This image of Messier 13, the Great Globular Star Cluster in Hercules was imaged by Claudio Oriani in Richmond Hill, Ontario on May 30, 2023 using an 8″ SCT telescope. The cluster, also known as NGC 6205, is 24,000 light-years away from our sun. The cluster appears as a faint fuzzy patch in binoculars, and…
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This image by Michael Watson of Toronto nicely captured earthshine on the waxing crescent moon after sunset on March 8, 2019. Michael’s terrific galleries of moon images are hosted on his Flickr page. Hello, May Stargazers! Here are your Astronomy Skylights for the week of May 21st, 2023 by Chris Vaughan. Feel free to pass…
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This beautiful natural image of the Hyades and the Pleiades clusters in Taurus, was captured and processed by Alan Dyer while he was travelling to Arizona in December, 2017. He used a Canon 5D MkII camera on a tracking mount and a total of eight minutes of exposure. The bright star Aldebaran at left is…
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My friend Alan Dyer of Calgary, Alberta captured this wonderful wide-field image of the fully eclipsed moon on Tuesday morning, November 8, 2022. The brilliant white star Sirius (lower left), bright red Mars (top centre), and the blood red moon (far right) surround the winter stars of Orion and Taurus. Enjoy more of Alan’s work…
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NGC 457, better known as the Owl Cluster, ET Cluster, and Dragonfly Cluster, was imaged by “Astrodoc” Ron Brecher of Guelph, Ontario. The bright stars are the eyes. The body and feet extend down to the right. Squint to see the upswept, curving chains of stars for the wings. This image covers a finger’s width…
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I took this unprocessed image of Saturn through the 74″ (1.88 metre) diameter telescope at the David Dunlap Observatory in Richmond Hill, Ontario at 9:13 pm EDT on October 3, 2022. Note the bands on the planet, and the dark Cassini Division that separates the outer from the inner rings. The wedge of shadow cast…
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This gorgeous scene captures summer nights in Canada. It was taken by my friend Kerry-Ann Lecky Hepburn on April 23, 2022. While autumn will soon arrive, its earlier sunsets will allow us to continue to view the Milky Way’s treasures for some time to come. The pink patches in this image are nebulas. They are…
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On Saturday, September 3, 2022, the moon will reach its first quarter phase. (Starry Night Pro) Hello, September Stargazers! Here are your Astronomy Skylights for the week of August 28th, 2022 by Chris Vaughan. Feel free to pass this along to your friends and send me your comments, questions, and suggested topics. You can also…
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A triangle of dark ash deposits left by long-extinct volcanoes are easily visible in the crater Alphonsus using any size of telescope when the moon is fully illuminated. Hello, Moon in June Stargazers! Here are your Astronomy Skylights for the week of June 12th, 2022 by Chris Vaughan. Feel free to pass this along to…
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A high resolution image of the moon’s Imbrium Basin, captured by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. From Monday to Friday this week, the lunar terminator will march across this huge feature in the moon’s northern hemisphere, showing off its best aspects. Hello, June Stargazers! Here are your Astronomy Skylights for the week of June 5th, 2022…
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