Astrophotography – Imaging the Fireworks Galaxy. An interview with D.j Van Bourgondien. Watch the full Interview Imaging the Fireworks Galaxy Using a Celestron EdgeHD 8″ Telescope Recently, Andrew Roberts from Optical Mechanics sat down with astrophotography enthusiast DJ Van Bourgondien to discuss his fascinating journey into this captivating field, as well as his process and […]
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Astrophotography and the IC1318 Butterfly Nebula, an interview with Drew Evans. Watch the Interview Now Introduction Welcome to Optical Mechanics, where we delve into the fascinating world of astronomy and the passionate individuals who contribute to its exploration. Recently, we had the pleasure of interviewing Drew Evans, an astrophotographer whose work with the Butterfly Nebula
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Interview with Bernard Miller, Imaging the Sculptor Galaxy. Watch the Full Interview Now The universe is filled with wonders, and among them, the Sculptor Galaxy (NGC 253) stands out as one of the most stunning spiral galaxies visible from Earth. Situated approximately 11.4 million light-years away in the constellation Sculptor, this galaxy is a favorite
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Intro Saturn has 83 known moons, several of which can be seen in a telescope. Unlike Jupiter, which has 4 large moons easily visible in binoculars and no others which can be realistically observed with a backyard instrument, or the dim and distant moons of Uranus and Neptune, Saturn boasts a whopping 8 moons that
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Lying on the celestial equator, the constellation of Orion is one of the most recognizable and well-known constellations in the night sky. It is visible in both hemispheres from November to March, hitting the meridian at sunset in January. The areas in and around Orion are home to one of the most glorious parts of
Orion Constellation – The Ultimate Guide to a Classic Beauty Read More »
Located on the ecliptic, Cancer (the “crab”) is one of the twelve constellations of the zodiac and is found in the northern celestial hemisphere. Cancer is a medium-sized constellation with an area of 506 square degrees and is home to many exciting deep-sky objects, many of which will be discussed in this ultimate guide to
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Why does the moon shine? is one of those seemingly simple questions that people tend to assume they were born with the knowledge to answer, like ‘why is the sky blue?’ That is until someone – usually a young child – asks them the question. But fear not, nobody is born with this knowledge, so
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There isn’t a person alive who hasn’t seen the Moon in the sky and noticed it changing shape. We’ve all watched it change from night to night, from a crescent to a half and then to full. It then seems to disappear from the night completely before returning, a few weeks later, to the evening
Why Does the Moon Have Phases? You Need to Know Read More »
Stars are some of the most widely recognized astronomical objects and are very common in space. There are billions of stars in the Milky Way alone, and their abundance means that there are actually lots of different kinds of stars and each type has its own unique features. Today’s focus are the very cool, very beautiful
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The universe is fascinating, and we are very privileged to be able to witness the many planets in our solar system right from our homes. Mars is one planet that we have come to love. Amazed by what it is and intrigued about what more we can find. We walk you through how to view Mars
How To See Mars Through a Telescope – Best Magnification Read More »
Space is a vast and mysterious place that we still barely understand. In our solar system, we only have one star – the Sun. But there are countless trillions of stars in the universe, all of different sizes and densities. But just what color are stars, exactly? This is actually a very interesting question and
What Color are Stars? How to See the Stellar Rainbow Read More »
If you are new to astronomy or love viewing the stars from the comfort of your own backyard, then it’s time to learn about circumpolar constellations. There are many different constellations found in our night sky, but which ones you see every time you look up depends heavily on your location on Earth. Circumpolar constellations
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