude	+7.2

Scope	William Optics GT81 + Focal Reducer FL 382mm f4.72
Mount & Control	ZWO AM5 + ASIair
Guiding	William Optics 50mm guide scope
	+ ZWO 120MM Mini
Camera	ZWO ASI294MM CMOS sensor
	FOV 2.87^o x 1.96^o Resolution 2.50”/pix Max. image size 4,144 x 2,822 pix
EFW	ZWOx8 EFW & 31mm Chroma Ha, OIII, SII 3nm & RGB filters
Capture & Processing	ASIair, Deep Sky Stacker & PixInsight v1.9.3 Lockhart
Image Location & Orientation	Centre = RA 22:47:01.78 DEC +58:02:19.1 Top Left = North
Exposures	Ha x 35 + OIII x 35 + SII x 35 @ 300 sec + LRGB x 10 @ 60 sec Total Integration Time: 9hr 15 min
	@ Gain 120 & 30 Offset 21 @ -15^oC
Calibration	5 x 300 sec & 20 x 60 sec Darks + 10 x NB & 20x BB Flats & Dark Flats @ ADU 32,000
Location & Darkness	Castle Farm Observatory, Wookey, Somerset – UK Typically Bortle 4
Date & Time	21^st & 22^nd September 2025 @ +21.00h
Weather	Approx. <7^oC RH >=<60% 🌙 New Moon

Tangled In Space

October 6, 2025 by grahamrob in AstroBin, Deep Sky Objects, Galaxy, General Astronomy, Universe and tagged astronomy, Astrophotography, Corvus constellation, DSO Imaging, Galaxies, Milky Way, Science, space, Universe | Leave a comment

As Douglas Adams succinctly puts it in the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxies: Space…..is big. Really Big. If he had lived longer, even he would be surprised to learn how true these words were. Recent analyses using data from the James Webb Space & Hubble Telescopes, suggests there could be some 2 trillion galaxies. Notwithstanding, as this applies only to the observable universe, which is about 93 billion light-years across, the entire universe could be significantly larger, with many more galaxies beyond what we can already observe!

Perhaps then it is not so surprising that from time-to-time galaxies run into each other – our own Milky Way Galaxy is expected to collide with the Andromeda Galaxy in about 4.5 billion years. But there are already many exciting examples of such phenomena that we can image today, of which the Antennae Galaxies are one of the most famous and visually striking examples of two colliding galaxies. Located in the constellation Corvus, they provide a striking insight into what happens when massive galaxies merge – a process that reshapes their structure, triggering intense star formation, thereby setting the stage for the eventual creation of a single, larger galaxy, all played out over 100’s or even billions of years.

The Antennae Galaxies earned their name from the long, curved tidal tails of gas, dust, and stars that extend outward from the colliding pair of galaxies (NGC 4038 & 4039), thus resembling the antennae of an insect. These tails were created by the immense gravitational forces at play during the collision. As the two galaxies then pass through each other, their mutual gravity distorts their original spiral shapes, pulling out vast streams of stars and interstellar material. These tidal tails stretch for tens of thousands of light-years, making them some of the most spectacular features of any known galactic merger.

At the core of the Antennae Galaxies lies a chaotic and extremely active region. The violent gravitational interactions have compressed enormous clouds of gas and dust, sparking a burst of intense star formation, at a rate hundreds of times faster than that of our own Milky Way. Many of these newly formed stars are massive but short-lived, destined to explode as supernovae, thus enriching the surrounding space with heavy elements. Within another 400 million years, the Antennae’s nuclei will collide and therafter become a single galactic core with stars, gas, and dust swirling around it.

Imaging such a feature from Earth requires significant telescopic power, the darkest of night skies and the acquisition of lots of data. Located at the El Sauce Observatory in Chile, 50 hours of data acquired using the Planewave CDK20 astrograph is such a set-up worthy of the task. However, despite the excellent data quality, I found processing this complex event difficult so as to both show the complexity of the merging galaxies, whilst at the same time preserving the delicate nature of the tails of galactic debris. The final image is as profound as it is beautiful, demonstrating the immense forces across the cosmos and the inevitable consequences for the many galaxies that occupy the vastness of the Universe.

IMAGING DETAILS
Object	NGC 4038 & 4039, AKA Antennae Galaxies
Constellation	Corvus
Distance	62 million light-years
Size	5.21 x 3.1 arc minutes (actual 634,410 x 456,780 light years)
Apparent Magnitude	+10.3 / 10.4

Scope	Planewave CDK20
Mount	Planewave L500
Focuser	Optec Gemini
Camera	QHY600PH-M
Filters	Chroma LRGB + Ha 3nm
Processing	Deep Sky Stacker & PixInsight v1.9-3
Image Location & Orientation	Centre: RA 12:01:54.47 DEC -18:52:45.2 Up = North
Exposures	Ha 117 x 10 mins, L x 127, R x 80, G x 80, B x 70 @ 5mins Total Integration Time: 50hr 5min
Location & Darkness	Obstech El Sauce Observatory, Chile
Date	February 2025

New Horizons

September 14, 2025 by grahamrob in Deep Sky Objects, Galaxy, General Astronomy, Imaging and tagged Astrophotography, Galaxies | Leave a comment

Although some time back I lived and worked in Southern Africa for five years and subsequently spent much time visiting and working in many other countries south of the equator, since taking up astrophotography 12-years ago I’ve had no opportunity to work with data from the southern hemisphere, until now. The benefit of obtaining data remotely, which has become very popular in recent years, is that it provides access to different objects and better sky conditions. I did work with a telescope based in New Mexico, USA a few years ago, which was a fun experience but being in the Northern Hemisphere most targets were much the same as here in the UK, except they did have more than 250 clear skies each year. However, this time I’ve moved to what is widely considered to be the holy grail for astronomy, Chile, where night skies are rated as the best in the world!

The dataset was obtained from the famous El Sauce Observatory located in the Rio Hurtado Valley, south of the Atacama Desert, using a Planewave CDK20 astrograph telescope; currently retailing at First Light Optics for just over £42,000! Unsurprisingly, the combination of location and this telescope resulted in the best of the best datasets, which has been nothing less than a privilege to process.

My first target from the Southern Hemisphere therefore had to be something special and NGC 1365, also known as the Great Barred Spiral Galaxy, is just that. A double-barred spiral galaxy, it is located some 56 million light-years away in the Fornax constellation and spans over 200,000 light-years across, making it nearly twice the size of the Milky Way. The Great Barred Spiral Galaxy is also a dominant member of the Fornax Galaxy Cluster group of 58 galaxies.

*Several members of the Fornax Galaxy Cluster are imaged by the VLT Survey Telescope, including the barred spiral NGC 1365 on the lower right Credit: ESO/A. Grado/L. Limatola/VLT*

The most distinctive feature of NGC 1365 is its massive central bar, which plays a crucial role in channelling gas and dust into the galactic core. This inflow of material fuels both star formation and the activity of the galaxy’s central supermassive black hole, which is estimated to be some 2-million solar masses. Various observations in X-rays, infrared, and visible light wavelengths, reveals numerous star-forming regions along the spiral arms, particularly where they connect to the bar, giving the galaxy a luminous appearance.

NGC 1365 is also classified as a Seyfert galaxy, whereby the nucleus is extremely bright due to energetic processes around its black hole. Studies also indicate that the outer edges of the galactic disc are moving at about 84% of the speed of light!

IMAGING DETAILS
Object	NGC 1365, AKA Great Barred Spiral Galaxy or Fornax Propellor Galaxy
Constellation	Fornax
Distance	56 million light-years
Size	11.2 x 6.2 arc minutes (201,700 to 306,800 light years)
Apparent Magnitude	+10.3

Scope	Planewave CDK20
Mount	Planewave L500
Focuser	Optec Gemini
Camera	QHY600PH-M
Filters	Chroma LRGB + Ha 3nm
Processing	Deep Sky Stacker & PixInsight v1.9-3
Image Location & Orientation	Centre: RA 03:34:34.323 DEC -36:08:30.36 Up = North
Exposures	Ha x 62 10 mins, L x 78, R x 78, G x 71, B x 70 @ 5mins Total Integration Time: 35hr 5min
Location & Darkness	Obstech El Sauce Observatory, Chile
Date	August 2024

2024 The Year In Pictures

January 1, 2025 by grahamrob in Broadband, Dark Nebula, Deep Sky Objects, Galaxy, General Astronomy, Globular Cluster, Imaging, Narrowband, Nebula, Planetary Nebula, Processing, Solar system and tagged astronomy, Astrophotography, DSO Imaging, Galaxies, nasa, Nebulae, Photography, space, stars | Leave a comment

Long periods of bad weather made 2024 one of the most difficult years for my astrophotography but, I am pleased to say that this, the 11^th calendar is another belter! Purchased in 2014, I continue to use a William Optics GT81 telescope for most images taken from home, but this means that I’m running out of suitable targets for this equipment. Part of the answer has been to upgrade related equipment and improve my processing, which I hope you will see reflected in this year’s images. Moreover, I have used new skills and techniques to process the better-quality data in new ways – I hope you like the results?

Below is a brief summary of the calendar images used this year but for other pictures and more detailed information, please refer elsewhere to this website, my Flickr page or Astrobin page. In addtion, a video of the calendar can be viewed HERE on YouTube, which is best accessed on a PC or smart TV screen. The background music this year is from Jean-Michel Jarre’s Oxygène album.

COVER	ASTRO IMAGING MONTAGE: This colourful splash is a random selection of images, mostly taken from Redhill over the past +10-years of my astrophotography.
JANUARY	SEAGULL NEBULA, IC 2177: Located 3,650 light-years from Earth is the emission and reflection nebula complex of the so-called Seagull Nebula, some 200 light-years in size. It’s been 8-years since imaging this object and for good reason. From my location, the bird flies very low on the southern horizon and thus spends much of its time behind houses, trees, and tall hedges!
FEBRUARY	TAURUS MOLECULAR CLOUD: Located northeast of the Pleiades, below (south) the California Nebula (see November), spanning more than 30^o of the night sky is the Taurus Molecular Cloud (TMC), a rich area of dark nebulae punctuated by bright areas of new star formation. The TMC is thought to be the nearest star forming region to Earth which, if you look carefully, includes numerous complex dark and reflection nebulae and the odd galaxy.
MARCH	*HIND’S VARIABLE NEBULA & HYADES, NGC 1555:** Discovered by the English astronomer John Russell Hind in 1852 this nebula is situated 400 light-years away in the constellation of Taurus, between the stars of Aldebaran and the Pleiades. The nebula is a Herbig-Haro object – a bright patch of nebulosity in which new stars are forming – which often change in apparent size and brightness.
APRIL	LEO GALAXY CLUSTER: With few exceptions, galaxies are located very far from Earth, making them very small from our perspective and a challenge for my equipment. However, here I imaged the spectacular Leo Galaxy Cluster, a mere 330 million light-years from Earth. Containing at least 70 major galaxies, the Leo Cluster unusually consists mostly of spiral galaxies. The bright elliptical galaxy near the centre of the image, has one of the largest known black holes in the universe, which is about 10 billion times more massive than our sun!
MAY	IRIS NEBULA, NGC 7023*: While the focus of the image is the alluring bright blue reflection nebula, careful processing reveals that this celestial flower is enveloped within a vast region of interstellar dust.
JUNE	SOMBRERO GALAXY, MESSIER 104: Seen from Redhill, the Sombrero galaxy is even lower in the summer sky than the aforesaid Seagull, transiting between the trees and along the top of our +15-foot hedge! An unbarred galaxy, its bright bulbous centre is encircled by dark dust lanes, which viewed side-on from Earth creates the appearance of a sombrero hat or perhaps a flying saucer?
JULY	PuWe-1*: Is a very faint planetary nebula in the Lynx constellation, discovered in 1980 by Purgathofer & Weinberger. It is one of the largest planetary nebulae visible, with a diameter like the full moon and at 1,200 light-years, is one of the closest to Earth. A planetary nebula is a region of cosmic gas and dust formed from the cast-off outer layers of a dying star; despite the name, planetary nebulae have nothing to do with planets.
AUGUST	NORTH AMERICA & PELICAN NEBULAE: It’s at this time of the year (August) I usually turn my attention to the Cygnus constellation and the plethora of imaging opportunities it provides, which inevitably tend to be narrowband targets. Interstellar dust illuminated by large bright areas of star formation are responsible for the formation of both these popular objects.
SEPTEMBER	FORSAKEN NEBULA, IC 5068: This complex area is known for the graphically shaped streaks of cold, dark dust clouds that criss-cross the dense, brightly coloured gas regions of nebulosity. Situated within the adjacent Cygnus molecular cloud just below the Pelican Nebula and close to other more famous objects, this low emission nebula is unfortunately known as the Forsaken Nebula!
OCTOBER		*THE CHINESE CHARACTER, LDN 673:** It might seem paradoxical but often it is the absence of light that makes an image interesting. About 600 million light-years from Earth, within the Aquila constellation, is Lynd’s Dark Nebula (LDN) 673. Some 7-light years in size, this fragmented dark molecular cloud complex contrasts against the colourful molecular clouds and stars of the Milky Way, which is reminiscent of a Chinese character.
NOVEMBER		CALIFORNIA NEBULA, NGC 1499: Located in the Perseus constellation, in the Orion arm of the Milky Way 1,000 light-years from Earth, NGC 1499 is a large emission nebula about 100 light-years long. First imaged in 2016, new improved data and processing now discloses the full grandeur of this object.
DECEMBER		ROSETTE NEBULA, NGC 2244: Approximately 5,000 light-years away, the vast cloud of gas and dust had been sculpted into the distinctive rose-like shape, while meanwhile a central star cluster has blown-away a large hollow within the molecular cloud. Revisiting this old favourite for the fourth time since 2015, here I have experimented with an unusual colour palette combination that has produced an exciting alternative image of the night sky’s rose.
*Footnote:* All images taken from Redhill, Surrey or at a dark sky site in New Mexico, USA shown by an asterisk*
*HAPPY NEW YEAR + CLEAR SKIES FOR 202*5

Changing Times: AM5 mount & more

September 23, 2024 by grahamrob in General Astronomy and tagged astronomy, Astrophotography, Camera, Photography, space | Leave a comment

My astrophotography journey started just over 10-years ago and looking back, it’s clear that my timing was fortuitous, as over this period we have seen several developments that have completely transformed the hobby for amateurs.

Wide availability of high-quality telescopes for relatively modest prices
Development of CMOS sensor cameras
Major advances of image capture and processing software
Introduction of AI to image processing

And the changes just keep coming.

When not imaging or processing, I’m sure that many astrophotographers spend too much time looking online at new equipment, particularly telescopes and cameras! However, when my journey started in about 2014, it didn’t take long to discover that perhaps the mount is the most important piece of equipment. I started observing with a Skywatcher 150PL on a EQ3-2 mount ( see above ) but soon thereafter discovered astrophotography, which required the addition of a small motor for tracking. It was fun but completely inadequate for good imaging, so then moved onto a William Optics GT81 triplet refractor on a Skywatcher AZ-EQ6 GT mount ( see below ), which completely changed everything and, more importantly, gradually resulted in better images.

My trusty, but oh so heavy AZ-EQ6 GT mount

I continue to use the AZ-EQ6 GT, which technically remains an excellent mount, but it is very heavy and frankly has become more and more tedious to set-up and take down each time, whilst moreover, my back is finding it too much hard work. It is said that necessity is the mother of invention and so a completely new type of mount slowly emerged on the market last year, that is now becoming nothing less than a revolution. It seems too good to be true, but its features are:

Small & light weight
High load capacity that doesn’t require counterweights
No need to be balanced
High torque
Low if any backlash

Apart from the weight issue, commonly used GEM mounts are based on worm gears, which inevitably suffer from backlash, that can be a major problem for astrophotography. Although this can be minimised with good set-up and various software, it will always remain a problem. The new harmonic drive or strain wave mounts are based on completely different technology, that surprisingly has been used for many years in avionics and robotics, making it tried and tested technology. A strain wave mount uses a flexible spline and a rotating elliptical plug to transmit motion and achieve high precision and torque, which allows for large payloads in a compact and portable package ( see images immediately below ) . Click HERE for more technical information. Initially there were only a few manufacturers of Harmonic / Strain Wave mounts but now the word’s out and all manufacturers are rushing to join the game.

Over the past decade the Chinese technology company ZWO Optical have emerged as a dominant force and leading innovator in astrophotography; I’ve been using various excellent ZWO CMOS cameras since 2015. It was therefore no surprise that ZWO were amongst the first to launch a Harmonic Drive mount, initially the AM3 then the AM5 which is what I purchased earlier this year; the main difference between the two is capacity, the AM5 being greater. For various reasons, personal and being busy imaging with the AZ-EQ6 GT, I only got round to using the AM5 in August ( see below) and have not been disappointed.

One of ZWO’s quirks is that, where possible, their equipment is often only compatible with other ZWO products. It can be a bit of a problem but given the quality of their equipment I’m not usually put off. Notwithstanding, the AM5 will fit some other tripods but in this case, I chose to purchase the excellent and super lightweight ZWO TC40 carbon fibre tripod, together with the ZWO PE200 pier extension, which reduces the likelihood of the OTA / camera colliding with the tripod. Like my previous experience of ZWO equipment, everything is well designed and exceptionally well made. Moreover, it is substantially lighter than my AZ-EQ6 mount!

Although not essential, to reduce the set-up / take-down time as well as provide convenient integrated control and capture software, I also chose to get ZWO’s well tested and popular ASIair Plus, which can easily be attached either to the mount or scope. Basically, it is a very small astrophotography computer / controller, which can also help manage various power requirements such as cameras and dew straps. Finally, and because for now I wanted to piggyback my existing William Optics GT81 scope which uses a Lodestar X2 guiding camera that is incompatible with the ZWO equipment, I added a dedicated 50mm William Optics 50mm guide scope with a ZWO ASI120MM mini guide camera.

*The AM5 mount, ASIair plus (on the left) and OTA rig. It looks busy but once the rig is established it just lifts into place and connects in less than 5 minutes and you’re ready to go!*

Finally, only in recent weeks have I had the chance and weather conditions to set-up and try out this new equipment. The early results have been good so far and I hope the limited integration time of the image here will be just a taster of what is to come. The AM5 itself has been a breeze to use and its light weight and set-up is clearly going to revolutionise my astrophotography but the ASIair plus is also a significant game changer that I’m still getting to grips with.

The ASIair plus delivers an excellent and mostly, easy-to-use experience, which with time I’m sure I’ll get to love but to miniaturise and streamline operating compared to my current set-up and control equipment and software, I find it lacking in finesse. Notwithstanding, it is an incredible piece of equipment that works very well with the AM5 mount. I am particularly impressed by the Polar Alignment and Meridian Flip functions, of which the latter is just amazing!

All-in-all the weight and convenience of the AM5 together with the other ZWO equipment is likely to result in a better and importantly, fun time when imaging. In particular, with a truly portable set-up I’m hoping to revisit the end of my garden, from where I can see the north sky and all its objects, hitherto obscured by my house, and maybe even get to image at some dark sites, we shall see – these are certainly changing times, which so far I’ve really enjoying.

IMAGING DETAILS
Object	NGC 7000 North American & Pelican Nebulae
Constellation	Cygnus
Distance	2,590 light-years
Size	120 x 100 arc mins
Apparent Magnitude	Various

Scope	William Optics GT81 + Focal Reducer FL 382mm f4.72
Mount	ZWO AM5 + ASIair plus
Guiding	William Optics 50mm guide scope
	ZWO120MM mini guide camera
Camera	ZWO ASI294MM CMOS sensor
	FOV 2.87^o x 1.96^o Resolution 2.50”/pix Max. image size 4,144 x 2,822 pix
EFW	ZWOx8 EFW & 31mm Chroma Ha, OIII, SII filters
Capture & Processing	ZWO ASIair plus, Deep Sky Stacker & PixInsight v1.8.9-3
Image Location & Orientation	Centre = RA 20:55:42.97 DEC +44:20:53.80 Top = North
Exposures	Ha x11 + OIII x13 + SII x13 x 300 sec Total Integration Time: 3hr 05 min
	@ Gain 120 @ -20^oC
Calibration	5 x 300 sec Darks 10 x NB Flats & Dark Flats @ ADU 32,000
Location & Darkness	Fairvale Observatory – Redhill – Surrey – UK Typically Bortle 5-6
Date & Time	11^th September 2024 +22.00h
Weather	Approx. <15^oC RH >=60% 🌙 55% Waxing

Hind’s Variable Nebula

August 6, 2024 by grahamrob in General Astronomy | Leave a comment

Hind’s Variable Nebula (NGC1555) is situated 400 light-years away in the region between Aldebaran and the Pleiades, in the constellation Taurus, in the same area as the Hyades (see below). The nebula is a Herbig-Haro object – a bright patch of nebulosity in which new stars are forming – which changes in apparent size and brightness. It is illuminated by the young pre-main sequence triple star system T-Tauri and was discovered by the English astronomer John Russell Hind in 1852.

Close-up (cropped) version of Hind’s Variable Nebula

The data for this image was obtained from the Deep Sky West (DSW) site in New Mexico using a Takahashi FSQ 106 paired with a QSI 683-WSG8 camera, which provides a widefield view of the nebula (see top of the page), thereby including many colourful bright stars that dominate this area. The addition of Ha data further highlights the complex nature of the region which is not fully seen in an LRGB image.

IMAGING DETAILS
Object	NGC1555 Hind’s Variable Nebula & Hyades
Constellation	Taurus
Distance	400 light-years + Hyades 153 light-years
Size	4 light-years ~5.908 arc secs
Apparent Magnitude	+9.98

Scope	Takahashi FSQ 106 FL 530mm f/5 + Moonlight Nightcrawler focuser
Mount	Paramount MyT
Guiding	Yes
Camera	QSI 683-WSG8 KAF-8300 full frame CCD sensor 5.4nm pixels
	FOV 1.94^o x 1.46^o Resolution 2.1”/pix. Image array 3326 x 2,507 pix
Processing	Deep Sky Stacker, PixInsight v1.8.9-2
Image Location & Orientation	Centre – RA 04:21:53.55 DEC +19:19:49.3
Exposures	L x31, R x14, G x19, B x19 x 15 mins + Ha x16 x 30 minutes @ -20C Total Integration Time: 28hr 45min
Calibration	20 x 900 sec & 20 x 1800 sec Darks x56 Bias & x20 LRGB Ha Flats
Location & Darkness	Deep Sky West – amateur hosting facility near Rowe, New Mexico – USA SQM Typically >= 21.7
Date & Time	Q1 2019

Celestial Fleur-De-Lys

June 16, 2024 by grahamrob in Broadband, Deep Sky Objects, General Astronomy, Processing and tagged astronomy, Astrophotography, Cepheus, DSO Imaging, Reflection Nebula, space | Leave a comment

Whilst the highlight is the alluring bright blue reflection nebula NGC 7023 AKA Iris Nebula, careful processing reveals that this celestial flower is enveloped within a vast region of interstellar dust, altogether making for a spectacular image. Strictly speaking NGC 7023 refers to an open cluster within the reflection nebula, which is itself illuminated by a magnitude +7.4 star designated HD 200775 – the cropped starless image shows the beautiful detail that makes up the Iris ‘flower’.

IMAGING DETAILS
Object	NGC 7023 AKA Iris Nebula
Constellation	Cepheus
Distance	1,400 light-years
Size	6 light-years (Iris Nebula only)
Apparent Magnitude	+6.8 (Iris Nebula only)

Scope	Takahashi FSQ 106 FL 530mm f/5 + Moonlight Nightcrawler focuser
Mount	Paramount MyT
Guiding	Yes
Camera	QSI 683-WSG8 KAF-8300 full frame CCD sensor 5.4nm pixels
	FOV 1.94^o x 1.46^o Resolution 2.1”/pix. Image array 3326 x 2,507 pix
Processing	Deep Sky Stacker, PixInsight v1.8.9-1
Image Location & Orientation	Centre – RA 21:02:16.34 DEC +67:45:54.8
Exposures	L x15, R x20, G x14, B x15 x 900 secs @ -20C Total Integration Time: 16hr
Calibration	Darks, Bias & LRGB Flats
Location & Darkness	Deep Sky West – amateur hosting facility near Rowe, New Mexico – USA SQM Typically >= 21.7
Date & Time	Q2 2018

2023 The Year In Pictures

January 1, 2024 by grahamrob in Broadband, Dark Nebula, Deep Sky Objects, Equipment, Galaxy, General Astronomy, Globular Cluster, Imaging, Mosaic, Narrowband, Nebula, Other, Planetary Nebula, Processing, Samyang 135, Supernova, Widefield Imaging and tagged Aurora Borealis, DSO Imaging, Galaxies, Nebulae | Leave a comment

This Christmas marks the 10^th edition of my astrophotography calendar, consisting of my better images from the previous 12-months, which I produce for myself and members of the family. Wow doesn’t time fly? Based on these images, I also compile a video of the images set to music, which we all watch together before seeing the actual calendar. It’s become something of an occasion and is a great way to present the images, which look wonderful on today’s smart TV’s and is fun to watch and share with the family.

THE CALENDAR

Much longer imaging times (total of more than 145 hours), re-imaging old favourites in new ways and unusual, overlooked, or difficult objects, resulted in a very good 2023 astrophotography year and perhaps the best calendar yet? The calendar for 2024 on YouTube can be viewed by clicking HERE and below is a brief overview of each image. More detailed background information and imaging details for those interested can be found in relevant blogs I posted on this website. The background music is the track Appleshine from Underworld’s album Drift.

COVER	SH2-284: Close-up of April’s image – along the inside of the ring structure are many dark dust pillars and globules, which on the right seem to resemble a hand with a bony finger pointing inwards!
JANUARY	NGC 1333: Nestled within the western area of the Perseus Molecular Cloud, some 1,100 light-years from Earth is the colourful NGC 1333 reflection nebula, one of the closest and most active star-forming regions of the night-sky.
FEBRUARY	Spaghetti Nebula: Straddling the boundary of Taurus and Auriga constellations, is the giant supernova remnant (SNR) Simeis-147. The stellar explosion occurred 40,000 years ago, leaving a rapidly spinning neutron star or pulsar at the core of the now complex and the expanding SNR.
MARCH	Aurora Borealis: Situated just below the Arctic Circle, Iceland is well known both for its geology and views of the Aurora Borealis, which we saw in March on the south coast near Kirkjubaejarkklaustur.
APRIL	SH2-284: A star-forming region of dust and gases, sculpted by radiation and interstellar winds emanating from a young (3 to 4 million years) star cluster located near the centre.
MAY	M3 Globular Cluster*: Consisting of 500,000 stars and over 11 billion years old, M3 is one of150 globular clusters that orbit around the Milky Way Galaxy.
JUNE	*M27 Apple Core Nebula:** A planetary nebula, consisting of a glowing shell of ionized gas ejected from a red giant star in its late stage of life to become a white dwarf. Complex hydrogen (red) and oxygen (blue) fans form around the outer regions, with a pulsar-like beam transecting the nebula.
JULY	Monkey Head Nebula: Located 6,400 light years from Earth in the Orion constellation, the ‘Monkey’ is a so-called emission nebula, where new stars are being created within at a rapid rate.
AUGUST	SH2-115: This widefield image contains a richness of various emission nebulae, centred around the distinctive large blue SH2-115 region. Just to the left of SH2-115 is the small but enigmatic SH2-116 a faint, blue disc thought to be a planetary nebula.
SEPTEMBER	LDN-768 Black Cat Nebula: Close to M27 in the constellation of Vulpecula (“Little Fox”), is a dense region of stars broken-up by dark nebulae to create intriguing shapes. Here strung out from left-to-right, several of the dark nebulae seem to coalesce (visually) to create the form of a black cat.
OCTOBER		SH2-126 Great Lacerta Nebula: On the western edge of the Milky Way in the southern part of Lacerta, is the very large but faint emission nebula SH2-126. The red filament structures stretch over 3 degrees, to the right is the Gecko Nebula, a molecular cloud associated with bright young stars.
NOVEMBER		Flaming Star & Tadpoles Nebula: Two emission nebulae: dust & gas of the Flaming Star (below) combined with red ionized hydrogen gas produces a flame affect. Above, the stellar winds and radiation pressure from hot massive stars creates the Tadpoles ‘wriggling’ away from the centre.
DECEMBER		*M51 Whirlpool Galaxy:** As the smaller galaxy passes behind M51, joint gravitational forces are interacting, resulting in the misalignment of stars and unusually bright blue and pink areas across the Whirlpool galaxy. Their fates are inextricably linked and might eventually merge.
*Footnote:* All images taken from Redhill, Surrey or telescope at a dark sky site in New Mexico, USA shown by an asterisk*
*HAPPY NEW YEAR + CLEAR SKIES FOR 2024*