# 339| The Pleiades
The Pleiades, often mistaken by beginner amateur astronomers as the Little Dipper, is the brightest open star cluster that can be observed.
The view through binculars or a telescope that allows a wide-field view is magnificient. Those wishing to see the Pleiades should act quickly — the cluster is sinking into the sunset shortly after dusk and will soon disappear from evening observations.
From St. Luc, Quebec, expert astrophotographers Marc Paradis imaged the Pleiades over two nights in September 2007 to create this splendid photo.
Image specifications:
- William-Optics Fluorostar 100mm f/8 with 4-inch field flattener
- CCD: STL-11k operating at -20°C with LRGB Astrodon filters (self-guided)
- Mount: Losmandy G-11 Gemini
- LRGB composition: (180:80:80:80) for a total of 7 hours of exposure.
# 338| When The Stars Aren't The Star
A fantastic astrophoto can capture the eye rather quickly. While a galaxy or nebula are themselves the focal point of a deep sky image, on-tripod astrophotos have a key ingredient in order to be a splendid image: an interesting foreground.
Almost a decade ago Steve Irvine and Bill Loney created Keppel Henge, a large megalithic circle in Big Bay, Ontario.
Using his Canon 350D digital camera, on April 23, Steve took 183 twenty-second images overlooking Keppel Henge and then combined the files to create a 61-minute star trail composite photo.
The foreground was illuminated by some nearby lighting and contrasts greatly with the dark sky.
# 337| A Young Moon Hovers On The Horizon
In the spring the angle of the ecliptic is almost perpendicular to the western horizon at dusk. This results in the ability, provided that the clouds cooperate, to view a very young Moon. Besides a clear sky, the other key ingredient to viewing a young Moon is a flat, unobstructed horizon.
David Chapman of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia captured this image of the thin crescent Moon — only 19 hours and 28 minutes after new Moon — on the evening of April 6.
David used a Canon PowerShot G3 digital camera to take his image. The 28.8mm lens setting was selected and a 1.75x tele-extender was used. A 1/10 second exposure at f/3.0 using ISO 200 was taken.
# 336| The Moon Occults M45
On the evening of April 8, viewers with clear skies were treated to another occultation of the Moon by the Pleiades, also known as M45.
The last in a series of occultatons of the Pleiades over the past two years, this event was the most beautiful for some since the Moon was only a few days old. The result was a striking slender crescent Moon gliding across the cluster.
From his home in Calgary, Alberta, SkyNews Associate editor Alan Dyer captured this image using a Canon 20Da digital camera and an 80mm A&M apochromatic refractor operating at f/4.8. A 2-second exposure at ISO 400 was taken.
# 335| M101
M101, also known as the Pinwheel galaxy, appears exactly as its name suggests — as a pinwheel. A dark sky free from light pollution and a 10-inch or larger telescope is usually required to see the pinwheel shape.
Located within the constellation Ursa Major, M101 can be found slightly north of Alkyd, the last star in the handle of the Big Dipper. Due to its orientation (face-on), M101 can appear very diffuse and can easily be missed.
From his backyard in St. Liborer, Quebec, Martin Bernier imaged M101 on March 5/6.
Martin used a Celestron C9.25 Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, operating at f/6.3 and an SBIG SBIG ST2000XM CCD camera.
Post processing was completed using CCDSoft, Photoshop and Astro Tools.
LRGB = 215, 40, 40, 40 minutes.
# 334 | First Quarter Moon
In the spring the angle of the ecliptic is inclined quite steeply towards the western horizon. For lunar observers and photographers, this results in a well-placed Moon in the evening sky, high above the horizon and away from our murky atmosphere which affects seeing and photos.
On March 14, Stuart Heggie of Flesherton, Ontario used his Astro-Physics 155EDF f/7 refractor and an SBIG ST10XME CCD camera equipped with an Astrodon 6nm H-Alpha filter to create this images of the Moon.
Ten images, each .12 seconds were taken and combined afterwards using Maxim DL and Photoshop.
# 333 | The Shuttle Soars Again
Florida is a popular destination for Canadians in March. Those who were visiting the state earlier this month had the opportunity to watch the Shuttle Endeavour launch from the Kennedy Space Centre during the night of March 11, 2008.
Though all launches are a spectacular event, the rare night launches become a sight to behold when the rocket boosters illuminate the dark.
James Fougere, a member of the New Brunswick chapter of the RASC, was vacationing in Florida and was able to capture this image of the Shuttle seconds after lift-off.
A Sony A700 digital camera, equipped with a G-series 300mm f/2.8 lens and a 1.4 teleconverter, was used. With the lens set to f/8, a 1/100 second exposure at ISO 200 was taken.
# 332 | Alberta Auroras
Edmonton has long been known as an excellent location for aurora watchers due to its proximity to the auroral oval — the ring of auroral activity that continually hovers overtop of the Arctic.
Now that we are exiting solar minimum, there should be more appearances of northern lights in our night sky.
Those who wish to photograph auroras are advised to use a fast (f/3.5 or lower) wide-angle lens and a tripod to hold the camera.
On the night of March 8, 2008, a bright aurora developed and Zoltan Kenwell took this image using a Canon EOS 1D Mark III digital camera equipped with a 12mm lens operating at f/4.5. A 44-second exposure was taken.
# 331 | Star Trails
When astrophotography became more popular to do with digital cameras , film wasn't the only thing to essentially go by the wayside. Star trails, images taken with exposures ranging from minutes to hours, were not seen as often since noise, digital artifacts that affect the quality of an image, were prevalent in long-exposure images taken with digital cameras.
Fortunately, in the past year the quality of digital cameras has improved enough that star trail photos are once again becoming popular.
From Sechelt, British Columbia, James MacWilliam took this star trail image last summer using a Canon 300D digital camera. An exposure of almost 16 minutes was taken at ISO 400 using a 22mm lens at f/4.
# 330 | Solar Halo
Surprisingly common, a solar halo is usually not noticed by many since the light of the Sun overwhelms the observer.
Created when thin high cirrus clouds refract sunlight (or moonlight in the case of a lunar halo), sometimes an entire ring will form around the Sun, as seen in this photo taken by William McMullen of Orleans, Ontario. Other times an observer will only see the ice crystals refracting to the left and right of the Sun — called Sun dogs.
William took this image at noon on Friday, February 29, 2008 using a Canon XT digital camera equipped with a 17-40 mm Sigma lens (set to 17mm) at f/11. A 1/1000 second exposure at ISO 200 was taken.
# 329| The February 20, 2008 Lunar Eclipse
Clear skies prevailed across a large part of Canada for last week's lunar eclipse. Visible over the entire continent and parts of Europe, millions of people had the opportunity to watch the Moon glide through the Earth's shadow.
From his observatory in Cap-Rouge, Quebec, Jean Guimond created this montage of the eclipse using an SBIG STL1100M CCD camera and a Takahashi TOA-150 telescope.
A selection of images, taken by readers of SkyNews, can be seen here.
# 328| The Pleiades
The Pleiades, also known as M45 and the Seven Sisters, is an asterism (a collection of stars that form a pattern) within the constellation Perseus.
Located approximately 440 light-years from Earth, the Pleiades is easily recognizable due to it's small spoon-like shape.
Though it may appear that each star is enshrouded by a nebula, there are no nebulae near the star cluster. Dust and gas located somewhere between the Pleiades and our solar system is being illuminated by the cluster and giving the appearance of a nebula surrounding the stars.
Using a remote telescope in New Mexico, USA, Pierre Tremblay captured the Pleiades on December 2 and 3, 2007.
Image details:
Takahashi FSQ 106 ED, Paramount ME German equatorial mount, self-guided, SBIG STL-11000 CCD camera equipped with Astrodon LRGB filters.
Exposure: L=12 x 300 seconds, RGB= 4 x 300 seconds.
# 327| We Have Lift-Off!
Anyone who has ever witnessed the launch of the Space Shuttle will tell the same story — the immense power that is displayed as the Shuttle begins to (literally) rocket toward the sky is incredible.
On Thursday, February 7, the Space Shuttle Atlantis was launched from Florida's Cape Canaveral. Witnessing the launch was Lynn Hilborn, who snapped this image moments after lift-off.
The Shuttle has now docked with the International Space Station and the pair will be visible gliding over Canada shortly after dusk for the duration of the mission.
Appearing as a bright "star" quickly passing overhead, the pair transit the sky within minutes, therefore it is necessary to know the exact transit time for an observer's specific location.
Heavens-above.com is a satellite prediction website that gives accurate times as to when satellites, including the ISS and the Shuttle, can be seen.
# 326| The Old Moon Meets A Young Girl
Astrophotography knows no age. Geneviève Lamarche, a 12-year old girl from Timmins, Ontario, is testament to that.
Just before dawn on January 3, 2008, Geneviève and her father were enjoying the sunrise at Kamiskotia Lake near Timmins when she snapped this pretty image of the old Moon immersed in twilight using a Panasonic DMC-LC33 digital camera.
# 325| Mercury At Dusk
For the past week, illusive Mercury has been hugging the western horizon shortly after dusk.
Appearing as an average "star", Mercury could indeed be mistaken for a star within a constellation.
To locate Mercury, look low in the south-west approximately 45 minutes after sunset. A horizon with an unobstructed vantage point is recommended.
From near Peterborough, Ontario, Rick Stankiewicz captured Mercury using a Canon 400D digital camera equipped with a Sigma 17-70 mm lens (set to 70mm). A six second exposure at f/4.5 using ISO 100 was taken.
# 324| The Moon and Mars
Skywatchers who were fortunate to have a clear sky on the night of January 19, 2008 were able to view a conjunction between the Moon and Mars.
Mars, appearing as a red-coloured "star", was only a half degree away from the Moon. Though they may appear to be side-by-side, at the time of this photo, taken by Peter Raine in Tillsonberg, Ontario, Mars was approximately 104,000,000 kilometres from Earth, while the Moon was at a distance of 366,000 kilometres.
Peter simply framed the shot over the local clock tower and used a Canon A640 digital camera mounted on a tripod and took a 1/2-second exposure at f/2.8 using ISO 80.
# 323| Nemesis of the Amateur Astronomer
Every amateur astronomer, even those with just a minor interest in astronomy, has had to deal with the problem of clouds. Small patches of clear sky, lovingly referred to as "sucker holes", often keep those with extreme dedication patiently waiting to view the night sky.
Clouds can, however, sometimes add to the aesthetics of an image. James MacWilliam of Sechelt, British Columbia took this image of the Moon while clouds were blowing through.
Image specifications: Canon Digital Rebel, Orion 100mm Astroview refractor, 1/30-second exposure.
# 322| Sun Pillar
Surprisingly common at this time of year, a Sun pillar can be seen shortly before sunrise or just after sunset.
Created when floating ice crystals refract light (similar to the lunar halo seen in SkyNews Photo of the Week 321), Sun pillars aren't visible for too long. Photographers are advised to be quick with their camera!
From Newmarket, Ontario, Brenda Glendenning photographed this Sun pillar on January 2. Using a Canon 30D digital camera, she took a 1/400 second exposure at f/11 using ISO 400 with a 17-40mm lens.
# 321| Lunar Halo
Commonly seen on cold nights when the full or near-full Moon is close to the horizon, a lunar halo is caused when ice crystals within high, thin cirrus clouds refract moonlight.
Occasionaly a solar halo can be observed just before dawn or shortly before sunset.
Optical aid is not required to view a lunar halo — the halo covers an immense portion of the sky and can only be viewed with the naked eye.
Phillip Chee of Peterborough, Ontario, captured this lunar halo on December 22, 2007 using a 10mm fisheye lens attached to his Nikon D200 digital camera.
# 320| The California Nebula
Located in the constellation Perseus, NGC1499 is an emission nebula and is approximately 1000 light years away from Earth.
From his backyard observatory in Colomban, Quebec, Eric Roy captured this image of the nebula on November 11, 2007 using an SBIG STL-11000 CCD camera and a Takahashi FSQ-106 refractor mounted atop an Astro-Physics 1200 goto German equatorial mount.
Image specifications: Ha-Ha-G-B composite, Ha: 270 minutes, G: 48 minutes, B: 48 minutes, unbinned.
Processed with Maxim DL, Images Plus and Adobe Photoshop CS2.
# 319| Holmes For The Holidays
Comet Holmes, easily found in the constellation Perseus, continues its celestial show more than eight weeks after suddenly brightening by a factor of 500,000.
Though the comet is not as bright as it was a month ago, observers under dark skies can still view it with the naked eye. Binoculars or a telescope will easily reveal the comet under a night sky with moderate light pollution.
Though the comet may become slightly more diffuse over the next few weeks, it does not appear that the comet will suddenly vanish from visibility. Sky watchers should take advantage of each clear night to observe the comet and submit their images to SkyNews.
Marcus Stevens, a member of the London chapter of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, captured Comet Holmes on December 8, 2007 from near London, Ontario.
Using a William Optics 80mm FD refractor equipped with a William Optics 0.8x field flattener, a Canon 300D digital camera and an HEQ-5 GOTO German equatorial mount, Marcus took three 2-minute guided exposures and one 3-minute unguided image.
Processing was done with Deep Sky Stacker and Adobe Photoshop.
More information on Comet Holmes can be found HERE.
# 318| The Rosette Nebula
Located in the constellation Monoceros, the Rosette nebula is a giant gaseous stellar nursery, basking in the light of many young stars at its core.
Approximately five times the angular size of the Moon, the nebula can be seen in medium-sized telescopes and a dark observing location helps observations.
From Port Hope, Ontario, Adam Evans captured the Rosette nebula using an 80mm Sky-Watcher Equinox refractor mounted atop an HEQ-5 German equatorial mount.
Photo specifications:
Modified Canon 350 digital camera, ISO 800, IDAS LPS P2 filter.
Exposure: 60 minutes, 30 x 120 second for light frames, 12 dark frames, 10 flat frames.
Processing: Images stacked using DeepSkyStacker, final processing completed using Adobe Photoshop.
# 317| Comet Holmes and An Irridium Flare
More than six weeks after it unexpectedly brightened to naked-eye visibility, Comet Holmes continues to be easily seen.
Though its dust tail has become more diffuse and less easily seen, the comet is still an easy target from a moderately dark observing location.
From within a subdivision in Peterborough, Ontario, Phillip Chee captured both the comet and an Iridium flare on November 29th by simply mounting his Nikon D200, equipped with a 17-55mm lens, on a tripod and taking a 60-second exposure at f/4 using ISO 200.
More information on Comet Holmes can be found HERE.
# 316| The Orion Nebula
With winter quickly approaching, one of the most sought-after targets in the night sky is once rising at a convenient time for observing — the Orion Nebula.
Comprised of a wealth of gasses at a distance of approximately 1400 light-years from Earth, the nebula appears as a fuzzy star to the naked eye.
A small telescope shows a distinct cloud while a 6-inch or larger telescope begins to reveal a myriad of subtle details within the nebula.
Peter Roth, imaging from Honey Harbour, Ontario, created this image of the Orion Nebula, also commonly known as M42, by combining five 45-second images (and one dark frame) taken through a Takahashi E-180 f/2.8 astrograph with a Canon 350D digital camera.
# 315| The Horsehead Nebula
The aptly named Horsehead Nebula is easily recognized in images but is difficult to visually observe unless a special filter and a large telescope is used.
However, even a short exposure through a telescope will reveal the nebula in an image.
Long-exposure images reveal a wealth of detail within the giant gas cloud.
Brain Lula, a Canadian living in the United States, has discovered that although technology has made it easier to obtain data, the human aspect still has to be considered — significant time is needed to process the images, a luxury that is few and far between for many of us.
From his home in Massachusetts, Brian created this stunning image of the Horsehead Nebula using an SBIG 6303E CCD and his 12-inch f/4 Newtonian astrograph equipped with Astrodon 6Nm bandpass eline filters.
# 314| Comet Holmes
Though the comet is becoming slightly more diffuse, it can still easily be found using binoculars, or if observing from a moderately dark sky location, with the naked eye.
Astronomers are unsure as to how long the comet will be visible. Observers are advised to take advantage of this unusual comet and attempt to view it each night.
From near Charleston Lake in Ontario, Len Benschop took three images on November 10 and combined them to create this photo.
Image specifications: Canon 400D digital camera, 75-300mm USM lens (at 300mm), three 30-second exposures at ISO 1600. Guiding accomplished using a tracking platform.
For more information, including close-up images of the comet and a photo showing the location of Comet Holmes within the constellation Perseus, click HERE.
# 313| Comet Holmes
Comet Holmes continues to impress observers around the world. Since it first became a naked-eye object less than two weeks ago, the comet has changed it looks from a tiny comet-within-a-bubble appearance to a relatively large fuzzy snowball.
This comparison image, taken by Les Marczi from near Niagara Falls, Ontario, is one of dozens of images received by SkyNews.
Les' image shows how the comet changed over the course of only two nights (images taken on October 25 and 27).
With the comet visible in the eastern sky shortly after dark, it is situated perfectly for viewing at a convenient time.
For more information, including close-up images of the comet and a photo showing the location of Comet Holmes within the constellation Perseus, click HERE.
# 312| Comet Holmes
Last week periodic Comet Holmes increased in brightness by a factor of 500,000 in a matter of hours. Easily seen as a new "star" in the constellation Perseus, the comet appears stellar-like to the naked eye. A telescope or binoculars show a distinct puffball.
Pierre Martin of Ottawa, Ontario took this image of the constellation Perseus, showing the starlike comet, on October 25 (Canon 30D, ISO 400, 20mm lens at f/2.8, 13 second exposure).
For more information, including close-up images of the comet and a photo showing the location of Comet Holmes within the constellation Perseus, click HERE.
# 311| M13
As the winter constellations begin to appear in the eastern sky, the summer constellations begin to drift into the western sky at sunset.
Those who enjoy observing the summer Milky Way and deep sky treasures such as M13 do not have too many evenings left to observe them.
Hoping to image M13 before it became to low in the northwestern sky to image, Stuart Heggie of Flesherton, Ontario, captured the globular cluster during September and October using an Astro-Physics 155mm refractor equipped with an SBIG ST10XME CCD camera riding atop an Astro-Physics AP900 mount.
# 310| Venus, Saturn and the Moon
Over the course of an entire night, four planets can now easily be located with the naked eye.
Jupiter, shining like a brilliant creme-coloured "star", can be found shortly after sunset low in the south-west.
Just before sunrise, Mars, Venus and Saturn are all found with ease.
Shining a dull red colour, Mars is near the zenith, slightly towards the southern horizon at dawn. Venus, the brightest star-like object high in the southeast is accompanied by Saturn to its lower left.
From the Fingal Conservation Area near London, Ontario, Peter Raine captured this image of Venus, Saturn the crescent Moon at 6:39 a.m. on October 7, 2007.
Peter took a 6-second exposure using a tripod-mounted Canon A640 digital camera (f/2.8, ISO 80)
# 309| Mars!
Mars watchers eagerly anticipating the opposition of Mars in December 2007. With Mars higher in the ecliptic this apparition, therefore higher in the sky, both visual observers and planetary imagers are preparing to observe the red planet.
Even now, Mars is revealing some details. Currently found high in the southern sky shortly before dawn, the northern polar cap can easily been seen through a telescope even with Mars still appearing visually rather small.
As Mars and the Earth become closer to each other during the next two months, Mars will appear to grow in size and reveal even more detail. However, observers should not wait until then. Now is the time to begin observing Mars in order to train your eyes to discern faint details.
Darryl Archer took this image of Mars on the morning of Friday, October 5 from Baden, Ontario using a 14-inch Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope (operating at f/35) and a modified ToUcam Pro webcam.
100 frames were processed (from 800 taken) with K3CCDtools, Registax and Adobe Photoshop.
# 308| The Harvest Moon
This year's Harvest Moon (the full Moon closest to the autumnal equinox) occurred on September 26. Due to the shallow angle of the ecliptic, the Moon rises only about 30 minutes later each night near the equinox.
The Hunter's Moon, which rises the night of October 25, will also present the opportunity for dramatic photos, such as this one taken on September 26 by Luca Vanzella of Edmonton, Alberta.
Sunlight reflecting off of the glass buildings in Edmonton's downtown core adds to the beauty of Vanzella's image.
1/125 seconds, 73mm, f/5.6, ISO 200, Canon XTi.
# 307| Every Picture Tells a Story
While images of deep sky objects such as galaxies or nebulas can illicit "oohs" and "ahhs" from a viewer, an on-tripod photo of a celestial event — one that captures a moment — always has a story to tell and can sometimes make a viewer feel as if they were there at the time.
From St. Andrews by the Sea, New Brunswick, David and Debbie Cunningham enjoyed watching and photographing the full Moon rise over Deer Island while sitting along the tranquil sea shore.
A 1/63-second exposure was taken by Debbie Cunningham using a Nikon CoolPix 5700 with the camera lens set to 71mm and f/4.2.
# 306| The Elephant Trunk Nebula
Appropriately named due to its distinctive appearance, vdB142, commonly referred to as the Elephant Trunk nebula, is a star forming region in the constellation Cepheus. Difficult to see unless under very dark skies with a large aperture telescope, vdB142 is embedded within IC1396.
From within the glow of Toronto, Stef Cancelli imaged the Elephant Trunk nebula with a Takahashi F102 operating at f/6 and an SBIG ST10XME CCD camera (HaRGB=240, 60, 60, 60 minutes).
Processing was completed using MaxIm and Adobe Photoshop CSII.
# 305| Naked Eye Delights
With fall quickly approaching and the days becoming shorter, observers will soon be able to begin a night's viewing session earlier in the evening. Cooler, bug-free nights are welcomed by many who have spent nights battling mosquitoes and humidity in July and August.
No matter what you observe with, take the time to simply stare at the night sky with the naked eye. From a dark viewing location the stars can overwhelm an observer. A reclining chair, a blanket and a perfectly clear night can make for an enjoyable evening.
From near St. John's, Newfoundland, Don Burton captured this photo of the Big Dipper on August 20th using a Canon A95 digital camera. A 15-second exposure at f/2.8 using ISO 400 was taken.
# 304| The August 28, 2007 Lunar Eclipse
Most of North America was treated to a total lunar eclipse on August 28, 2007. Although viewers in Manitoba and further west had the opportunity to watch the complete eclipse, many observers in southern Ontario were fortunate to have a clear sky and were able to watch the Moon disappear into the western horizon while immersed in totality.
From near Baden, Ontario, Clark MacDonald captured this image of the Moon during totality using an 80mm Sky-Watcher refractor and a Canon XTi. Three 10-second exposures at ISO 100 were taken and combined afterwards with Registax.
# 303| The International Space Station and the Shuttle
Last week presented excellent opportunities for most of North American to view both the International Space Station and the Shuttle transit overhead.
Those who were fortunate to have clear skies on August 19 and 20 were treated to a display of the ISS and Shuttle travelling across the sky after the pair had separated — appearing as two fast moving "stars" close together.
From near Almonte, Ontario on August 19, Gary Boyle captured the pair (the ISS is the brighter of the two) as they were about to disappear into the Earth's shadow along the southeastern horizon.
A 20-second exposure was taken using a Canon XT digital camera operating at ISO 1600.
# 302 | Digital Star Trails
With the increasing popularity of digital cameras since the turn of the century, a particular style of astrophoto appeared to be disappearing — the star trail image.
While film cameras could capture hours of light on film, digital cameras suffer from noise — undesired colour pixels — when exposures longer than a few minutes were taken.
Newer generation digital cameras are getting better at reducing the amount of noise and astrophotographers are once again taking images of star trails. While the images are not of the same duration as those taken during the days of film use, the results are encouraging and only bound to get better with future cameras.
From near Parry Sound, Ontario, Lynn Hilborn took this 20 minute exposure at ISO 200 using a Canon 20D equipped with a 17mm lens operating at f/2.8.
The foreground was lit by nearby street lights.
# 301 | The Cygnus Wall
Although the North American Nebula easily reveals itself as a glowing ball of red-coloured gas in an image, it can be difficult to discern visually unless an observer is viewing from a dark viewing location.
Even then, the beautiful red colours that can be seen in astrophotos are absent. To the eye, the nebula appears as a dark cloud, identified only by the conspicuous absence of stars.
From within the severe light pollution of Toronto, Stef Cancelli created this image highlighting the Gulf of Mexico portion of the nebula and a feature known as "the wall", an area being lit and eroded by nearby young stars.
HaRGB - 200:60:60:60 (minutes respectively)
Takahashi FS102 operating at f/6.
SBIG ST10XME camera.
Takahashi EM200 Temma mount.
Processed with MaxIm DL and Adobe Photoshop CSII.
# 300 | A Scenic Celestial Sighting
In mid-July, the Moon joined Venus, Saturn and the bright star Regulus to form a pretty scene along the western horizon shortly after dusk.
Although the planets Saturn and Venus are now too low on the horizon and lost in the glare of the Sun, the thin crescent Moon can be observed hovering above the western horizon shortly after sunset on August 14-16.
From Big Bay, Ontario, Steve Irvine, a regular Photo of the Week submitter, captured this photo on July 17 using a Canon 350D digital camera equipped with a 100mm lens set to f/2. A two-second exposure at ISO 200 was taken.
# 299 | Cygnus
On summer nights, Cygnus the Swan can easily be observed flying directly overhead. Also known as the Northern Cross, Cygnus is identified by its five bright stars in a cross shape which from the head, wings and tail of the swan.
Immersed within the stars of the Milky Way, Cygnus appears to be flying south, preparing for cooler weather later this fall.
From Arthur, Ontario, Clark MacDonald created this image of Cygnus, which he describes as his first "serious" DSLR image from photos taken between 1:00 - 3:00 a.m. on July 22.
Clark stacked nine 600-second images which he took using a Canon XTi with a Tamron 17-55 mm lens (operating at 26mm and f/5.6). Computer processing was done with Paint Shop Pro, Iris and Polaroid Dust and Scratch Removal.
# 298 | Saturn, Venus and the Moon
With summer in full swing, many folks are spending time at the cottage, having backyard barbecues or vacationing with family.
No matter what your summer schedule, remember to take the time to look up at the night sky. You may be visiting a location that provides a better or different view then you are accustomed to.
While spending time at his cottage in Salmon Beach, New Brunswick, Colin Jagoe of Brighton, Ontario snapped this image of the crescent Moon, Saturn and Venus hovering above the Bay de Chaleur and the town of Bathurst on July 16th.
Colin used a Canon XT digital camera equipped with a 75-300mm lens (at 125mm) and took a 4-second exposure at f/14.
# 297| M51
The past ten years has seen astrophotography continually taken to new levels. At one time an aspiring astrophotographer needed to travel outside of urban areas in order to avoid the ever-growing plague of light pollution.
CCD cameras changed all of that and now excellent images can be obtained within the glow of city limits.
From his driveway in Toronto, Stef Cancelli imaged galaxy M51 on May 11, 17, 18 and 19 using an SBIG ST10XME CCD camera attached to a Takahashi FS-102 refractor.
An IDAS light pollution filter was used to collect 5 hours of luminance data with the RGB totalling 3 hours. Processing was done with MaxIm DL, PixInsight and Adobe Photoshop CSII.
# 296 | Jupiter
Jupiter, the largest planet within our solar system, can easily be located with the naked eye. Shining a brilliant creme colour, Jupiter can currently be found rising in the southeast at dusk. By midnight it is due south and about half way towards the zenith.
Binoculars will reveal up to four of its moons—Ganymede, Callisto, Europa and Io. The moons will appear as faint "stars" on either side of the planet.
From his observatory in Baden, Ontario, Darryl Archer captured this image of Jupiter on the night of July 5th. Using a 14-inch Celestron SCT operating at f/22, Darryl took 800 images using a modified ToUcam web camera and later combined the best 100 using K3CCDTool, Registax 4 and Adobe Photoshop.
# 295 | Noctilucent Clouds
Noctilucent clouds are an astronomical mystery. Appearing in late spring and early summer in the western sky an hour after sunset, they are often only seen at high latitudes. Hovering at the edge of the Earth's atmosphere, scientists are unsure as to why these thin blue-coloured develop or what causes them.
A number of sightings have been reported over the northern parts of both Canada and Europe the past few weeks. From his home in Dunmore, Alberta, Lukas Gornisiewicz noticed a bright display of noctilucent clouds shortly after midnight on June 27th and captured them with a Canon Powershot A50 digital camera.
Earlier this year, NASA launched the AIM satellite (Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere) in order to determine the cause of noctilucent clouds. Data is beginning to be collected and scientists are hoping to soon understand these mysterious midnight clouds.
# 294 | Affordable Astrophotography
Many aspiring astrophotographers may be discouraged upon seeing images taken with photo equipment costing thousands of dollars and are left with the mistaken impression that in order to achieve an excellent image, a substantial amount of money needs to be spent on an expensive CCD or digital camera.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The resolution of affordable web-cam style digital cameras enables most the luxury of obtaining excellent astrophotos. As with all astrophotography, patience and practice are the keys to creating a spectacular photo.
From near Kitchener-Waterloo, Brady Johnson recently used a 120mm Sky-Watcher refractor and a Meade LPI to create this image of the Moon using 300 frames stacked together.
# 293 | The Shuttle and the International Space Station
The past week has presented some excellent opportunities to view the International Space Station and Shuttle docked together. With the pair secured together, combined with the installation of new solar panels, there is a larger amount of metal to reflect sunlight.
The result? A brighter "star" moving across the night sky.
The International Space Station can often be seen just after sunset or before sunrise. Optical aid is not necessary to view the ISS as it can be easily seen with the naked eye.
The Shuttle will remain docked to the ISS until mid-week. Heavens-above.com is an excellent site that lists times for when they can be viewed. Don't miss this opportunity to view the pair docked together.
From south of Peterborough, Ontario, Phillip Chee captured the ISS and Shuttle gliding over his night sky on June 15 at 10:47 p.m.. His second Photo of the Week in a row, Phillip used a tripod-mounted Nikon D200 digital camera and a 17mm lens to take this 120-second exposure at ISO 400.
# 292 | Jupiter Reaches Opposition
Three planets can now easily be identified shortly after dusk.
Venus, the easiest to find, shines like a brilliant diamond above the western horizon.
Saturn can be seen to the upper left of Venus, appears as a bright "star" with a yellow-hued tinge.
Jupiter, now just a few days past opposition, can be located rising in the southeastern sky at dusk. Brighter than any nearby star, Jupiter has appears a creamy white colour to the naked eye. Binoculars will reveal up to four of its moons.
From near Peterborough, Ontario, Phillip Chee took this 30-second image of Jupiter and the summer Milky Way rising shortly after midnight on June 6, 2007. Phillip used a Nikon D200 at ISO 1600 with a 17mm lens at f2.8.
# 291 | Summer Constellations
Although summer may mean longer days, less darkness for observing and dealing with hungry mosquitoes and black flies, it also signifies the return of the summer Milky Way and this year, Jupiter.
From a location with a flat horizon and little light pollution, an observer can observe a number of deep sky treasures in the constellations Scorpius and Sagittarius: M8, M20, M22, M15, M4 and M16 are all spectacular objects to explore in a telescope.
Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, resides between Sagittarius and Scorpius for the 2007 observing season. Appearing as a bright "star", Jupiter outshines any object (other than the Moon) in this part of the night sky.
From the Fingal Wildlife Management area near London, Ontario, the site of the London RASC's observing location, Peter Raine took this image on May 14, 2007, a 15-second exposure at ISO 400 with a Canon Powershot A640 digital camera.
# 290 | A Fantastic Iridium Flare
Many satellites can be seen crossing the sky throughout the entire night near the summer solstice. Many appear as moderately bright "stars" that cross the entire sky within a few minutes. Occasionally a blinking "star" will be seen, indicating that the object is tumbling and reflecting towards the observer at intervals.
Iridium flares, reflections from a fleet of communications satellites, can often be seen but last only a few brief seconds. If the geometry between the observer, satellite and the Sun is correct, the flare can be as bright as magnitude -8, brighter than any other object in the night sky other than the Moon. Although most are often magnitude -1 to -4, these are still interesting to watch.
Heavens-above.com is a website which accurately predicts when Iridium flares, the International Space Station and other satellites can be seen from any given location.
On Friday, May 18, 2007, Malcolm Park knew that a magnitude -8 Iridium Flare would be occurring at his observing location at 10:21 p.m.. Using a Nikon D200 equipped with a 10.5mm Nikkor fisheye lens, Malcolm took a 36.5 second exposure at ISO 1600 from near Warkworth, Ontario and successfully captured the flare.