Intergalactic Astro

11/06/2025

Just picked this up on cloudy nights just waiting for the rest of the equipment building something new 😉.

How do you like your Explorer Scientific scope leave some Images in the comments.

10/15/2025

Are you thinking about getting a good all-around light pollution filter? The Optolong L-Quad Enhance Filter is a great choice. In this video, I will be showing you three images I captured using the new Optolong L-Quad Enhance Filter, as well as comparing it to an Optolong UV/IR filter.Overall this filter did a amazing job.
👇👇👇 Optolong Astronomy Filter

In this video I will be showing you 3 images I captured using the New Optolong L-Quad Enhance Filter also be showing you comparisons with a Optolong uv/ir fi...

09/19/2025

🌟 Look East on September 20! 🌅✨

In the predawn sky, you’ll witness a dazzling cosmic pairing: Venus, the brilliant Morning Star, shining extremely close to Regulus, the brightest star in Leo.

Together, they’ll form the appearance of a brilliant double star—a rare and breathtaking sight just before sunrise.

🔭 Don’t miss this celestial gem! Look east in the early morning sky. 💫
The Secrets Of The Universe

09/17/2025

We are currently losing more daylight per day than any other time of year, losing just over 2.5 minutes each day.

In total sunrise moves back 28 minutes from September 1st (6:47am) to September 30th (7:15am). Sunset moves forward a total of 48 minutes from September 1st (7:51pm) to September 30th (7:03pm).

The Autumnal Equinox will occur on September 22nd and the rate of change in daylight will slow each day after until we hit the Winter Solstice, when we begin gaining daylight again.

MORE IMAGING TIME 🔭🔭🔭🔭

09/11/2025

I received 2 filters from Optolong Astronomy Filter for testing 😁 One is already well known in the Astro community: the Optolong L-Extreme, a 7nm Ha 7nm Oiii duo band filter.And the new filter that's supposed to pair nice with Optolong L-Extreme, the Optolong L-Synergy, this is a 7nm Sulfur 7nm Oiii. This gives people who own a One Shot Color camera the ability to add sulfur to their images, allowing us to make more accurate Hubble palette images using the sulfur emission line. Can't wait to try it out this weekend! Looks good 👍

09/05/2025

It's pretty amazing what the optolong L ultimate can do in just 3 or 4 hours from a light polluted sky this is the Eastern veil nebula 3 hours with 5-minute exposures. The L ultimate did a fantastic job. Do you use a light pollution filter like this? Add your images in the comments below 👇

AT115EDT
ASI2600mc pro
Optolong L-Ultimate 3nm Ha 3nm Oiii

09/01/2025

Mark Your Calendars !
🌠 September 1 – Aurigid Meteor Shower (Peak)
The Aurigid meteor shower will reach its peak, producing fast and bright meteors that seem to radiate from the constellation Auriga. Best viewing will be before dawn under dark skies.

🌕 September 7 – Total Lunar Eclipse “Blood Moon”
A dramatic total lunar eclipse will occur, turning the Moon a deep red for over an hour. This “Blood Moon” happens when Earth completely blocks sunlight from reaching the Moon.

☀️🌙 September 21 – Partial Solar Eclipse
A partial solar eclipse will be visible in some regions where the Moon covers a portion of the Sun. Solar viewing protection is essential to watch this safely.

🪐 September 21 – Saturn at Opposition
On the same day Saturn will be at opposition, meaning Earth is directly between Saturn and the Sun. This makes the planet shine brighter and larger than usual perfect for telescopic views of its rings.

🍂 September 22 – Autumn Equinox
The equinox marks the first day of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere. On this day, day and night are nearly equal in length across the globe.

🌠 September 27 – Daytime Sextantids Meteor Shower (Peak)
This minor meteor shower peaks in daylight hours and while difficult to observe with the naked eye radio or radar detections can pick them up.

08/29/2025

Andromeda is the nearest spiral galaxy to our own Milky Way galaxy. It can be seen with the unaided eye on clear, dark nights. The Andromeda galaxy is about twice the size of the Milky Way with roughly one trillion stars. I was able to get 3 hours last night before the clouds rolled in. 👇👇👇

Astro-Tech 115EDT .8x reducer
Zwo asi2600mc pro 36x5 minute exposure's
Optolong L-Quad Filter Optolong Astronomy Filter
Skywatcher EQ6R Pro Mount Sky-Watcher
Processed in Pixinsight
Bortle 5

゚

HAVE YOU SHOT SHOT M31 LEAVE YOUR PICTURE IN THE COMMENTS!!!!!!

08/16/2025

🌌 Don’t Miss the Final Planetary Parade of 2025! 🌌

From August 17 to 20, the night sky will treat us to a rare spectacle — six planets appearing together in one grand cosmic lineup.

🔭 What You’ll See

Visible to the Naked Eye: Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn will shine brightly, easy to spot without any equipment.

With Binoculars or Telescope: Uranus and Neptune, the icy giants, will be faint but rewarding finds for those with the right gear.

🌙 A Bonus from the Moon

August 17–18: A delicate crescent Moon will hover above Venus and Jupiter, creating a picture-perfect dawn scene.

August 19–20: The Moon will snuggle even closer to the two bright planets, making the alignment even more photogenic.

📍 Best Viewing Tips

Time: About 1 hour before sunrise — planets are easiest to spot when the sky is still dark.

Direction: Face east under open, unobstructed skies.

Location: Get as far from city lights as possible for the clearest view.

Gear: Your eyes are enough for the main show, but binoculars or a telescope will reveal Neptune’s bluish glow and Uranus’s subtle greenish hue.

💡 Why It’s Special
Planetary parades like this happen when multiple planets align in the same region of the sky from Earth’s perspective. While they are far apart in space, their paths across the sky line up to create the illusion of a cosmic gathering.
This will be the last planetary alignment of 2025, making it a perfect send-off to summer stargazing.

✨ Mark your calendars, set your alarm early, and don’t miss your chance to witness this dazzling dance of worlds before it’s gone.

08/08/2025

Heads up, skygazers! In the pre-dawn hours of August 12, look east and you’ll see Venus and Jupiter, the two brightest planets, coming together in a breathtaking conjunction.

Separated by less than the width of your pinky held at arm’s length, they’ll appear almost as a brilliant double star—a sight best caught with binoculars just before sunrise.

Venus, glowing at around magnitude –4.0, will outshine Jupiter, which shines at about –1.9

How to watch:

🔸Look east-northeast, roughly 45 minutes before sunrise, when Venus and Jupiter emerge in the morning twilight.
🔸No tools needed—this is a naked-eye event—but binoculars or a wide-field telescope will reveal Jupiter’s moons and Venus’s bright disc.
🔸The pair will neatly align in Gemini, with Venus positioned slightly south of Jupiter

This conjunction is part of a broader Venus–Jupiter pairing window that stretches from July 26 to August 21, but the August 12 alignment is the closest and most visually striking moment.

Don't miss it 🌌 Happy skygazing ✨

08/06/2025

A planetary alignment is happening!

Starting August 10, six planets – Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune – will begin to line up in the early morning sky, just before sunrise. This planetary alignment won’t happen again until February 2026, and it’s shaping up to be one of the most beautiful skywatching events of the year.

Four of the planets – Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn – will be visible to the naked eye, shining like bright stars in the pre-dawn light. Uranus and Neptune will require binoculars or a telescope, but they’re there – quiet giants on the edge of the planetary parade.

And the timing couldn’t be better.

The Perseid meteor shower – the most spectacular of the year – will be near its peak. On the nights of August 12–13, expect up to 100 meteors per hour, many of them fast, bright, and slicing right through the planet-filled sky.

To see it all, head outside about an hour before sunrise, facing east, somewhere dark with a clear horizon.

Planets. Meteors. One unforgettable morning sky. Don’t miss it.

08/06/2025

Here are a few shots from Cherry Springs State Park using my cell phone. The Google pixel 9 Pro what a amazing night!