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The Skies of June, 2025

Highlights: Comet Journal, Martian Landers, Meteor Showers, Planet Plotting, June Moon. Focus Constellations: Ursa Major, Draco, Ursa Minor, Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Camelopardalis, Lynx, Leo Minor, Leo, Coma Berenices, Virgo, Bootes, Corona Borealis, Hercules, Lyra, Cygnus, Aquila

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First Light with My New Telescope System: A Detailed Review

Overall, this first light session exceeded all expectations. The system performed flawlessly, and while there are areas to tweak—like Dec balancing, guiding refinement, and learning how to autofocus without rage-quitting—the foundation is rock solid. Spending extra time on polar alignment proved to be the best decision of the night, ensuring a productive session with minimal frustration.

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Cosmic Challenge: Schröter's Valley

Technically, Schröter's Valley, also known as Vallis Schröteri, is not a valley at all. It's a sinuous rille, the largest and most prominent sinuous rille on the Moon's near side. Although the "valley" looks to be connected to Herodotus, it actually begins at a 4-mile-wide (6 km) crater some 15 miles to the north called the "Cobra Head." It then meanders its way for over 100 miles (160 km) across the Aristarchus plateau, narrowing to less than 1/4 mile wide at its thinnest. It eventually empties into Oceanus Procellarum.

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Configuring an 8" RC Telescope for Astrophotography

I got introduced to astrophotography by a good friend of mine. Astrophotography piqued my natural interest, and I plunged into it two years ago. I started with a Vespera Smart Alt-Azimuth telescope to learn and start exploring deep space. Over time, I wanted a setup to give me greater control and reach to photograph high-resolution deep-space objects. After months of research, I decided on an 8" Ritchey-Chrétien telescope for its focal length, speed, size, and weight. Many members shared valuable insights from their experiences that helped me decide on specific components. I am sharing my experience of building my 8" Ritchey-Chrétien telescope (RCT)

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Revealing The Nebulae With Pixinsight

In my previous article, In search of the Stars, I described the imaging system hardware and software I use for astroimaging. The system includes an Optolong L-eNhance Dual Bandpass Light Pollution Reduction Imaging Filter that enables me to capture many nebulae with amazing detail. I will use this article to explain how the images were revealed with PixInsight. The Resources section at the end of the article contains a list of relevant references.

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The Skies of May, 2025

Highlights: Comet Journal, Martian Landers, Meteor Showers, Planet Plotting, May Moon. Focus Constellations: Ursa Major, Draco, Ursa Minor, Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Camelopardalis, Lynx, Gemini, Cancer, Leo Minor, Leo, Coma Berenices, Virgo, Bootes, Corona Borealis, Hercules, Lyra

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Romantic Retrospective

I feel like an astronomical Rip VanWinkle. There is no doubt that the pace of change in technology is fast and grows ever faster. Those of us “of a certain age,” find our contemporary lives routinely employ tools unimaginable to our younger selves. I took a wee break from observational astronomy for about forty years. My, how things have changed!

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Review: Photographic Atlas of the Moon-A Comprehensive Guide for the Amateur Astronomer by Robert...

If the Moon is the subject of your astronomical observing program, whether as a beginner or seasoned observer, Robert Reeves Photographic Atlas of the Moon seems to me as a must-have resource. Way back when I started my lunar explorations, I wish that this book had been around. Luckily for the lunar observer of the mid 2020s, there are a good number of fine lunar observing books to choose from. This one should be at the top of that list.

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Review of the New SHG700 spectroheliograph

Build wise, the SHG700 is high end all the way with its aluminum body, 7mm quartz slit, and micrometer driven focus points. I had no issues imaging the Sun with it but do have the experience of using a Sol’Ex prior to getting my SHG700 so I sort of knew what to expect. It appears the designer took the best parts of the Sol’Ex and added updates that really make it easy to use and more durable. The full disk images it delivers are exponentially more complex and richer than most dedicated Solar telescopes.

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Cosmic Challenge: M84 and M86

Look at any deep-sky map of the spring sky, and it's pretty clear that when it comes to galaxy hunting, the constellations of Coma Berenices and Virgo are the places to be. The Virgo Cluster hosts an estimated 1,300 individual galaxies (though some sources suggest it may have as many as 2,000) and forms the heart of the Local Supercluster, of which our Milky Way’s Local Group is considered an outlying member. Of those 1,300+ galaxies, two of the brightest are M84 and M86, found not far from the Virgo Cluster's geometric center.

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