ZWO FF107 Telescope
William Optics FLT91 Telescope
Askar FMA230 Telescope
ZWO AsiAir Plus
Ioptron CEM40 Equatorial Mount
ZWO AM5 Harmonic Mount
Skywatcher HEQ5 Pro Equatorial Mount
ZWO AM5 Harmonic Mount & Tripod
ZWO Electronic Automatic Focuser
ZWO ASI2600MC Pro Camera
ZWO ASI6200MC Pro Camera
ZWO ASI183M<C Peo Camera
ZWO ASI120MC Guide Camera
ZWO ASI290mm Guide Camera
Optolong Filters
Antlia Filters
ZWO Filter Wheel
Milky Way at Karijini Eco Retreat
Milky Way at Karijini Eco Retreat
Astrophotography Setup 1
Ioptron CEM40 Equatorial Mount, ZWO AsiAir Pro, Askar FMA230 Telescope, ZWO ASI183MC Pro Camera, Testar 50mm Guide Scope, ZWO ASI120MC Guide Camera, Optolong L-Extreme 7nm Dual Narrow Band Filter, ZWO Filter Drawer, AC/DC Power Adaptors 12V 5A, Prima Luce Lab Dew Heaters.
Astrophotography Setup 1
Askar FMA230 Refractor Telescope
Optical design: Air spaced apochromatic triplet with 2 ED elements
Objective diameter: 50mm
Focal length: 275mm, 230mm with reducer
Focal ratio: f5.5, f4.6 with reducer
Weight: 1045g
Astrophotography Setup 2
ZWO AM5 Harmonic Mount, ZWO AsiAir Pro, William Optics Fluorostar 91 Telescope, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro Camera, Testar 50mm Guide Scope, ZWO ASI290MM Guide Camera, ZWO Filter Drawer, AC/DC Power Adaptors 12V 5A, Prima Luce Lab Dew Heaters.
Astrophotography Setup 2
William Optics Fluorostar 91 Refractor Telescope
Optical design: Air spaced apochromatic triplet
Objective diameter: 91mm
Focal length: 540mm, 432mm with reducer
Focal ratio: f5.9, f4.7 with reducer
Weight: 5575gm
Astrophotography Setup 3
Ioptron CEM40 Equatorial Mount, ZWO AsiAir Plus, ZWO FF107 Telescope, ZWO ASI6200MC Pro Camera, Testar 50mm Guide Scope, ZWO ASI120MC Guide Camera, ZWO Electronic Auto Focuser, ZWO M54 V2 Filter Drawer, AC/DC Power Adaptors 12V 5A, Prima Luce Lab Dew Heaters.
Notes: 1. ZWO flattener/reducer not used in setup as it causes vignetting in four corners of images.
Astrophotography Setup 3
ZWO FF107 Refractor Telescope
Optical design: Air spaced apochromatic Petzval quadruplet
Objective diameter: 107mm
Focal length: 749mm, 524mm with reducer
Focal ratio: f7, f4.9 with reducer
Weight: 6900gm
statue of liberty nebula ngc 3576 (march 2023)
Image captured in the southern hemisphere at a Bortle 9 location. Image is the result of stacking 120 5 minutes subframes captured over four nights in March 2023.
Equipment used were 1. William Optics FLT91, F5.9 540mm FL Telescope 2. ZWO ASI2600MC Pro colour camera 3. Testar 50mm 190mm FL guide scope 4. ZWO ASI290mm Mini guide camera 5. ZWO electronic focussed 6. Optolong L-Extreme dual narrow band 7nm filter 7. ZWO ASIAIR Plus. No calibration frames were used. Software used were PixInsight, Topaz Denoise & Sharpen AI, Adobe Lightroom. Original image is in TIFF format of 145MB size and the image shown here is in JPEG format of size 21MB. The Optolong L-Extreme filter is a light pollution dual band filter designed to drastically reduce the effects of light pollution under bright urban skies. It is designed to isolate and pass emissions in the H-Alpha (red) and the OIII (green-blue) bands.
NGC 3576 is a bright emission nebula in the Sagittarius arm of the galaxy a few thousand light-years away from the Eta Carinae nebula. It is also approximately 100 light years across and 9000 light-years away from Earth. It was discovered by John Frederick William Herschel on 16 March 1834.Wikipedia
Object: Emission nebula
Constellation: Carina
Right ascension: 011h 12m 02s
Declination: −61° 12′ 46″
Diameter: 100 light years
Absolute magnitude: 9.1
Distance: 9800 light years
Designations: The Statue of Liberty Nebula, NGC 3576
southern tadpole nebula ngc3572 & statue of liberty nebula ngc 3576 (march 2023)
A wide field image captured in the southern hemisphere at a Bortle 9 location over 3 nights in late March 2023. This image of 10 hours exposure (120 exposures of 5 minutes each) is in JPEG of size 19MB where else the original is in TIFF format of size 121MB.
Equipment used: William Optics FLT91 telescope with reducer (F4.7, FL 432mm), Testar FL120mm F3.8 50mm guide scope, ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, Guide camera ZWO ASI290MM Mini, ZWO EAF, Optolong L-Extreme dual narrowband (Ha, OIII) 7nm filter, Ioptron CEM40 equatorial mount.
tarantula nebula ngc 2070 (march 2023)
A wide field image of the majestic Tarantula Nebula NGC2070. Final image from processing 120 5 minutes subframes via PixInsight and finalised using Adobe Lightroom and Topaz DeNoise and Sharpen AI. The tarantula nebula never stops to intrigue me with its intertwined masses of stars and gases. Can't stop myself from having taken a few series of the nebula at various times of the year. See below location image for the various objects around this nebula.
The Tarantula Nebula is a large H II region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, forming its south-east corner.Wikipedia
Equipment used: ZWO ASI2600MC Pro one shot colour camera, Optolong L-Extreme dual narrowband 7nm filter, William Optics FLT91 telescope, ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO electronic focuser, SkyWatcher HEQ Pro equatorial mount.
Object: Emission nebula
Constellation: Dorado (Large Magellanic Cloud Dwarf Galaxy)
Right ascension: 05h 38m 38s
Declination: −69° 05′ 07″
Diameter: 1,000 light years
Absolute magnitude: 8
Distance: 160000 light years
Designations: Tarantula Nebula, 30 Doradus, NGC 2070
Tarantula Nebula Objects Location Image
tarantula nebula ngc 2070 (march 2023)
A closer look at this intriguing image captured in the southern hemisphere at a Bortle 9 location.
eta carina nebula ngc 3372 (march 2023)
The Carina Nebula or Eta Carinae Nebula is a large, complex area of bright and dark nebulosity in the constellation Carina, located in the Carina–Sagittarius Arm of the Milky Way galaxy. The nebula is approximately 8,500 light-years from Earth. Wikipedia
Equipment used: William Optics FLT91 telescope with reducer (F4.7, FL 432mm), Testar FL120mm F3.8 50mm guide scope, ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, Guide camera ZWO ASI290MM Mini, ZWO EAF, Optolong L-Extreme dual narrowband (Ha, OIII) 7nm filter, Ioptron CEM40 equatorial mount.
Object: Emission nebula
Constellation: Carina
Right ascension: 10h 45m 08s
Declination: −59° 52′ 04″
Diameter: 230 light years
Absolute magnitude: 10.8
Distance: 7500 light years
Designations: Eta Carina Nebula, NGC 3372
running chicken nebula ic 2944 (17, 18, 20 march 2023)
IC 2944, also known as the Running Chicken Nebula, the Lambda Centauri Nebula or the λ Centauri Nebula, is an open cluster with an associated emission nebula found in the constellation Centaurus, near the star λ Centauri. It features Bok globules, which are frequently a site of active star formation. Wikipedia
Image captured in the southern hemisphere at a Bortle 9 location.
Object: Diffuse Nebula
Constellation: Centaurus
Right ascension: 11h 35m 47s
Declination: −63° 01′ 10″
Diameter: 100 light years
Absolute magnitude: 4.5
Distance: 6500 light years
Designations: Running Chicken Nebula, Lambda Centauri Nebula, Caldwell 100, IC 2944
Rosette nebula ngc 2244 (17, 18, 19, 20 march 2023)
10 hours of exposures captured over four nights in March of 2023.
Equipment used: William Optics FLT91 telescope with reducer (F4.7, FL 432mm), Testar FL120mm F3.8 50mm guide scope, ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, Guide camera ZWO ASI290MM Mini, ZWO EAF, Optolong L-Extreme dual narrowband (Ha, OIII) 7nm filter, Ioptron CEM40 equatorial mount.
Rosette Nebula is an H II region located near one end of a giant molecular cloud in the Monoceros region of the Milky Way Galaxy. The open cluster NGC 2244 is closely associated with the nebulosity, the stars of the cluster having been formed from the nebula's matter. The nebula has been noted to be having a shape reminiscent of a human skull, and is sometimes referred to as the "Skull Nebula." It is not to be confused with NGC 246, which is also nicknamed the "Skull Nebula." Wikipedia
Object: Open Cluster & Emission nebula
Constellation: Monoceros
Right ascension: 06h 33m 45s
Declination: +04° 59′ 54″
Diameter: 130 light years
Absolute magnitude: 9
Distance: 5219 light years
Designations: Rosette Nebula, NGC 2244
the fighting dragons of ara ngc 6188 (18, 19, 20, 22 april 2023)
Can you spot the two dragons with red fiery eyes? The dragon egg is located at top left of image, not the usual place as it normally should be sitting at the bottom right of image. That is because I have rotated the image so that I can visualise the two dragons more easily in its upright position. I perceived the two dragons, each with two fiery eyes located to the left and right of the centre of the image. Others may perceived it in other ways.
NGC 6188 is an emission nebula located about 4,000 light years away in the constellation of Ara. The bright open cluster NGC 6193, visible to the naked eye, is responsible for a region of reflection nebulosity within NGC 6188. NGC 6188 is a star forming nebula, and is sculpted by the massive, young stars that have recently formed there – some are only a few million years old. This spark of formation was probably caused when the last batch of stars went supernova: Wikipedia.
Equipment used: William Optics FLT91 telescope with reducer (F4.7, FL 432mm), Testar FL120mm F3.8 50mm guide scope, ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, Guide camera ZWO ASI290MM Mini, ZWO EAF, Optolong L-Ultimate dual narrowband (Ha, OIII) 3nm filter, Ioptron CEM40 equatorial mount.Object: Emission nebula
Constellation: ARA
Right ascension: 16h 38m 57s
Declination: −48° 26′ 31″
Diameter: 300 light years
Absolute magnitude: 5.2
Distance: 4000 light years
Designations: Rim Nebula, Fighting Dragons of Ara, NGC 6188
eta carina nebula ngc 3372 (may/june 2023)
A 4 panel mosaic of the Carina Nebula taken over 6 nights, each panel comprising of 10 hour exposures.
Equipment used: William Optics FLT91 telescope with reducer (F4.7, FL 432mm), Testar FL120mm F3.8 50mm guide scope, ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, Guide camera ZWO ASI290MM Mini, ZWO EAF, Optolong L-Ultimate dual narrowband (Ha, OIII) 3nm filter, Ioptron CEM40 equatorial mount.
gum 12 & the vela supernova remnant (13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30 may / 1 June 2023)
Image captured in the southern hemisphere at a Bortle 9 location with a dual narrow band filter. Mosaic image consists of 4 panels, each of 120 x 5 minutes subframes over several nights. Original processed image size in TIFF format is 340MB with the one shown here is 36MB of JPEQ format.
Image captured in the southern hemisphere at a Bortle 9 location with a dual narrow band filter. Mosaic image consists of 4 panels, each of 120 x 5 minutes subframes over several nights. Original processed image size in TIFF format is 340MB with the one shown here is 36MB of JPEQ format.
Equipment used: William Optics FLT91 telescope with reducer (F4.7, FL 432mm), Testar FL120mm F3.8 50mm guide scope, ZWO ASIAIR Plus, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, Guide camera ZWO ASI290MM Mini, ZWO EAF, Optolong L-Ultimate dual narrowband (Ha, OIII) 3nm filter, Ioptron CEM40 equatorial mount.
From wikipedia paraphrased:
The Gum Nebula (Gum 12) is an emission nebula that extends across 36° in the southern constellations Vela and Puppis. Widely believed to be the greatly expanded (and still expanding) remains of a supernova that took place about a million years ago.
The Gum Nebula (Gum 12) is an emission nebula that extends across 36° in the southern constellations Vela and Puppis. Widely believed to be the greatly expanded (and still expanding) remains of a supernova that took place about a million years ago.
Object: Emission nebula
Constellation: Vela
Right ascension: 08h 00m s
Declination: −43° 00′ :″
Diameter: 1,000 light years
Absolute magnitude: 3.73
Distance: 1470 light years/450 parsecs
Designations: Gum Nebula, Gum 12
the fighting dragons of ara ngc 6188 & dragons egg ngc 6164 (22, 23, 24, 31 july/ 1, 3, 4, 5 august 2023)
Reimaged this DSO as I wanted to get a wider field of view with its surroundings. Thus created a mosaic of four panels and collected data over several winter nights.
Equipment used: see Astrophotography Setup 2.
NGC 6188
Object: Emission nebula
Constellation: ARA
Right ascension: 16h 38m 57s
Declination: −48° 26′ 31″
Diameter: 300 light years
Absolute magnitude: 5.2
Distance: 4000 light years
Designations: Rim Nebula, Fighting Dragons of Ara, NGC 6188
NGC 6164
Object: Emission nebula
Constellation: Norma
Right ascension: 16h 33m 52s
Declination: −48° 06′ 41″
Diameter: 4 light years
Absolute magnitude: 6.7
Distance: 4200 light years
Designations: Dragons Egg Nebula, NGC 6164
Image above shows the locations of the Dragons Egg and the two Fighting Dragons of Ara!
Eagle Nebula M16 (5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14 August 2023)
Wasn't able to image this deep sky object (DSO) until now due to the fact that have to wait for it to be high enough in the night sky and also the restricted view I have from my balcony. I am imaging this DSO over several nights due to our winter weather to collect enough data, doubling the number of hour exposures I usually do. Also realised that this nebula is so unique in the sense that it contains within itself both The Pillars of Creation (made famous by the images taken by NASA's James Webb space telescope in 1995 and revisited in 2014) and The Stellar Spire. Looking at the image, you cannot but admire that it resembles a serene face with closed eyes! For this image, have taken 250 exposures, each of 5 minutes exposure. Image on the right processed as shot while image on the right was processed using the SHO Hubble palette. Also see image below which shows the Pillars of Creation within the Eagle Nebula.
The Eagle Nebula (catalogued as Messier 16 or M16, and as NGC 6611, and also known as the Star Queen Nebula) is a young open cluster of stars in the constellation of Serpens, discovered by Jean-Philippe de Cheseaux in 1745–46. Both the "Eagle" and the "Star Queen" refer to visual impressions of the dark silhouette near the centre of the nebula, an area made famous as the "Pillars of Creation" imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope. The nebula contains several active star-forming gas and dust regions, including the aforementioned Pillars of Creation. The Eagle Nebula lies in the Sagittarius Arm of the Milky Way: Wikipedia.
Equipment used: see Astrophotography Setup 2.
Object: Emission Nebula with Open Cluster
Constellation: Serpens
Right ascension: 18h 18m 48s
Declination: −13° 49′ 0″
Diameter: 58 light years
Absolute magnitude: 6
Distance: 7000 light years
Designations: Eagle Nebula, M16, NGC 6611
Eagle Nebula M16 In SHO Hubble Palette (5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14 August 2023)
The Stellar Spire & The Pillars of Creation Within The Eagle Nebula (August 2023)
On the bottom left is the single column of The Stellar Spire. In the centre is the Pillars of Creation, comprising of three columns.
Deep Sky Objects Location Map of the Milky Way
wide field starless version of omega nebula M17 in SHO Hubble palette (17, 18, 19, 20, 24 august 2023)
The Omega Nebula is an emission nebula located in the rich Milky Way star fields of Sagittarius. This object is best observed from the southern and equatorial regions during the months of June, July and August. Taken 240 exposures of 5 minutes each in August 2023.
The Omega Nebula, also known as the Swan Nebula, Checkmark Nebula, Lobster Nebula, and the Horseshoe Nebula is an H II region in the constellation Sagittarius. It was discovered by Philippe Loys de Chéseaux in 1745. Charles Messier catalogued it in 1764. Wikipedia
Equipment used: see Astrophotography Setup 2 but using an Antlia dual narrowband filter 5nm Ha + OIII.
Object: Emission Nebula with open cluster
Constellation: Sagittarius
Right ascension: 18h 20m 26s
Declination: −16° 10′ 36″
Diameter: 15 light years
Absolute magnitude: 6
Distance: 5500 light years
Designations: Omega Nebula, Swan Nebula, Horseshoe Nebula, Checkmark Nebula, Lobster Nebula, M17, NGC 6618
another version of omega nebula M17 in SHO Hubble palette using the antlia 5nm ha + oiii and hb + sii narrow band filters (17, 18, 19, 20, 24, 25, 29, 30, 31 august 2023)
Similar to the object above but processed with images captured using two Antlia dual narrowband filters over several nights, each filter capturing 240 by 5 minutes images. They are stacked using APP, integrated in Pixinsight and final processing in Lightroom and Topaz.
Equipment used: see Astrophotography Setup 2 but using both the Antlia dual narrowband 5nm Ha + OIII filter and the Antlia dual narrowband 5nm Hb + SII filter.
tarantula nebula ngc 2070 in H-o-o palette(november 2023)
A wide field image of the majestic Tarantula Nebula NGC2070. Final image from processing 120 5 minutes subframes using the Ha + OIII filter and another 120 5 minutes subframes using the Hb + SII filter via PixInsight and finalised using Adobe Lightroom and Topaz DeNoise and Sharpen AI.
The Tarantula Nebula is a large H II region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, forming its south-east corner.Wikipedia
Equipment used: see Astrophotography Setup 3 but using a Antlia dual narrowband filter 5nm Ha + OIII and a Antlia dual narrowband filter 5nm Hb + SII.
tarantula nebula ngc 2070 in H-S-oHb palette(november 2023)
A wide field image of the majestic Tarantula Nebula NGC2070. Final image from processing 120 5 minutes subframes using the Ha + OIII filter and another 120 5 minutes subframes using the Hb + SII filter via PixInsight and finalised using Adobe Lightroom and Topaz DeNoise and Sharpen AI.
The Tarantula Nebula is a large H II region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, forming its south-east corner.Wikipedia
Equipment used: see Astrophotography Setup 3 but using a Antlia dual narrowband filter 5nm Ha + OIII and a Antlia dual narrowband filter 5nm Hb + SII.
wide field image of lagoon nebula M8, trifid nebula m20 & NGC 6559 (september/october 2023)
M20 is a star-forming nebula located 9,000 light-years away from Earth in the north-west of the constellation Sagittarius. The name Trifid refers to its three-lobed appearance. Shown here on the bottom right of the image above
Equipment used: see Astrophotography Setup 2 but using a Antlia dual narrowband filter 5nm Ha + OIII and a Antlia dual narrowband filter 5nm Hb + SII.
The Lagoon Nebula is a giant interstellar cloud in the constellation Sagittarius. It is classified as an emission nebula and as an H II region. The Lagoon Nebula was discovered by Giovanni Hodierna before 1654 and is one of only two star-forming nebulae faintly visible to the eye from mid-northern latitudes. Wikipedia
The Trifid Nebula (catalogued as Messier 20 or M20 and as NGC 6514) is an H II region in the north-west of Sagittarius in a star-forming region in the Milky Way's Scutum-Centaurus Arm. It was discovered by Charles Messier on June 5, 1764. Its name means 'three-lobe'. Wikipedia
NGC 6559 is a star-forming region located at a distance of about 5000 light-years from Earth, in the constellation of Sagittarius, showing both emission and reflection regions. Wikipedia
Lagoon Nebula M8
Object: Emission Nebula
Constellation: Sagittarius
Right ascension: 18h 3m 37s
Declination: −24° 23′ 12″
Diameter: 33 light years
Absolute magnitude: 6
Distance: 4100 light years
Designations: Lagoon Nebula, M8, NGC 6523, Sharpless 25, RCW 146, GUM 72
Trifid Nebula M20
Object: Emission Nebula, Dark Nebula, Reflection Nebula, Open Star Cluster
Constellation: Sagittarius
Right ascension: 18h 02m 23s
Declination: −23° 01' 48″
Diameter: 42 light years
Absolute magnitude: 6.3
Distance: 5200 light years
Designations: Trifid Nebula, M20, NGC 6514, Sharpless 30
NGC6559 Nebula Complex
Object: Emission Nebula, Reflection Nebula
Constellation: Sagittarius
Right ascension: 18h 09m 56.8s
Declination: −24° 06' 23″
Diameter: light years
Absolute magnitude:
Distance: 5000 light years
Designations: NGC 6559, Loreta Nebula, Chinese Dragon
