Starship Asterisk*

The Center of the Milky Way and its surroundings.

Four days of gathering material, 12 heavily overlapping panels, 475 exposures of 120 seconds each, and the stunning southern sky over South Africa.

My focus was not on saturating the H-alpha regions but rather on showcasing the "interplay of planes and dust layers" overlapping each other in the Milky Way image. I wanted to highlight how the dust streams of the Great Rift influence the Rho and Zeta Ophiuchi areas, as well as many other larger and smaller details that often do not play the primary role. Did I succeed?

Sigma Art 40 + SWSA + Nikon D600mod
Location: Waterberg/South Africa
Credit: Ireneusz Nowak

Astrobin location of the full size picture: https://www.astrobin.com/full/60odoh/
Author Astrobin link: https://www.astrobin.com/users/iro/

iro wrote: ↑Mon Aug 19, 2024 10:03 pm The Center of the Milky Way and its surroundings.

Four days of gathering material, 12 heavily overlapping panels, 475 exposures of 120 seconds each, and the stunning southern sky over South Africa.

My focus was not on saturating the H-alpha regions but rather on showcasing the "interplay of planes and dust layers" overlapping each other in the Milky Way image. I wanted to highlight how the dust streams of the Great Rift influence the Rho and Zeta Ophiuchi areas, as well as many other larger and smaller details that often do not play the primary role. Did I succeed?

Sigma Art 40 + SWSA + Nikon D600mod

mw_40x12-final less less.jpg

Location: Waterberg/South Africa
Credit: Ireneusz Nowak

Astrobin location of the full size picture: https://www.astrobin.com/full/60odoh/
Author Astrobin link: https://www.astrobin.com/users/iro/

This is a superb image! I would love to see it as an APOD!

Ann

It's not often imaged by itself, Thor's Hammer in IC1848 in the HST palette. Done with the 16in Dall-Kirkham and Player One Poseidon mono camera, imaged remotely from Spain. It's the third image from it and so far I am really loving the way its running. Exposure time were 60x 180s Ha and 75x 300s each in O3 and S2 total 13hrs.
Thanks for looking
Peter Shah

Meteor and Aurora display over Brasstown Bald

On the night of August 12, the Perseid meteor shower coincided with a strong geomagnetic storm, making the northern lights visible as far south as Georgia. The vibrant auroras began to emerge in the northern sky just after 1 AM. Simultaneously, an intense shower of meteors, originating from the constellation Perseus in the northeastern sky, lit up the night as Earth passed through the comet Swift-Tuttle's debris. In this image, small streaks of meteors can be seen as they burned up in Earth's atmosphere.

https://naikonpixels.com/
Copyright: Prashant Naik

Exif: Multiple exposure image blended together in Lightroom and Photoshop. Exposure time: 15s, f2.8 at ISO 8000.

M27 in SHO/Foraxx Palette

23 hours taken from my remote setup in New Mexico.

Gear:
Planewave L500
TPO 16" RC
QHY 600m
Chroma SHO filters

More details on processing can be found here: https://www.astrobin.com/0h0i0j/



https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/539 ... 6804_k.jpg

Why hasn't a topic been created for August? Is the forum not mantained anymore?

A Blue Moon from the Czech Republic

I used a Newtonian telescope and a ZWO ASI 294MC to capture this. It happened on 19 08 2024. It essentially was a test of a new workflow for very fast moving objects and a low amount of quickly captured frames.

Greetings,
I hope this post finds you well! Attached below is my image and supporting information for your kind consideration of a NASA APOD.

Suggested Title: Eternal Slumber: Elephant Remains Under the Starry Sky of the Okavango

Image Credit & Copyright: Amaar Amir @_amaar_amir

Explanation: What may first appear as the remnants of some colossal otherworldly being, is in reality the weathered bones of a mighty bull elephant who once roamed the open planes of the Okavango. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2014, the Okavango Delta in northwestern Botswana stands as one of the largest endorheic river systems on Earth. The waters of the Okavango drain into the vast expanse of the Kalahari Desert, creating a unique and thriving oasis amid the surrounding arid landscapes. As a result, Botswana is home to a remarkable array of flora and fauna, including the largest herds of African Elephants in the world. Elephants are remarkably intelligent creatures and exhibit highly complex social interactions. Studies have documented mourning and grief-like behaviors in the form of caressing the remains of a deceased individual with their trunks, remaining in close proximity to the body, vocalizing low-frequency rumbles, and sometimes revisiting the site of death months or even years later. This photo records the setting core of the Milky Way galaxy behind the relatively untouched skeleton of a 60-year-old bull who passed away naturally. The tusks were removed by wildlife authorities to protect against disruption by poachers. The remaining bones will gradually disappear as other herbivores chew and consume the bone fragments, a behavior known as osteophagia, to extract essential nutrients including calcium and phosphorus.

Details regarding data acquisition: This image was taken in the field deep in the bush of the Okovango, as we set out from "Mma Dinare" Camp. The foreground was a single image and the sky was a stack of 18 individual images to help with noise reduction, color, and detail enhancement of the central band of the Milky Way galaxy. Imaging at night in the unfenced private concession was truly a unique experience due to the abundant mosquitos and presence of active predators. Upon the recommendation of our guide, we had to suffice with the amount of images already taken as he was growing uncomfortable due to the sound of advancing hyenas and a nearby herds of buffalos!

Location: Okavango Delta, Botswana
Date: August 10, 2024
Sky: Bortle class 1
Camera: Sony A7r3 (unmodified)
Lens: Sony GM 14mm 1.8 GM
Post processing: Astropixel Processor, Lightroom


Please do let me know if there are any recommended changes including a different crop or change in brightness levels, etc, and I will be happy to assist!

Kindest regards,
Amaar Amir


Eternal Slumber: Elephant Remains Under the Starry Sky of the Okavango by Amaar Amir, on Flickr

Occultation of Saturn by the Moon on August 21, 2024.
To obtain the detail of Saturn I have made two captures, one of the planet in Roi and another of the entire field of the Moon.
Takahashi Mewlon 180
ZWO ASI 678MC
saturn ocults moon by Carlos Uriarte, en Flickr

Images / compositions of today's Saturn occultation. The difference in brightness between the two objects has made capturing and processing difficult... But I think it has been worth it... Good seeing conditions have helped to take some decent images. I hope you like the images

The equipment used was an 11" Celestron Schmidt Cassegrain telescope with a planetary dedicated camera, and a 2x Barlow, with other small optical and mechanical accessories, like a Focuser or UV-IR cut filter...
The image was processed in Autostakkert, Astrosurface and the composition was made in Photoshop.



Credits: Pau Montplet Sanz @astro_breda

Location of capture: Breda, Spain.
Date of capture: 2024-08-21

Greetings!!!!
Pau Montplet Sanz
Lunar Ocultation of Saturn by Pau Montplet Sanz, en Flickr

Lunar Occultation of Saturn by Pau Montplet Sanz, en Flickr

Lunar Ocultation of Saturn by Pau Montplet Sanz, en Flickr

A very close conjunction of Saturn and the Moon from my region on August 20th. ( LX200ACF 305mm, F10 OTA, CGX-L Mount, ASI533mm Pro Cmos, EFW8, Astronomik LRGB filers.)

Abell 36 - Pk 318+41.1 +50 Hs NB in HOO palette

Abell 36 is a fascinating planetary nebula located in the constellation of Virgo. This nebula is a result of a dying sun-like star shedding its outer layers, creating a beautiful and complex structure in space. This report provides a detailed description of Abell 36, synthesizing information from various sources to offer a comprehensive understanding of this celestial object.

Location and Discovery
Abell 36 is situated approximately 780 to 800 light years away from Earth in the constellation of Virgo. It was discovered in the 1950s by the American astronomer George Ogden Abell, which is why it bears his name.

Structure and Appearance
The nebula is faint and barrel-shaped, with a very faint halo of ionized gas that measures about 4° x 5° in angular diameter. The inner part of the nebula has a resemblance to the helical-shaped Cat's Eye Nebula (NGC 6543) with two pairs of bipolar lobes. This bipolar structure is a common feature in many planetary nebulae.

Central Star and Temperature
At the heart of Abell 36 lies a very hot white dwarf star, known as FB138, with an effective surface temperature exceeding 73,000 K. This central star emits a significant amount of ultraviolet radiation, which ionizes the surrounding gas and causes it to glow.

Formation and Age
The nebula is estimated to have formed around 10,000 years ago. This formation is a result of the central star expelling its outer layers as it runs out of nuclear fuel, a common end stage for low-mass stars like our Sun.

Future and Significance
Over the next 10,000 years, the nebula will continue to expand and dissipate into the interstellar medium, eventually becoming invisible. This process is a glimpse into the future of our own Sun, which will undergo a similar transformation in billions of years.

Abell 36 is a remarkable example of a planetary nebula, showcasing the final stages of stellar evolution for sun-like stars. Its complex structure, hot central star, and faint halo make it a subject of interest for astronomers and astrophotographers alike. Understanding Abell 36 not only provides insights into the life cycle of stars but also offers a preview of the eventual fate of our own solar system.

Taken from backyard in San Isidro, Buenos Aires, Bortle 9 sky.

Telescopes: Meade Series 6000 130mm · Sky-Watcher Quattro 200P
Camera: QHYCCD QHY268 M
Mount: iOptron CEM70
Filters: Astrodon H-alpha 3nm 36 mm · Astrodon OIII 3nm 36 mm

Dates
15 June de 2023
18 - 19 June de 2023
16 - 17 August de 2023
25 August de 2023
6 - 7 July de 2024
15 - 16 July de 2024
18 July de 2024
22 July de 2024

Lights:
Astrodon H-alpha 3nm 36 mm: 119×300,″(9h 55′)
Astrodon H-alpha 3nm 36 mm: 101×600,″(16h 50′)
Astrodon OIII 3nm 36 mm: 127×300,″(10h 35′)
Astrodon OIII 3nm 36 mm: 92×600,″(15h 20′)

Total integration time: 52h 40′

vdB141 The Ghost Nebula

The Ghost Nebula (designated Sh2-136, VdB 141) is a reflection nebula located in the constellation Cepheus. Looking at the adjacent image, the nebula's name is easily understood. This nebula spans about 2 light years across and lies about 1500 light years away.

The star right in the middle of the nebula is a proto-star and there are several stars embedded, whose reflected light make the nebula appear a yellowish-brown color.

The Ghost Nebula is in Cepheus Constellation and is plenty around a large number of hot stars. Part of the Cepheus Flare at the edge of the Milky Way's plane, the Ghost is about two light years across and exhibits clear signs of star formation.

Telescope: RC Ø400mm” (resolution 0.28” /pixel)
Mount: Direct Drive mount (unguided)
Reducer & Flattener: 0.75x
Filter: UV/IR
Camera: IMX571C & IMX553C Pro (Color CMOS)
Total exposure time: 42h (504x300")

https://www.flickr.com/photos/astrotolva/
Copyright: Lluís Romero


https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/538 ... c6bb_o.jpg

Complete Occultation of Saturn by the Moon.
Composition of 1266 photographs taken with the camera with 600mm telephoto lens in APS-C mode (900mm) on Skywatcher Staradventurer mount in lunar tracking.
Camera: Sony A7RV APSC mode
Telephoto lens: Sony G200-600
ISO: 800
1/800

Occultation of Saturn by the Moon by Carlos Uriarte, en Flickr

Timelapse:

Timelapse of Saturn occultation by Carlos Uriarte, en Flickr

M20, The Trifid Nebula
Taken at the 31st Annual Nebraska Star Party @ Merritt Reservoir
Equipment;
Celestron 925 EdgeHd
Celestron CGX GEM
Celestron OAG
ZWO ASI2400MC Pro
ZWO ASI174MM Mini guide cam
CPWI, PHD2, Stellarium, N.I.N.A.
75 - 1 Minute exposures
Processed in PixInsight
M20_Trifid_Nebula by Jim White, on Flickr
Copyright: Jim White

IC 1396 Elephant Trunk nebula
This is great nebulae in cepheus. Popular!
For this image I used this Equipment:
Telescope: SW Esprit 150 f7
CMOS: QHY268M
Mount: Paramount ME
No guide
Filters:
RGB 50 x 300" each channel for stars
Ha, SII, OIII, 100 x 300" each channel
37h 30'
IC 1396 by Carlos Uriarte, en Flickr

NGC7023 Iris Nebula
Located in Cepheus constellation, a region rich in dark nebulae and dust.

Equipment:
- Scope: Takahashi Epsilon 160ED
- Mount: ZWO AM5
- Camera: ASI 2600MM Pro
- Filters: Antlia V-Pro LRGB
- Guiding: W.O. Uniguide 50mm + ASI 220mm mini

Acquisition: 6-9 August 2024.
- L: 400×60″(6h 40′)
- R: 120×60″(2h)
- G: 130×60″(2h 10′)
- B: 200×60″(3h 20′)

Software: Pixinsight & Photoshop.

NGC-6888: The Crescent Nebula

NGC-6888 is an emission nebula in the constellation Cygnus. It is approximately 5000 light-years from Earth. It is home to a Wolf-Rayet star, WR 136 (HD 192163). Current fast stellar winds being ejected from the star are catching up to previously ejected material and shaping into a shell.

Imaging Telescope: Celestron EDGE HD 8 @ F/10
Imaging Camera: ZWO ASI2600MM-Pro
Image Acquisition: ASIAIR Plus
Guide Scope/Camera: ZWO OAG-L / ZWO 220mm-Mini
Mount: ZWO AM5 / iOptron Tri-Pier
Focuser: ZWO EAF on MoonLite CHL 2.5” Crayford
Polar Alignment: ASIAIR Plus
Bortle Class: 6
ZWO EFW
Filter: Chroma RGB – 10 x 180sec (30 minutes per color)
Chroma Ha – 280 x 180sec (14 Hours)
Chroma OIII – 300 x 180sec (15 Hours)
Power Management: Pegasus Astro Pocket Powerbox Advance Gen 2
Flats: Pegasus Astro FlatMaster 250L
Integration: PixInsight
RC Astro BlurXTerminator
RC Astro NoiseXTerminator
RC Astro StarXTerminator

Astrobin Full Resolution: https://www.astrobin.com/full/buduhc/B/
Author Astrobin link: https://www.astrobin.com/users/ejhebert/

Greetings,

Attached below is my image and supporting information for your kind consideration of a NASA APOD.

Suggested Title: Solar Serenade: A Dance of Flames and Plasma

Explanation: This is a solar image created by stitching together a 3 panel mosaic captured by a hydrogen alpha telescope and dedicated astronomy camera. The resulting image is sharpened to yield this stunning view of our active sun with many large prominences and filaments on display. I have attached below both the colorized and black and white image.

Details Regarding Data Acquisition:
Photographed by: Amaar Amir
Social Media: @_amaar_amir
Date: 27/08/2024
Location: Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
Camera: ZWO ASI290MM
Telescope: Lunt 40mm
Software: Autostakkert, SharpCap, Photoshop

Kindest Regards,
Amaar Amir

Solar Serenade: A Dance of Flames and Plasma by Amaar Amir, on Flickr

Solar Serenade: A Dance of Flames and Plasma (B&W) by Amaar Amir, on Flickr

Helix Nebula, NGC 7293 - One of the nearest PNe


Helix Nebula, NGC 7293 - One of the nearest PNe by .zombi., on Flickr


TELESCOPE LIVE CHI-1-CMOS

Imaging Telescopes: Planewave CDK24
Imaging Cameras: QHYCCD QHY600 Pro M
Mounts: Mathis Instruments MI-1000/1250

Frames:
Lum: 29×300″(2h 25′)
Red: 24×300″(2h)
Green: 24×300″(2h)
Blue: 26×300″(2h 10′)

Photographic technique: LRGB

Integration: 8h 35′

Location: Río Hurtado, Coquimbo Region, Chile

Image processed by Przemysław Ząbczyk, original data from Telescope Live

Links:
http://www.astrobin.com/users/zombi/
https://www.astropolis.pl/tags/zombi/

It is a spectacular event
Sudden visitor and the Comet above the black desert

A giant meteor pierces the image above the comet 13P/Olbers from the Black Desert in Egypt

comet-meteor-fina-annotated-l by osama Fathi, on Flickr

spectacular event ( comet 13P/Olbers and a giant meteor above the black desert ) by osama Fathi, on Flickr

While we were photographing the comet 13P/Olbers, which is located close to the cluster of galaxies between Coma Berenices and Virgo, a bright meteor, perhaps one of the Perseid meteors, passed through the image frame to give the view additional beauty.

Black Desert Egypt
August 23, 2024


Gears:
Nikon Z6 Mod
Samyang 135 mm
Skywatcher Staradventurer 2I

Exif:
comet (tracked): 45 photos ( 30, 60 sec, ISO 2500, f2.8)
Foreground: 5 Sec., IS 2500, f2.8
Blacks:30 , Flats :45, Dark Flat:30

Software:
Pixinsight, DSS, and Adobe Photoshop

Credit :
Osama Fathi

Social:
https://www.instagram.com/osama.fathi.nswatcher85/
https://www.facebook.com/NSWatcher/

Black Desert
Egypt

Messier 62 (Flickering Globular) - Globular Cluster in Ophiuchus


BEST DETAILS
https://www.astrobin.com/full/ma0986/0/

EQUIPMENT:
Esprit 150mm triplet
Zwo asi 6200mc
Mount CEM120
Frames 104 x 100""


LOCATION: Munhoz - MG - Brazil
DATES: From 06/25/2023 to 07/30/2023


PROCESSING AND CAPTURE:
Adobe Photoshop, ASTAP, SGP, PHD2 and PixInsight

Author: Fernando Oliveira de Menezes
Email: Barretosmed@hotmail.com
(Organizing author of the book Amateur Astrophotography in Brazil)
https://clubedeautores.com.br/livro/ast ... -no-brasil
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barretosmed/

Perseid Meteor and the Milky Way

The night before the Perseid Meteor Shower was set to peak on August 11, I spent the evening at Wayah Bald. The fire tower is located at high altitude in Nantahala National forest.
During the day it’s quite popular because this is where Appalachian Trail and Bartram Trail intersect. And at night, it offers a secluded setting for stargazing, away from city light pollution. Although Franklin is nearby, the southeastern sky is free from city lights.

Meteors rained through the sky all night. There was this one meteor that made a spectacular entrance as it passed just close to the galactic center. And in that moment, I clicked.

It was the brightest meteor I saw that night. As for the rest for the night, mists engulfed the forest but I just sat there near the tower and watched the meteor fall from the sky one after another.

Multiple exposure image. The stars and milky way are 20 exposures stacked to reduce noise. Single exposure for the meteor and foreground.

https://www.naikonpixels.com
Copyright: Prashant Naik

Lupus IV Dark nebula

This dark nebula complex spans almost 4 degrees. 2 panels were needed to make this mozaic.
Coordinates: RA: 16 03 21.755 DEC: -41 54 07.17

Telescope: Sharpstar 140
Camera: Asi 6200
Mount: 10 Micron HPS 1000
Site: Heaven's Mirror Remote Observatory, Yass, Australia.

Data aquired from august 7 to 26.
Each panel has 9 hours of data.

Processing in Pixinsight and Affinity.
https://aalstronomy.be/wp-content/uploa ... ermark.jpg

Greetings!

My name is Pau Montplet Sanz, I'm writing to you from Breda, Catalonia, Spain. I'm an astrophotographer, I share my progress and images on my Instagram (@astro_breda). I send to you my image of the Sun in the H-alpha emission band made today (30/08/2024).
Sun looks very active today.
The equipment used was an 80/400 refractor, a Daystar Quark Chromosphere, and a dedicated camera. With other small optical and mechanical accessories

The Image was processed in Autostakkert and Pixinsight

Credits: Pau Montplet Sanz @astro_breda

Location of capture: Breda, Spain.
Date of capture: 30/08/2024

Best Regards.

Pau M S

"Burning" Sun by Pau Montplet Sanz, en Flickr