Astrophotos Archives

March 8, 2012December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Photo: The Space Station Turns on its Afterburners…Or Not?

A stunning image taken by Don Pettit on board the International Space Station. Credit: Don Pettit/NASA

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Astronaut Don Pettit posted this beautiful image on his Google+ page showing a view from the space station reminiscent of science-fiction. Of course, that’s the constellation Orion off in the distance, but there’s a bit of a debate going on at Pettit’s post whether the diffusion of light seen emanating from the ISS is just light from inside the space station windows (it appears to be the Cupola) spreading out into total darkness, or if the effect is actually from a reboost of the ISS for a Debris Avoidance Maneuver that was performed around the time this image was taken.

The only clue Pettit provided is the title he gave the image, “Orion in the headlights,” which would point to the effect coming from the light shining from the Cupola windows. But the The DAM took place at 10.12 GMT (5:12 a.m. EST) on February 29, 2012 and as commenter Peter Caltner points out, “the scenic lighting effect ends exactly in [the series of images that Pettit took] at the end of the 76 seconds of the burn duration.”

The original can be found here on the NASA Gateway to Astronaut Photography website, and here’s another image in the sequence.

OK, all you imaging experts out there: until Pettit gives us the real scoop, what are your thoughts?

Thanks to Elyse David for the heads up!

March 5, 2012January 22, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: Planets at Dusk at Trusk by Brendan Alexander

Top to bottom: Jupiter, Venus and Mercury (just above the horizon), seen at Trusk Lough, Ballybofey County, Donegal Ireland. Credit: Brendan Alexander

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Oh my! What a gorgeous combination of planetary conjunctions and a beautiful landscape! Brendan Alexander (@DonegelSkies) posted this image on our Flickr page, making all our jaws drop at Universe Today. The image wasy taken on March 4, 2012. “When I arrived at Trusk Lough, Ballybofey County, Donegal (Ireland) to try and get a shot of this stunning alignment, a cloud was blocking my view of Mercury,” Brendan wrote on Flickr. “I did manage to get a few shots of all three planets just before Mercury dipped below the horizon.”

Image Details:
Time & Date: 19:30 4th Mar 2012
Equipment: Canon 1000D and Sigma 20mm F1.8 lens
Exposure: 8sec, ISO 200, F1.8 with in camera noise reduction

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.

February 23, 2012January 22, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophotos: Stunning Aurora in Iceland by Andrew Welstead

Aurora seen in February 2012 from Skaftafell National Park in Iceland. Credit: Andrew Welstead

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From one hemisphere to another: Noel Welstead from Australia sent us a note that his son Andrew had traveled to Iceland this week, and one of his goals was to see if he could photograph the Northern Lights. Andrew was in the Skaftafell National Park, the south central part of Iceland when he took these stunning images. See more below.

meanwhile_in_iceland3 — Aurora seen in February 2012 from Skaftafell National Park in Iceland. Credit: Andrew Welstead

meanwhile_in_iceland — Aurora seen in February 2012 from Skaftafell National Park in Iceland. Credit: Andrew Welstead

February 2, 2012January 22, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: Jupiter and Venus at the Beach by Brendan Alexander

Venus and Jupiter at the beach. Credit: Brendan Alexander

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Brendan Alexander took this beautiful photo showing the two brightest planets currently in our night skies, over Flacarragh County, Donegal, Ireland. Here are the specs:

Canon 1000D (modded), 18-55mm kit lens (18mm), Fixed Tripod
Exposure: 20sec, ISO 800, F3.5 (two panels)

Brendan took the image on February 1, 2012. Check out his “Donegal Skies” Flickr feed.

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.

January 26, 2012January 22, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: Purple Orion

The Orion Nebula imaged on January 25, 2012 by Marco T. in Italy.

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This beautiful photo of the Orion Nebula was taken by Marco T. in Italy on January 25, 2012. It was taken with a Canon 500d, and a Skywatcher Black Diamond ED80 Pro
“Sum of 32 shots of 85 seconds at 800 iso and 10 darks,” Marco says. “From Rome so light pollution is high as always, temperature 2 degrees.”

January 24, 2012January 22, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: The Milky Cow

'The Milky Cow,' a composite of two images taken on the same day. Credit: César Cantú

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The Milky Way + cows = The Milky Cow! A great composite of two photographs, both taken the same day by César Cantú of the Chilidog Observatory in Monterrey, Mexico. César says the images were reduced to couple the brightness in the one image with the dark skies showing the Milky Way in the other. Both were taken with a Canon 20Da camera. To see a larger version of this image, see César’s website.

January 23, 2012December 24, 2015 by VirtualAstro

Stunning Auroras From Around the World (January 22-23, 2012)

This photo was taken on January 22, 2012 in Fairbanks North Star Borough County, Alaska, US, using a Nikon D5000. The explodey look is due to perspective from looking right up the magnetic field lines. The aurora in the middle of the explosion is pointing straight down at the camera. Credit: Jason Ahrns

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On January 22nd 2012, skywatchers in the northern hemisphere were rewarded with amazing displays of aurora. The cause of these displays was a Kp level 5.67 geomagnetic storm originating from solar activity on the 19th of January, produced visible aurorae throughout the northern hemisphere and viewers as far south as northeast England had great auroral views.

Here is a selection of aurora images and videos taken during the event.

More below!

donnegal skies — Aurora over Donegal, Ireland. Credit: Brendan Alexander

Brian Horisk adventureart.co.uk hills near Dundee

alaska aurora 1 — Looking north from the science operations center at Poker Flats, Alaska. Credit: Jason Ahrns.

Gerry Mcgegor - over looking John O'Groats & orkney's

Gillian C Edinburgh — Gillian C - Edinburgh

Graham Scott Aberdeenshire — Graham Scott - Aberdeenshire

Lawrie Dryden Kinloss — Lawrie Dryden - Kinloss

Andrew Smith - St Mary's Lighthouse Whitley Bay England

Brain Smith Clackmannanshire Scotland — Brian Smith - Clackmannanshire Scotland

Jon Porter Kielder - Northumberland England

Dean Mann Nethybridge Highlands — Dean Mann - Nethybridge Highlands

DavidBreenLights3web — David Breen - Newcastle Upon Tyne England

DavidBreenLights5web — David Breen - Newcastle Upon Tyne England

PGBiavw4VQft3GTCRoUyUVqGuob_1200 — Aurora Webcam Sweden http://www.auroraskystation.com/live-camera/9/

6749566817_315528fabe — Lee Jennings Cresswell Beach Northumberland England

Lee Jennings Cresswell Beach Northumberland England

January 16, 2012January 22, 2021 by Nancy Atkinson

Astrophoto: Venus Above Kendal Castle

Venus Above Kendal Castle in the UK. Credit: Stuart Atkinson

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Thanks to our pal Stu Atkinson for braving the elements and risking life and limb to capture this image: “I trekked up to Kendal Castle to try and get some pictures of Venus blazing in the dusk sky above the castle ruins…,” Stu wrote on his blog, Cumbrian Sky. “On the way I fell, really went down, slipping on some mud and landing flat on my back, limbs everywhere, but when I got home and saw how the images turned out, well, it was worth the tumble!”

We agree — this is a beautiful image! Click on the image for larger version, where you can see all the gorgeous detail.

Stu took this image during the BBC Stargazing Live activities, which are currently taking place.

January 4, 2012December 24, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

The Sun Blows Off a Little Steam

A close-up look at the Sun on the last day of 2011, showing impressive multiple prominences with sunspots AR1389 at the eastern limb. Credit: Efrain Morales Rivera, Jaicoa Observatory

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This is an awesome image of the Sun captured by Efrain Morales Rivera from the Jaicoa Observatory in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, on December 31, 2011. It shows multiple steam-like prominences on the eastern limb of the Sun. Rivera compared them to a group of trees, and said the now-active Sun is definitely something to watch in the coming new year. Of course, the Solar Dynamics Observatory is keeping a close watch on our star, and captured a huge eruption on the western limb of the Sun on January 2, 2012, with lots of solar material ejected into space; however, it was not Earth-directed. See the video below:

December 29, 2011January 12, 2016 by Nancy Atkinson

5 Hours of Beautiful Comet Lovejoy in 30 Seconds

Colin Legg from Esperance, Australia has been documenting Comet Lovejoy’s holiday gift to the southern hemisphere, and this is his latest — and possibly last — timelapse, as the comet has started to fade. This one covers almost 5 hours of Legg’s Comet Lovejoy views as seen during the early morning hours of December 27, 2011. “I used a tracking device to track in azimuth only to maximize coverage,” Legg said. “If you look closely at the head in the 2nd half you can see it moving against the stars.”