#nlastro β Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #nlastro, aggregated by home.social.
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I think this is the last of my 2025 unprocessed data series. Data captured July & Aug of 2025
I have unprocessed 2025 data for other targets. But I hope to capture more on those this spring, before processing.
vdB130: area of Hydrogen nebulosity in Cygnus constellation, near Crescent nebula. It includes pretty orange & blue stars.
6" refractor w/mono CMOS camera. About ~20min each in R, G & B. Target really deserves more exposure time.
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Another from last year's "Galaxy Season". Image data captured over 3 nights in February and March of 2025.
NGC4535 is a pretty spiral galaxy. Being located in the Virgo constellation there are unsurprisingly many other small galaxy smudges - as shown in the labelled wider field view.
6" refractor with a mono CMOS camera. Approx 1 hour each of red, green and blue combined into a single colour image.
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Close to catching up on unprocessed images from last year. This globular cluster image data was captured June and July of 2025.
Located in constellation Hercules. It was first noticed by William Herschel in 1787. It is one of about 150 GCs in our Milky Way galaxy.
I've included an annotated version to show all the "faint fuzzies" labelled as PGCs. Mostly very distant galaxies.
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Continuing my journey to process images from data captured a year ago. This data captured late 2024 and January 2025.
In the upper right corner of the widefield view is #GlobularCluster NGC2419 (#Caldwell 25) - the "Intergalactic Wanderer". So called because it is well outside the Milky Way - it was perhaps yeeted out!
In the lower left corner is a small galaxy PGC21517. Surprised it does not have an NGC/IC designation (that I can find).
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Yet another image processed from a year ago. Data captured late 2024 and early 2025.
Known as the Fossil Footprint Nebula - NGC 1491. Located in constellation Perseus.
6" refractor with a mono CMOS camera. About ~2hr each in Ha, [OIII] and [SII]. Mapped to RGB in "SHO" palette (R=[SII] etc).
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Another result finally processed from data captured around this time last year.
A group of galaxies in Leo with a nice mixture of galaxy shapes - elliptical, face-on spiral (arms appear more like an outer ring), edge-on spiral and a barred spiral. Details in ALT text description.
6" refractor with a mono CMOS camera. About 30min each in R, G and B.
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Another one finally processed from data collected last Spring.
Two very different looking globular clusters: M53 on the left and NGC5053 on the right. In Coma Berenices. They just barely fit in the frame.
6" refractor with a mono CMOS camera. About 2hr each in R, G and B.
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Obsy has been offline for months due to a dead camera, which I just got back from repairs. But will be a little longer before it's back in action βΉοΈ (~150cm snow in 6 days - more snow on the way tonight).
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Just getting around to processing images captured in my back yard obsy a year ago!
This is face-on spiral galaxy NGC3344 which can be found in Leo Minor.
6" refractor with a mono CMOS camera. About 45min each in R, G and B.
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Playing around with some images captured on a clear dark night late September. One is a single 2-minute tracked image looking over some treetops in #TerraNovaNP #DarkSkyPreserve.
The other is a stack of 20 of these tracked images (with the tree tops cropped out). Can "push" the processing a lot more with the stack.
Canon 6D (modified), 35mm lens, iso3200 f/2.5
Single image mostly processed in #darktable. Stack mostly in #PixInsight
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Always trying to improve my processing skills (because there is always lot of room to improve π€ͺ). Took another stab at this one from August during a Dark Sky #RASC astronomy event at #TerraNovaNP.
Single 25sec image 12800iso 14mm f2.5
Getting a better hang of free/open-source #darktable which has been a great replacement for Lightroom. Final tweaks in Pix Insight.
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Had a second camera and less-wide lens (35mm vs 14mm) while at Sandy Cove beach in September. Made for a better close-up of the #MilkyWay.
It is outside the #TerraNovaNP #DarkSkyPreseve, and near a small village, but still decently dark @ Bortle 3.
I also recorded some audio. It was quiet with no wind. Just a gentle lapping of some small waves. Had the whole beach to myself (and the dog!). Serene.
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A beautiful quiet night late September on Sandy Cove beach, east coast of #Newfoundland. It was so calm and peaceful, I didn't want to leave.
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I sometimes try to capture #NightScape scenes in #TerraNovaNP campground (Newman Sound) that folks might find recognizable. And perhaps the park might find useful for promotional purposes.
Pretty happy with how this one turned out. Even captured some #Airglow.
This was captured later in September. Might not have been possible earlier in the season as the park still has work to do addressing #LightPollution generated by "uninformed" campers.
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The #MilkyWay over a small brook. Captured during late September's new-moon phase.
Didn't turn out quite the way I hoped (dim foreground). It was so dark nestled between high trees. But it sure was peaceful there.
#BigBrook #TerraNovaNP #DarkSkyPreserve #nlskies #astrophotography #nlastro
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Am I addicted to Milky Way shots?
.
.
.No comment.
#astrodon #AirGlow
#MilkyWay #Astrophotography #TerraNovaNP #BigBrook
#DarkSkyPreserve
#nlskies #nlastro -
Working on improving my #MilkyWay processing. And learning the ins and outs of #darktable. Still lots to learn on both fronts!
This shot from Sandy Pond 23rd August at #ParksCanada #TerraNovaNP - a #DarkSkyPreserve
Skies were pretty dark but some #LightPollution is visible over the distant hill, from a small town outside the park.
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Finally got to try out my newly repaired solar telescope on Tuesday. Sol looks good. My solar processing skills need improving ;=) π€ͺ
Unfortunately I've been smoked out since then.
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Another glorious clear and dark night sky at #TerraNovaNP #DarkSkyPreserve on Wednesday. The park still has work to do addressing #LightPollution within the #campground, but I managed to find some shadows to capture these images from.
Second image is looking up at Cygnus, the #MilkyWay and some red nebulae. Captured with a 50mm lens and the venerable Canon 6D (modified).
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Finally got back out to a proper dark sky this past weekend. Neighbouring camp site had crazy bright lights left on all night - thus the lit up trees. Localized #LightPollution
Following night found a spot away from camper lights.
Wasn't the best sky transparency but the overall experience ... cathartic!
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Obligatory winter capture of the Orion Nebula (& Running Man Nebula). ~1hr each of RGB, 1.5 hrs of Lum & ~2hrs of Ha.
Captured in increments over 16 nights from late October to late January (because there are lots of obstructions in my back yard).
At ~1300 light years away, it is one of the closest stellar nurseries to our solar system. And one of the most (over) photographed (apologies!). π€ͺ
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The Flaming Star nebula in Auriga is interesting because of its prominent combination of emission (red) and reflection (blue) nebula components.
About an hour each of R,G and B, captured in January. Subject deserves more image capture time, but this was a test while experimenting with some aspects of capture automation.
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Observatory algorithm avoids targeting objects during bright moon periods. But hate wasting imaging time so fill these gaps with "low priority" targets by relaxing the rules (moon-target distance etc).
This "low priority" target is M74, the Phantom Galaxy. From ~3 hrs usable RGB & ~1.5 hrs Ha captured in January. Happy w/result, considering.
"Phantom" because it can be particularly difficult to see via eyepiece in amateur telescopes.
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Challenging times ahead.
Needed to take a break from it, so finally got 'round to processing nightscape images captured last summer (31 July) at Terra Nova National Park #DarkSkyPreserve.
Created a timelapse which has a nice surprise (ie. aurora) at the end. Too big to post on Mastodon, but you can see it here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nlskies/54883433421/in/album-72157714174945456Looking forward to this year's dark sky adventures.
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The Bubble Nebula can be seen towards the constellation Cassiopeia.
Data from multiple nights in November & December w/ [SII], [OIII] & Ha filters. About 2 hours each. Should have captured some RGB for better star colour π€ͺ
Stellar winds from a massively bright star blow out gas and dust creating a bubble shock wave in the surrounding molecular cloud, which itself is excited by the stars energy into emitting hydrogen alpha orange/red light.
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NGC 891 (Caldwell 23, Silver Sliver galaxy, Outer Limits galaxy, PGC 9031, UGC 1831). Astronomers (Pro and AM) love cataloguing and naming!
Always playing catch-up on image processing. Captured this 'data' in late October and early November.
Should probably have a bit more reddish cast to it, but quite happy with the result.
About an hour each of RGB, and 2 hours of Luminance filter.
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Tadpole Nebula in constellation Auriga. From my Bortle 5/6 back yard.
I've been testing NINA #TargetScheduler plugin. Based on criteria such as moon proximity, season, time of night etc. it determines which targets to image & for how long, each night (selecting from preset list). Working well so far.
I kept these subs short just so I could see the process in action. Still managed to collect ~6 hours total, over a few clear nights.
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Messier 33: The #Triangulum Galaxy
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
It's been quite a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life! Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA. And dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time.
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago!
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Messier 33: The #Triangulum Galaxy
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
It's been quite a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life! Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA. And dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time.
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago!
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Messier 33: The #Triangulum Galaxy
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
It's been quite a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life! Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA. And dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time.
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago!
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Messier 33: The #Triangulum Galaxy
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
It's been quite a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life! Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA. And dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time.
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago!
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Messier 33: The #Triangulum Galaxy
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
It's been quite a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life! Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA. And dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time.
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago!
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#Messier 33: The #Triangulum GalaxyIt's been a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life. Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA (and dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time).
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago.
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
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#Messier 33: The #Triangulum GalaxyIt's been a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life. Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA (and dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time).
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago.
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
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#Messier 33: The #Triangulum GalaxyIt's been a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life. Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA (and dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time).
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago.
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
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#Messier 33: The #Triangulum GalaxyIt's been a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life. Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA (and dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time).
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago.
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
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#Messier 33: The #Triangulum GalaxyIt's been a while since I've captured any #skycandy . Weather, family, life. Had a rare clear night last Friday and spent it getting a hang of the ropes with NINA (and dealing with observatory equipment issues due to long idle time).
NINA has matured a lot since the last time I poked around with it a couple years ago.
Hastily processed in #PixInsight π€ͺ
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Did not get to use my mobile rig so much in 2023. Weather was most uncooperative.
During the summer it was used to capture the Soap Bubble nebula. That thing is very faint! π€ͺ
It helped that this data was captured from the dark skies of #TerraNovaNP #darkskypreserve
Other images were captured from back yard.
Hopefully there will be better opportunities to use this rig in 2024.
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More 2023 astro musings ...
During the summer, I get to spend some time in my "local" #DarkSkyPreserve - #TerraNovaNP. 2023 did not disappoint.
When conditions permit, I like to use a wide field lens and take in the Milky Way and landscape. And occasionally I corral a meteor or two along the way.
If I get lucky, I sometimes snag some #AirGlow ripples or a #MeteorSmokeTrail (like the one here, captured Aug 12)!
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delinquent /dΔ-lΔngβ²kwΙnt, -lΔnβ²-/
adjective
Failing in duty; offending by neglect of duty.Until this week, I was *delinquent* in not processing this data from last summer! π€ͺ
Captured in my local #DarkSkyPreserve #TerraNovaNP
If you look closely, just left of center, there is a small faint circle known as the Soap Bubble. It is a bugger to capture, so I am happy with this result!
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"#Tablelands [in western Newfoundland] are not just similar to #Mars in looks. Morrill has found bacteria living in the local stream's high pH currents as a result of natural process called serpentinization."
"Morrill said it's possible serpentinization also happens on Mars, so she's researching what the #Tablelands can reveal about finding past or current life on the Red Planet." -
During the timelapse - I did manage to capture one decently bright #meteor. Looks to be a #Perseids
Here is a crop from that frame.
#astrodon #astrophotography #astronomy #DarkSkyPreserve
#ParksCanada #ParksCanadaNL #TerraNovaNP #nlastro