I struggled for several nights last year in a futile attempt to take photos of the Crescent Nebula, NGC 6888. This emission nebula is about 5,000 light years away, and between us and it is a lot of stars. It wasn’t until I got my Optolong l-eXtreme filter that I’ve been able to see the nebula properly. […]
The North America & Pelican Nebulas
It was a gloriously clear stretch of weather this past weekend, with highs in the low 20s with low humidity and clear skies at night. Taking a break from the big Celestron SCT, I brought out the William Optics Redcat 51 and photographed a few interesting parts of the Milky Way. The Optolong l-eXtreme filter does a great job of toning down […]
Star Cygni 57 and the North America Nebula
Just off the “East Coast” of the North America Nebula lies the bright binary star 57 Cygni. Embedded deep in the Milky Way, the reds & browns of the background dust and stars provide a nice counter to the blue in the star, just over 500 light years away. The entire North America Nebula is […]
Milky Way: July 8th, 2019
Milky Way: July 7, 2019
A friend who was curious about photography came up to the cottage this weekend, and was blown away about what he could see. “There are too many stars” was repeated several times while we photographed the Milky Way. Here’s a single exposure, just taken before 1am on Sunday night. A large segment of the core […]