Telescopes & Astrophotography
Telescopes and mounts, astrophotography equipment and software, practical reviews, night-sky events and astronomy discoveries for amateur observers.
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This reading list brings together items from the sources selected for Telescopes & Astrophotography. Open each item at its original source for the complete article, episode or video. This is a selection of current coverage, not a complete archive.
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SPHEREx Just Took the Fingerprints of Failed Stars Across Our Cosmic Neighborhood
Brown dwarfs are the black (or brown?) sheep of astronomy. They’re too big to be considered a traditional gas planet, but they are too small to have started nuclear fusion and made the full transition to star-hood. They also change dramatically over time, cooling, shrinking, and spinning faster as they age.
Oct. 15, 1997: Cassini-Huygens launches
Today in the history of astronomy, the NASA/ESA mission to the outer solar system lifts off.
Apparent size of stars with increasing magnification using scopes of increasing aperture
While studying double stars with a couple of different scopes... my AT102EDL 4 inch refractor and my SkyMax 180 (7 inch Maksutov) I noticed a couple of things that seemed interesting. Stars are point sources and really should not therefore appear as little disks as magnificaton increases significantly. That was not quite my experience last night.
Planetary systems fall into 2 distinct families, astronomers say
Astronomers studying planetary systems in the Milky Way have found they can be sorted into two families. These families are largely determined by the host star. The post Planetary systems fall into 2 distinct families, astronomers say first appeared on EarthSky.
What star in the northeast flashes colorfully? It’s Capella!
If you see a bright star in the northeast on October evenings, twinkling with red and green flashes, it's probably Capella. See sky charts here. The post What star in the northeast flashes colorfully? It’s Capella! first appeared on EarthSky.
The Milky Way over Manhattan
Explanation: The city lights outshine the stars in the City That Never Sleeps. Who would have thought that the Milky Way could be visible in this sky? This image was taken with a filter that blocks most visible light, capturing instead only light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum (with lower energy than visible light). The astrophotographer's clever setup blocks most of the light pollution from the city: old incandescent light bulbs and some neon lights are still bright in the near-infrared, but
Cleaning Tak Mount Electrical Sockets
So the other night I set up to observe Saturn, lo and behold my hand paddle would not function. Seems my EM-10 would track okay but I was unable to use the
Sharpcap Live Stacking - What settings work for you?
I just figured out why I could never get live stacking to work. Major Doh! Now that I know that there is one for DSO and another for planet, hello! So looking for what is working for others that use it. Next time I get out I going to try and keep the sharping and noise very low or completely off. I love the real time quality graphs and under/over exposure info. This really helps to understand know what is working and why.
Considering Ioptron CEM60-EC
Greetings, I am looking for a heavier capacity mount to manage my loaded C11 for astrophotography. I found a nice deal on an Ioptron CEM60-EC. Appears to function well mechanically and has recently had firmware fully updated. As I enjoy using the ASIAir with my ZWO cameras, is this mount something I should be considering? Thank you!
A Massive New Crater Just Appeared on the Moon
Support this channel on Patreon to help me make this a full time job: https://www.patreon.com/whatdamath (Unreleased videos, extra footage, DMs, no ads) Alternatively, PayPal donations can be sent here: http://paypal.me/whatdamath Get a Wonderful Person Tee: Amazon: https://amzn.to/3QFIrFX Hello and welcome! My name is Anton and in this video, we will talk about the massive new crater on the Moon everyone missed and some other discoveries. https://www.science.org/doi/epdf/10.1126/sciadv.aeh7812 https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1029/2019GL082252 https://www.nature.com/articles/nature19829 https://www.science.org/doi/epdf/10.1126/sciadv.aeh9568 https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/moon/nasas-lro-images-falcon-9-crater-on-moon-learns-new-details/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1189-0 #moon #lunar #crater 0:00 Lunar crater from SpaceX debris 1:50 Crater formed in 2024 that everyone missed 4:25 Strange cold spot 6:20 Changing Lunar models 8:00 Implications for the Artemis program 8:50 Additional discoveries from the far side 11:00 Conclusions Enjoy and please subscribe Bitcoin/Ethereum to spare? Donate them here to help this channel grow! bc1qnkl3nk0zt7w0xzrgur9pnkcduj7a3xxllcn7d4 or ETH: 0x60f088B10b03115405d313f964BeA93eF0Bd3DbF The hardware used to record these videos: New Camera: https://amzn.to/4pCVINS CPU: https://amzn.to/4qXIaxC Video Card: https://amzn.to/2M1W26C Motherboard: https://amzn.to/2JYGiQQ RAM: https://amzn.to/2Mwy2t4 PSU: https://amzn.to/2LZcrIH Case: https://amzn.to/2MwJZz4 Microphone: https://amzn.to/2t5jTv0 Mixer: https://amzn.to/2JOL0oF Recording and Editing: https://amzn.to/2LX6uvU Some of the above are affiliate links, meaning I would get a (very small) percentage of the price paid. Thank you to all Patreon supporters of this channel Special thanks also goes to all the wonderful supporters of the channel through YouTube Memberships Credit: Mark Garlick www.markgarlick.com Licenses used: https://creativecomm
The Perseverance Rover Reaches Another Milestone
NASA's Perseverance Rover has reached another milestone. It now holds the record for the longest distance travelled on another world, meaning Mars and Earth's Moon. It's all thanks the ingenuity behind AutoNav, it's hazard-detection driving system. It's a win for science, as more distance travelled means more scientific objectives are reached.
Orion vs Celestron prism star diagonal (1.25") for C90 mak?
I'm helping a friend with his newly acquired C90 spotting mak for astronomical use. The idea is now replacing the 45-degree prism for a 90-degree one; he has an offer of an unused Orion 1.25" prism star diagonal (seemingly discontinued) for half the price it would cost to get a new Celestron 1.25" prism star diagonal. From what I've found, the Orion one is fully coated, but I can't find any official source stating if the Celestron one is also full coated or even fully multi-coated.
WeBo 1
Last week I spent five nights camping overlooking the VLA at the Enchanted Skies Star Party in New Mexico, USA. It’s an annual event in Bortle 1 skies. Highly recommend it! Here’s an image I captured there showcasing one of the most fascinating sights in our galaxy: the Heart Nebula, so named because its shape resembles a human heart. Located approximately 7,500 light-years from Earth, the Heart Nebula lies within the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way and appears in our night sky in the constellation Cassiopeia.
Astronomers Observe The Limb Darkening Effect On Nearby Stars
The edge of the Sun appears darker than its central region. This effect is known as limb darkening and tells us about the solar atmosphere. This same limb darkening effect has now been observed on several nearby stars and could help us improve our understanding of stellar atmospheres.
From the Mojave to Phobos: PlanetVac rides with MMX
Japan’s Martian Moons eXploration mission, MMX, is about to set out for Phobos and Deimos, the two small moons of Mars. If all goes well, it will bring the first-ever sample from the Martian system back to Earth. Asa Stahl, public outreach astronomer at The Planetary Society, explains why these strange little moons are still such a mystery and what a piece of Phobos could reveal.
Curiosity Greets a Spectacular Dawn Sky on Mars
Mars is a planetary geologist’s paradise. NASA’s Curiosity rover drove that home recently, with a captivating panorama seen from the slopes of Mount Sharp. The image shows a stunning vista, and was not white-balance adjusted during processing, to show just what a viewer might really see at sunrise standing of Mars.
[Q&A+] Why Won't NASA Just Buy Falcon 9 from SpaceX?
BONUS QUESTION STARTS AT 14:14 Watch the video here (with no ads) or on YouTube: https://youtu.be/bmthiCOpbMQ If SpaceX no longer want Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon, why won't NASA just buy them for themselves? What would a perfect space station look like? What is being done to improve the deep space network? And in Q&A+, finally, a Lagrange Point question. 00:00 Intro 00:27 [@kairon156] What would a perfect space station look like? 08:13 [@endigo2007] Can NASA buy the remaining Falcon 9's and operate them to send Dragon to ISS?
Why Won't NASA Just Buy Falcon 9 from SpaceX? | Q&A 466
🔴 [Q&A+] No YT ads. Bonus Question. For FREE https://www.patreon.com/collection/116942 🟣 [Overtime] Even more Q&A https://www.patreon.com/collection/1720060 If SpaceX no longer want Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon, why won't NASA just buy them for themselves? What would a perfect space station look like? What is being done to improve the deep space network? And in Q&A+, finally, a Lagrange Point question. 00:00 Intro 00:27 [@kairon156] What would a perfect space station look like? 08:13 [@endigo2007] Can NASA buy the remaining Falcon 9's and operate them to send Dragon to ISS? 10:57 [@musicover5] Is there work being done to increase the bandwidth of the deep space network? 15:09 Final thoughts 📰 EMAIL NEWSLETTER Read by 70,000 people every Friday. Written by Fraser. No ads. Subscribe for FREE: https://universetoday.com/newsletter 🎧 PODCASTS Universe Today: https://www.universetoday.com/podcast Astronomy Cast: https://www.astronomycast.com/ 📩 CONTACT FRASER frasercain@gmail.com ⚖️ LICENSE Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) You are free to use my work for any purpose you like, just mention me as the source and link back to this video.
Did you see a strange cloud on the East Coast?
Many people up before sunrise on Tuesday morning saw a strange cloud. It was the plume from a SpaceX rocket. See stunning images here! The post Did you see a strange cloud on the East Coast? first appeared on EarthSky.
A Trip to Mars Could Break Your Heart - Literally
When astronauts first travel to Mars, or anywhere else in deep space, they will have to contend with two problems that our planet itself protects us from on its surface - radiation and weightlessness. Scientists already know both can have a profound impact on the human body, but just how much of one, and how long that impact can last, remain a mystery.
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