It’s galaxy season again! Orion is setting in the west early and we get a view of the many distant worlds outside of our own Milky Way galaxy here in the springtime. Here we see a group of interacting galaxies that was shot over five nights in April, pointing at the constellation of Coma Berenices. The main galaxies here are designated NGC4725 (The largest here), NGC4747 (The one in the upper left with the extended arms formed by tidal interactions with NGC4725) and the more distant NGC4712 (Smaller one to the right of NGC4725.)

An interactive deep-zoom of this image in it’s full resolution can be found here

Full Acquisition and Processing Details can be found Here

During the last full moon I decided to try to shoot Double Cluster in Perseus. I last shot this in 2018 so this image represents a little over two years worth of learning this hobby. I ended up with a slight light-leak gradient in the resulting data set, so took another hour of data last night before the moon came up and used it as a background reference using a multiscale gradient removal technique documented here.

8in f4.9 Newtonian Cooled Color Camera Bortle 4 skies 2hr 36min

Full Resolution

The constellation Cepheus is home to many exciting dark and emission nebula. In this direction of the fall night sky we find ourselves looking perpendicular into the spiraling arm of the Milky Way galaxy where our sun resides. This is a photo of a bright star forming region designated Ced-214 (also known as NGC 7822.) Here one can see all of the hydrogen gases in red amongst dense rivers of molecular clouds.

Amongst the large dark shell of dust, a small reflection nebula can be found in the lower right corner (designation GN 23.56.1)

Full Processing Details Here

Full Resolution

This image is a broadband image taken with a cooled color camera and 8in telescope this summer. It’s color has been enhanced slightly using narrowband Hydrogen and Oxygen data that was taken with my 135mm camera lens earlier this summer, pronouncing the bright pink and blue tones.

8in f4.9 Newtonian Cooled Color Camera Bortle 4 skies 24x4min

Full Resolution

This photo was taken this past new moon in October 2020, and comprises of four hours worth of exposures. The cocoon nebula is the red emissions nebula and contains a small star cluster that’s forming in the middle. Surrounding the nebula is a dense molecular cloud of dust some of which reflects the blue glowing light of a bright nearby star.

8in f4.9 Newtonian Cooled Color Camera Bortle 4 skies 60x4min

Full Resolution

Full Processing Details Here

In this crop one can get a closer look at the emission nebula, the young star cluster that has formed within as well as the blue reflection nebula to the left.