Astrophotos Archives

August 16, 2012January 22, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrovideo: Klingon Bird of Prey Attacks Venus!

Bird of Prey at Venus during Transit of 2012. Credit: John Chumack

“Okay, so it’s not a Klingon War Bird,” admits astrophotographer John Chumack, but it is a Sonoran Desert Bird of Prey swooping by Venus’ location in the sky during its transit across the face of the Sun in June 2012. And it is “freakin’ cool,” just as John describes it on Flickr.

John said he saw the “attack” live during his time on Kitt Peak in Arizona for the Transit of Venus observations, but just recently located and processed the footage. “The Sun was low to the horizon by this time…which accounts for the distorted looking Venus… Goes to show, you never know what will enter your field of view while imaging!”

The video of the event is below:

Thanks to John for sharing his image; see more of his work at his website, Galactic Images or his Flickr page.

Want to get your astrophoto featured on Universe Today? Join our Flickr group, post in our Forum or send us your images by email (this means you’re giving us permission to post them). Please explain what’s in the picture, when you took it, the equipment you used, etc.

August 13, 2012April 26, 2016 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophotos: The 2012 Perseid Meteor Shower from Around the World

Caption: Perseid Meteors with Lunar & Planetary Conjunction on August 12, 2012. Credit: John Chumack.

Here’s some great views of the Perseid Meteor Shower from Universe Today readers around the world. Over the weekend was the peak of the annual meteor shower that never seems to disappoint! We start with one of our “regulars,” John Chumack from his observatory in Yellow Springs, Ohio, USA. But there were also many other objects in John’s field of view, including the waning crescent Moon, Venus, and Orion rising over the observatory dome, the Pleaides, Hyades, and Jupiter, too. John used a odified Canon Rebel Xsi & 17mm lens at F4, ISO 400, and a 20 second exposure. See more of John’s wonderful astrophotos at his Flickr page or at his website, Galactic Images.

More beautiful shots below:

Caption: The Perseids on August 13, 2012. Credit: M. Rasid Tugral from Ankara, Turkey

M. Rasid Tugral from Ankara, Turkey sent in this great image from August 13. Tugral is an accomplished astrophotographer and teaches at the Middle East Technical University in the Department of Physics.

By Patrick Cullis (pcully on Flickr) in Colorado, USA, taken on August 12, 2012 using a Canon EOS 5D Mark II.

Caption: Perseids on August 9, 2012. Credit: Nu Am (tazacanitu).

Another great shot from August 9, 2012 by Nu Am (tzacanitu on Flickr) “Out of the camera raw, re-dimensioned to 25% and saved as jpg. Canon 50D + Tamron SP AF 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II LD IF @17mm, tripod, ISO 400, 30seconds, f/4.”

Caption: 2012 Perseids on August 12, 2012. Credit: Kevin Jung.

A lovely capture of two Perseid meteors in one shot by Kevin Jung(Kevin’s Stuff on Flickr). “Two Perseid meteors show up in a 30 second image shot during the night of August 11/morning of August 12,” Kevin wrote from Lowell, Michigan, USA. He used a Canon EOS 40D. “Since there were some meteors in all parts of the sky, I just pointed my camera to the north with Perseus just to the right of the frame,” Kevin explained. “I used the intervelometer and took 30 second shots automatically. It was lucky that the skies cleared in time to see anything. We had clouds all day, and then weather system was slow to move out of the area. The started to break up around 10pm, but it was until after midnight when the skies cleared up (with the exception of a few areas).”

Thanks to everyone who shared their images!

Want to get your astrophoto featured on Universe Today? Join our Flickr group or send us your images by email (this means you’re giving us permission to post them). Please explain what’s in the picture, when you took it, the equipment you used, etc.

August 12, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: Ptolemy’s Cluster by Rolf Wahl Olsen

Looking like diamonds in the sky, this lovely astrophoto shows Ptolemy’s Cluster, or Messier 7, a very bright open star cluster easily visible with the naked eye near the tail of Scorpius. Taken by photographer Rolf Wahl Olsen — Sky Viking on Flickr — this beautiful, glittering cluster is about 980 light years away from Earth and has some 80 member stars within its diameter of about 25 light years. Astronomers have determined these young, bright stars are approximately 200 million years old.

The cluster is visible as a hazy patch in the sky, and was first described by the ancient astronomer Ptolemy in 130 AD.

Rolf said this image was taken with a bright 78% illuminated Moon nearby.

Image details:
Date: 31st May 2012
Exposure: LRGB: 48:24:24:24m, total 2hrs @ -28C
Telescope: 10″ Serrurier Truss Newtonian f/5
Camera: QSI 683wsg with Lodestar guider
Filters: Astrodon LRGB E-Series Gen 2
Taken from Sky Viking’s observatory in Auckland, New Zealand

August 9, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Incredible View of an Active Region on the Sun

Wow! What a view of Active Region 1542 on the Sun! César Cantú from the Chilidog Observatory in Monterrey, Mexico says this is “another way” of looking at the active region.

“It is an inverted image,” César said via email, which means it is essentially a negative which is then processed. “The process was done with software: Registax, PhotoshopCS5 and PixInsight,” he said.

César took this image on August 8, 2012. Note the incredible detail of the Sun’s swirling surface, the black bottomless pit of a sunspot, a tornadic-like prominence on the right and other wisps of solar material just above the surface.

He used a Meade 10 inch SC, with Coronado 90 mm and BF30 filters, along with a DMK31 camera. “The focal length is 2500 mm and correlated with the camera, approximately 210 X,” César said.

See the original at his website.

Image caption: Active Region 1542 on August 8, 2012. Credit: César Cantú. Used by permission.

August 8, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

See the “Martian Triangle” in the Sky Tonight!

If — like me — you’ve been focusing on all the great images and news coming from the Mars Science Laboratory, perhaps you’ve missed the great view of the “Martian Triangle,” now visible in the night sky at twilight! Astrophotographer John Chumack hasn’t missed the view. This image is from August 6, 2012 from his observatory in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

The Martian Triangle show starts at twilight, and you can find it by looking low in the southwestern sky. The star at the top is actually the planet Saturn, the star on the bottom left is Spica, and the bright spot on bottom right is the planet Mars. And remember, somewhere in your field of view, there’s a few spacecraft on and around Mars and another orbiting Saturn.

John took this image with a modified Canon Rebel Xsi DSLR and a 47mm Lens, at F5.6, ISO 800, 10 second exposure. See more of John’s wonderful astrophotos at his Flickr page or at his website, Galactic Images.

August 1, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Stunning Astrophoto: Road to the Stars by Jack Fusco

Last week we posted an astrophoto by Jack Fusco, and when I looked at more of his images, this one just absolutely blew me away! Jack took a trip to Acadia National Park in Maine, USA, and his night sky images from that location are just gorgeous. “It’s amazing to me that every single person in Acadia isn’t awake the entire night out stargazing,” Jack said on Google+ . “The amount of stars is just absolutely incredible here and I could not have asked for any better conditions.”

Of this image, Jack said, “It’s important to not just worry about the destination, but to notice all of the things that we go through on our path there,” and then quoted musician Frank Turner: “We’re going nowhere slowly, but we’re seeing all the sights.”

See more of Jack’s work on Flickr, Google+ and his website, www.jackfusco.com

July 31, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: Milky Way Over the Bungle Bungles by Mike Salway

Photographer Mike Salway recently took a trip to the western Australia Kimberly Region of the Outback, and has posted some amazing night sky images of his adventures. This picture — and the name of the geologic features — especially caught my eye. The Bungle Bungles of Purnululu National Park are an incredible sight in themselves, huge beehive-shaped sandstone formations. But Mike was able to take a panoramic view of the Milky Way arching over the formations, a symmetrical halo of light in the full sky.

“You know the skies are dark when you can see the Milky Way overhead, even when there’s a more than half-moon shining brightly high in the west sky,” Mike wrote on his website. “And that’s what it was like at the Bungle Bungles.”

This image is an 8 frame panorama, taken on the Piccaninny Creek bed with his Canon 5D Mk II and Samyang 14mm f/2.8 lens.

See more images from Mike’s trip, and all his other work, too, plus check out his IceInSpace website, a collection of amateur astronomer images of the Solar System.

July 25, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: On the Lookout for the Milky Way

Caption: ‘The Lookout’ – Bass Harbor Lighthouse – Acadia National Park, Maine. Credit: Jack Fusco.

This gorgeous shot of the Bass Harbor Lighthouse — seemingly on the lookout for the Milky Way — almost got away from astrophotographer Jack Fusco, but luckily he had a backup plan!

Jack’s description of the photo:

This was the shot that almost got away. I had this in mind and planned out well before I had arived in Acadia. Before the Milky Way was in place on my first visit, the sky was covered by almost the only clouds I saw all trip. A change in forecast for the night before my drive back to New Jersey gave me one last chance to capture it. I set up to take some star trails while waiting for everything to be in position only to have my battery die moments before I took this. Luckily, I had a fully charged backup battery in my bag. I ran to grab it, set back up and started to shoot again. Sitting out under the stars and listening to the water crash against the rocks was an experience that words can not do justice.

Checkout more of Jack’s work at his Flickr page.

July 19, 2012April 8, 2018 by Nancy Atkinson

Moving Timelapse: Within Two Worlds

Within Two Worlds from Goldpaint Photography on Vimeo.

This new timelapse from Brad Goldpaint is moving is every sense of the word. Of course, the images transition and move through time, but the mood it evokes moves your soul. There’s a star-trails sequence over Mount Shasta in California starting at about 2:15 that is utterly jaw-dropping.

Goldpaint wrote us to say he discovered his passion for photography shortly after his mother’s passing while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail 3 years ago. “This time-lapse video is my visual representation of how the night sky and landscapes co-exist within a world of contradictions,” he said. “I hope this connection between heaven and earth inspires you to discover and create your own opportunities, to reach your rightful place within two worlds.”

Check out his work at his website, Goldpaint Photography.

Below are some of the stunning still images from Goldpaint’s timelapse:

Caption: Aurora over Sparks Lake. Credit: Brad Goldpaint

Caption: Milky Way and Lyrid Meteor over Crater Lake. Credit: Brad Goldpaint.

Caption: Star Trails over Mount Shasta. Credit: Brad Goldpaint.

July 16, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Spectacular Views: The Moon Occults Jupiter

Caption: July 15 2012 occultation, taken with Canon 550D on Newton 200/1200 mounted on NEQ6Pro. Credit: Andrei Juravle

Astrophotographers in Northern Africa, Europe and the Middle East were treated to a beautiful sight in the early morning hours of July 15, 2012. A lunar occultation of Jupiter took place just before dawn, as the waning crescent Moon slid in front of the planet Jupiter. Venus was hanging around nearby, too. Several astrophotographers were able to capture the event, and some got a bonus look at Jupiter’s Galilean moons, as well! Above is a lovely image by Andrei Juravle.

More below!

Caption: The Moon, Venus and Jupiter. Credit Thierry Legault.

Astrophotographer extraordinaire Thierry Legault took this great shot of Venus, Jupiter and the Moon from Saint-Cloud, France with a Canon 5D mark II and 135mm lens. But look closely: the satellites of Jupiter are visible:

Caption: A closer look reveals Jupiter’s moons! Credit: Thierry Legault.

And as always, you should check out Thierry’s website for more incredible images.

Caption: Jupiter and the Moon hover over Dolmabahce Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. Credit: Rasid Tugral.

Caption: Clouds nearly covered the view in Mombaroccio, Marche, Italy. Credit: Niki Giada.

Caption: A series of images of the Moon’s occultation of Jupiter as seen in Saida, Lebanon. Credit: astroZ1 on Flickr.

Caption: Occultation of Jupiter by the Moon as seen from Smolyan, Bulgaria. Credit: Zlatan Merakov.

More images are still coming in, and you can see more on Universe Today’s Flickr page. Thanks to everyone who submitted their gorgeous images!