M42 - Great Nebula in Orion (LHaRGB)

http://jeffjastro.com
Hi again, all...catching the blog up. Also, this past weekend I was finally able to get out on a couple of nights (Sat and Sun) as conditions were great. A nice break in our weather which has been cloudy/rainy the past 2+ months. I will work on processing the data over the coming days (four objects, so will span the upcoming weeks). I am so happy to have new data to work on.

Ok, back to the current post...this was a late season Orion from earlier this year, and was my first try at it using narrowband, and was also the first time I imaged this since back in 2006!

Here is the link to the result on my main site: http://jeffjastro.com/dso/M42Ha_28Mar14.htm

And here is a small preview:

Thanks for looking and see you next time! :)

Astronomy Magazine chooses my Rosette Nebula!

http://jeffjastro.com
Hi all, just a quick note...once again, I missed this when it happened - however, found out my image of the Rosette Nebula made Astronomy Magazine's 'APOD' on 8 Aug 14 - featured on a Friday so ran the entire weekend! I really wish I could track better...but many times it happens when I am at work. This time it was a weekend (so up for 3 days), so my bad :( In any case, I am once again honored by the great folks at Astronomy Magazine (Astronomy.com).

Here is my original image at my site:  http://jeffjastro.com/dso/Rosette_6Jan14.htm

And here is a screengrab of my image and info from their archive:

NGC 3953 - Barred spiral galaxy in Ursa Major

http://jeffjastro.com
Hi again, all.  Next in line is a galaxy which I have imaged several times.  For this and the rest so far this year, I switched to the larger scope (the TOA-130F).  This most recent result is easily my best effort for this challenging object.  Here is my description from my "Notes" area at my main site:

One of my favorite galaxies to image - but, a challenge as NGC 3953 is still a relatively small object for this focal length (1000mm). The "original" (uncropped) version shows lots of other more distant galaxies. Seeing was only slightly above average on this night, unfortunately.

Here it is at my site: http://jeffjastro.com/dso/NGC3953_28Mar14.htm

And here is a small preview image:

See you next time :)

IC 410 - Tadpoles (HaRGB)

http://jeffjastro.com
Hi all :)  Ok, I am going to spend a little time catching up on my blog, here.  Working forward from the last new image I put up here, here is a shot of IC 410 (also known as the Tadpoles) together with IC 417 in the upper left corner.  This image is still using the smaller (very capable) FS-60C scope.  This is more from data I collected earlier this year.  It is a good thing I collected so many photons, as we are now in our monsoon season, here - meaning the past weeks have been cloudy as well as recent rains.  Not much rain, granted, but it is the clouds/winds (even a little) that are enough to mess things up!

So, as normal, here is a small version, and the full version can be seen at my main site, here:  http://jeffjastro.com/dso/IC410_6Jan14.htm

As always, thanks for looking and see you next time! :)

Irregular Galaxy NGC 4214 featured on Astronomy.com!

http://jeffjastro.com
Hi all :)  Well, I recently found out my image of NGC 4214 made Astronomy Magazine's 'APOD' on 9 Jul 14 - last Wed! Image was one I took last year, so pretty cool. Below is a screengrab from the archive, small version of the image, and link to image: http://jeffjastro.com/dso/NGC4214_14Mar13.htm

Space.com also had an article about this last year that I didn't realize was out there until recently Here is that article: http://www.space.com/21190-deep-space-oasis-galaxy-photo.html
 

Rosette Nebula - my first try on this object

http://jeffjastro.com
Hi again, all - just updating/playing catch-up on my blog, here :)  So, here is the Rosette Nebula in LHaRGB - my first try at this particular (and often imaged) object.  This was published on Space.com as one of the images of the month.  Here is a description of what is in this image from my notes area at my site:

"Burning Rose on a Stem" LHaRGB image - my first try at the Rosette. This image is LHa_HaRGB, where Ha:L (80:20) was used for Luminance, and Ha:R (80:20) was used for the Red channel. Lastly, "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." - William Shakespeare 

Image at main site (where you can find larger images):  http://jeffjastro.com/dso/Rosette_6Jan14.htm

See you all next time! :)

First Milky Way ultra-widefield shot

http://jeffjastro.com
Hi all :)  My first real attempt at the Milky Way. I drove about 20 miles west from my home in Las Cruces to get away from the heavy light pollution. Even so, El Paso light dome is prominent at lower left - about 50 miles from where I was located. The sky was otherwise very dark, so very enjoyable. Desert foreground in the image at same settings, processed separately.

This was a first real exercise at deep sky for the relatively new Canon T3i DSLR (unmodded) camera that I have.  I also want to mention that being out under the relatively dark skies was a night to remember.

Link to main image/info:  http://jeffjastro.com/dso/MilkyWay_5Jun14.htm

Here is a small version of the image as a preview: