Stars and Star Clusters

M52 and the Bubble Nebula (NGC 7635)

SCOPE KID — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 01:51:30 GMT

M52 and the Bubble Nebula (NGC 7635)

by Frank Araiza

Image was taken 11-20-09 with a Celestron Nexstar GPS11 SCT telescope, QHY8 CCD camera with Hyperstar. 20x30 second images were taken stacked in Maxim DL processed in Maxim DL and CS4 Photoshop. M52 is an open cluster 3800 light years away were as NGC7635 the Bubble Nebula is a diffused nebula it's round bubble shape created by a supernova explosion. Image was taken in Tucson Arizona.

M46 and NGC2438

Archimede — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 21:42:54 GMT

M46 and NGC2438

by Marco STRA

Date/Time: 03/05/2010 - 22:45 - Aosta Valley (Italy)

Image of M46 and NGC2438 Planetary Nebula, Meade 80mm APO (f/6) with CCD Meade DSI PRO, Stack of 95 Frames x 15sec.

The Hercules Cluster (M13) through a 6-inch achromatic refractor

tkerr — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 23:00:58 GMT

The Hercules Cluster (M13) through a 6-inch achromatic refractor

by Tim Kerr

Messier 13
Hercules Globular Cluster in the Hercules Constellation
Date: 2009, March 21
Location: Hubert, North Carolina USA.
Camera: Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT/350D
Prime Focus on Celestron C6R-GT 6" f/8 Achro Refractor.
Exposures: ISO 400, 62x 60 second

The Pleiades (M45)

tkerr — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 22:56:22 GMT

The Pleiades (M45)

by Tim Kerr

Through the glow of the bright waxing gibbous moon.
Messier 45, The Pleiades Cluster
Date: 2009, September 30
Location: Hubert, North Carolina USA
Telescope: Celestron C80ED f/7.5 Refractor
Mount: Celestron ASGT CG5-GT
Camera: Canon EOS 50D(unmodified)
Exposures: 45x 180 seconds at ISO 800

The Hercules Cluster (M13)

tkerr — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 22:54:48 GMT

The Hercules Cluster (M13)

by Tim Kerr

M50 - Open Cluster in Monoceros

CraigAndTammy — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 13:26:37 GMT

M50 - Open Cluster in Monoceros

by Craig and Tammy Temple

M50 is an open cluster in the constellation Monoceros. It is sometimes referred to as the Heart-shaped cluster. Charles Messier identified this as object number 50 in his famous database in 1772. It has an apparent magnitude of 5.90.

Telescope: Astro Tech AT8IN 8” f/4 Newtonian
Accessories: Baader MPCC
Mount: Orion Atlas EQ-G controlled by EQMOD
Guiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider on William Optics ZS66
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel T1i, Hap Griffin Baader modified
Filters: Astronomik CLS-CCD EOS Clip
Exposure: 46 x 120s @ ISO 400 (1hr. 32min.)
Acquisition: ImagesPlus 3.80b Camera Control
Processing: ImagesPlus 3.80a – Calibrated, registered, Min-Max excluded average, DDP
Post-processing: Adobe Photoshop CS4; Gradient XTerminator; Noise Ninja,
Date(s): February 10, 2010
Temperature(s): 29ºF
SQM reading (begin - end): 18.98 - 18.96

M48 - Open Cluster in Hydra

CraigAndTammy — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 13:25:15 GMT

M48 - Open Cluster in Hydra

by Craig and Tammy Temple

M48, a magnitude 5.50 open cluster in the constellation Hydra, is a bit of a mystery. It was discovered in 1771 by Charles Messier, however there is no open cluster present at the coordinates he specified. Caroline Herschel is credited for discovering NGC2548 (M48), which is the closest object to Messiers coordinates.

Telescope: Astro Tech AT8IN 8” f/4 Newtonian
Accessories: Baader MPCC
Mount: Orion Atlas EQ-G controlled by EQMOD
Guiding: Orion StarShoot AutoGuider on William Optics ZS66
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel T1i, Hap Griffin Baader modified
Filters: Astronomik CLS-CCD EOS Clip
Exposure: 49 x 120s @ ISO 400 (1hr. 38min.)
Acquisition: ImagesPlus 3.80b Camera Control
Processing: ImagesPlus 3.80a – Calibrated, registered, Min-Max excluded average, DDP
Post-processing: Adobe Photoshop CS4; Gradient XTerminator; Noise Ninja,
Date(s): February 10, 2010
Temperature(s): 27ºF
SQM reading (begin - end): 18.96 - 19.13

M22 in Sagittarius

dass717 — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 04:33:25 GMT

M22 in Sagittarius

by Dave Lassiter

August 24, 2009 from Harrisburg, Pa. 14" LX 200 @ F 3.3 w DSI 3 camera, and processed with Astro Art 3.0.

The Pleiades (M45)

dass717 — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:31:26 GMT

The Pleiades (M45)

by Dave Lassiter

Nov 2, 2009 from Hbg, Pa. Astro Tech 66 ED refractor piggybacked on a 14" LX 200. DSI 3 camera w Moog focal reducer. Ten 2 minute exposures.

The Double Cluster (NGC 869 and NGC 884)

WABarry — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 00:47:58 GMT

The Double Cluster (NGC 869 and NGC 884)

80mm ST refractor, CG5 mount (unguided), Canon 350D (unmodified)

45 minutes: 30 x 30 sec + 30 x 60 sec @ ISO 400

Captured in Nebulosity, aligned and stacked in Deep Sky Stacker, processed in Photo Shop Elements with Carboni tools.

The Pleiades (M45)

rangerbob — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 02:39:59 GMT

The Pleiades (M45)

Taken from Chattaroy, WA 2-17-10

Cannon 200mm f2.8 lens at f4, UV filter

Cannon XSI Hap Griffin Modified, 45x120s

Guided with PHD

Processed with Deep Sky Stacker, Images Plus, Cannon DPP

The Beehive Cluster (M44) and Mars.

tkerr — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 19:18:15 GMT

The Beehive Cluster (M44) and Mars.

by Tim Kerr

Hubert, North Carolina, USA.

Image captured Sunday night February 7, 2010 from my back yard using a Canon EOS 50D with a Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens piggy back mounted on top a Celestron C6 R-GT which was used for guiding.
Image is a stack of 30 x 180 second exposures at ISO 800.

Mars traverses the Beehive Cluster (M44)

dass717 — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:40:35 GMT

Mars traverses the Beehive Cluster (M44)

by Dave Lassiter

In November 2009, Mars traversed M44 the Beehive Cluster. Picture taken from Harrisburg, Pa. Astro Techh 66 ED APO refractor, DSI 3 camera w Moog focal reducer.

M24 Star cloud with dark nebula

dass717 — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 15:18:04 GMT

M24 Star cloud with dark nebula

by Dave Lassiter

Photo taken Aug 31, 2009 from Hbg., Pa. Atro Tech 66 APO & DSI 3. Barnard 92 & 93 dark nebula visible NW. M24 small star cloud in Sagittarius.

NGC 2281 - Open cluster in Auriga

Herbert_W — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 15:11:27 GMT

NGC 2281 - Open cluster in Auriga

by Herbert Walter

Jan/14/2010
Vorderstoder, Upperaustria
RGB je 8x5min
FSQ106ED - Atik314L
Software: THELI, CS3

NGC 2281 Pretty bright, pretty large, not compressed, not rich at
100X. A dozen 10th and 11th mag stars with some fainter attendants

Orion

AMANAMATEYRASTRONOMER — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 10:23:39 GMT

Orion

The photo was taken one day after the Full Moon.

Orion's Belt

rangerbob — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 03:51:12 GMT

Orion's Belt

Taken from Chattaroy, WA 1-21-10

Cannon 200mm f2.8 lens at f4, UV filter

Cannon XSI Hap Griffin Modified, 32x120s

Guided with PHD

Processed with Deep Sky Stacker, Images Plus, Cannon DPP

The Christmas Tree Cluster (NGC2264)

dass717 — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:04:51 GMT

The Christmas Tree Cluster (NGC2264)

Picture taken from Harrisburg, Pa on Christmas Eve, 2009. Ten one minute exposures with a DSI 3 camera through an AstroTech 66 ED APO piggybacked on a 14" LX 200 ACF telescope. Part of the cone nebula is barely noticebale.

M37

DaveMitsky — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 09:52:21 GMT

M37

by Dave Mitsky

This 60-second long image of the open cluster M37 (NGC 2099) in Auriga was captured remotely on 2010/1/14 using the Bradford Robotic Telescope's 14" f/11 Celestron C14 SCT and FLI MicroLine camera located on Tenerife in the Canary Islands. A Celestron focal reducer yielding an effective focal length of 1877mm at f/5.3 was employed. North is up and east is to the left in the image. For additional information on M37, see http://www.seds.org/messier/m/m037.html

The Pleiades (M45)

astronut2007 — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:43:20 GMT

The Pleiades (M45)

by Alan C Tough

This image of The Pleiades was taken from Elgin, Scotland on 2010 January 9. Thin high level cloud caused me some processing difficulties though!

The 50 minutes worth of data were processed using Photoshop 7 (including Noel Carboni's astronomy actions and StarSpike Pro plug-in) and Neat Image.

Equipment used: Sky-Watcher ED80, HEQ5 mount, Canon EOS 40D at prime focus, Astronomik CLS filter. Exposure details: 5 x 10 minutes @ f/7.5, ISO-800. Guiding equipment: Sky-Watcher ED100, StarShoot Autoguider.