26
JUL
2014
noctilucent clouds UK july 2014

Noctilucent Clouds

Living in northern Europe has a few drawbacks when it comes to astrophotography. The high latitude means we struggle to see many of the best constellations. And for a couple of months a year, the summer sky stays blue throughout the night, making astrophotography impossible. But...
19
APR
2014
M51 whirlpool galaxy

Whirlpool galaxy & comet PANSTARRS

Spring is a great time to for viewing galaxies in the northern hemisphere. The Virgo supercluster arches overhead in a vast swathe through the constellations of Virgo, Leo, Coma Berenices and Canes Venatici. Many famous and recognisable galaxies occupy this region, but none may...
06
MAR
2014
rosette nebula barn door tracker

Rosette nebula

I was a bit hesitant to image the Rosette nebula as it sits quite low in the sky, and is even fainter than the tricky Horsehead nebula which I had difficulty capturing a few months ago. So I didn’t expect much of a result when capturing the images with my DSLR/barn door...
28
FEB
2014

Northern lights

The Aurora Borealis is a pretty rare sight from England. The last time I saw one was back in January 2005! Last night however, everything came together and the illusive northern lights showed up once more. I know from experience that it pays to check if any auroras are forecast...
31
JAN
2014
cigar galaxy supernova M82

Supernova!

Eleven and a half million years ago, a massive explosion lit up the Cigar galaxy (M82), and just last week, the light from this dying star finally arrived on Earth. This is a rare supernova event (and the closest to Earth in 20 years) so I thought I’d have a go at capturing...
02
DEC
2013
north america nebula cygnus barn door tracker

North America nebula

The Sun sets by mid afternoon this time of the year in the north of the UK. This is not good news for SAD sufferers, but it’s great for astrophotography! Because of the long nights, the summer constellations sit high in the late afternoon/early evening sky well into January. This...
24
NOV
2013
andromeda galaxy

Andromeda Galaxy II

After being blown away by my first attempt at the Andromeda Galaxy, I couldn’t help having another go with the improved barn door tracker, this time using longer exposures of 80 seconds, and a lower iso of 800. The resulting image has a lot more detail and much less noise...