Day 2 and 3 of Night Sky Observatory build

Yesterday was the day to complete the removal of the remaining grass and to travel to three Home Depots to finally get the 16"x48" form tube (they shipped me a 10" and the 16" tubes were hard to find. Then there were the anchor bolts ... what a task that was to get them. Whew. Started digging the holes.

Today the corner footer holes for the deck were completed and the concrete poured (2 bags per hole). The dig of the pier footer hole took awhile being 18"x 38-40" deep! But it is ready for concrete pour later this weekend. Decided to build the deck first, cut the center hole for the pier and then pour concrete from the top of the deck. This way I can precisely set the footer height to be at just the right height for the pier base to be just an inch or so under the deck floor.

Temps are getting a bit steep here in Maryland, so tomorrow is gonna be a bit uncomfortable (90's). 

 

Groundbreaking on Night Sky Observatory

Today marked the official groundbreaking for Night Sky Observatory. The plot was measured and the stakes were set. I chose to align the east and west sides of the deck as close to true north as possible, using an iPhone app called Theodolite to position the stakes. The alignment is likely not exact, but it does not need to be. I aimed to keep it close because the plot was already oriented that way.

Next came digging the hole. Progress was slow at first because the soil was very rocky, and I hit several stones and medium-sized rocks within the first foot. After that, digging became much easier. Because the concrete pier footing must extend below the frost line, I dug to the full 48-inch depth of the Sono tube. Tomorrow, I will need to shape the hole more precisely once the Sono tube arrives and I can confirm the required diameter, which should be 16 inches.

Every project needs a supervisor, and so Luna was there to make sure everything went to plan.

Tomorrow the decking boards and concrete arrive.

Follow Jupiter and Venus in the Early Evening Sky

Jupiter and Venus will be 'doing the dance' for the next couple of weeks. Both planets are in the western sky and visible as soon as it gets dark - around 8:30 - 9:00 PM EDT.

On Monday, June 1, 2026, Jupiter will be to the left and higher than Venus. Venus, of course, is the brighter of the two. The two stars above the planets are Castor and Pollux, the major stars of Gemini the Twins. Castor is the rightmost of the two.

By next Monday, June 8, the two planets will be very close to each other, with Jupiter falling further down to the horizon and Venus rising slowly and to the left.

On June 9 they will be the closest, about 1.5 degrees apart - a bit more than the width of your pinky finger at arm's length.

On the 15th, Jupiter will have passed Venus and sinking lower and lower in the western horizon. 

On the 16th, the thin crescent moon joins the pair making for a nice grouping.

Finally, on the 17th the moon joins Venus for another close pairing. 

No optical aid needed - just your eyes and clear skies! 

IC 1396 - featuring the Elephant Trunk Nebula

Sometimes things fall through the cracks. So it was with my imaging run of IC 1396. I had collected the 27 hours of narrowband data back in 2022, but just 'uncovered' the files a few days ago.

IC 1396 - September 2022
GT102/ASI2600mm - SHO Hubble Palette
27 Hours Integration time - sub exposures 300sec each

IC 1396 is a vast and intricate emission nebula nestled within the constellation Cepheus, spanning over three degrees of sky and glowing softly with the deep red light of ionized hydrogen. Illuminated by the massive stars of the embedded cluster Trumpler 37, this region is a stellar nursery in constant motion—where intense radiation carves away at dense clouds of gas and dust, revealing a complex tapestry of pillars, globules, and dark lanes. This wide-field view captures its sprawling extent with the narrowband SHO palette isolating and enhancing its fine structures.

At its heart lies one of its most iconic features: the Elephant’s Trunk Nebula, a sinuous column of dense gas stretching into the glowing background. This structure is being slowly eroded by stellar winds and ultraviolet radiation, a process that both destroys and creates—compressing pockets of material that may eventually collapse into new stars.

Close Pairings of Moon and Planets

Yesterday evening I took the photograph (below) of the close pairing of the thin crescent Moon and the planet Venus. Image was taken with the iPhone 17 Pro and was handheld.

This evening, I took a similar photo, but mounted the iPhone on a tripod. The moon has now placed itself between two planets - Jupiter to the left and Venus below and to the right.

I find it a bit amusing that the handheld photo appears less burry than the one on the tripod. But I think that is really due to the time of day these were taken and the phase of the moon. On the 19th the moon was larger and brighter.

Exploring Einstein's Relativity - Soldiers Delight Star Party this Saturday (May 16)

 

Soldiers Delight Star Party - May 16, 2026

Don't miss the next SD Star Party - this Saturday evening!

"From Space-Time to Black Holes: Exploring Einstein's Relativity"

In a riveting lecture on spacetime physics, the speaker will delve into the intricacies of special and general relativity, captivating the audience with both theory and practical examples. The lecture begins with an introduction to special relativity, explaining how it revolutionized our understanding of space and time by showing that they are interwoven into a single continuum. This will be illustrated with the famous example of time dilation, where time slows down for an object moving at high speeds, such as an astronaut traveling near the speed of light. Transitioning to general relativity, the lecture will highlight how Einstein's theory describes gravity not as a force, but as a curvature of spacetime caused by mass. This is vividly demonstrated with the analogy of a heavy ball placed on a stretched rubber sheet, bending the surface around it. The speaker will also discuss real-world applications, such as the precise calculations needed for GPS satellites, which must account for both special and general relativistic effects to provide accurate positioning. Throughout the lecture, the audience will be encouraged to appreciate the profound implications of these theories on our understanding of the universe.

All ages welcome.

All programs rain or shine. Time machines will be provided by the Westminster Astronomy Club.

You can find out about special local events by contacting us at https://www.westminsterastro.org/

Date: Saturday, May 16, 2026

Time: 8:30 p.m. - 10:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)

Location: Soldiers Delight Environmental Area - Visitor Center

5100 Deer Park Rd.

Owings Mills, MD 21117

 

Three New Images from 'the soon to be constructed' Night Sky Observatory

Observatory Plans

Plans for the groundbreaking of the new observatory building, Night Sky Observatory, are almost complete. Hopefully I can start digging the hole for the pier footing next week or soon after. I have all the parts except for the lumber, sonotube and concrete. Digging the hole is straightforward, but I need to have the lumber for the deck available to make sure the height of the concrete top is at the right distance from the deck floor when constructed. Once the concrete is poured it's all said and done - no more changes (at least not easy ones!).

Meanwhile, I was able to capture and process a few more deep space images. 

NGC 3242 - Jupiter's Ghost

Drifting through the constellation Hydra, NGC 3242 is a striking planetary nebula commonly known as Jupiter’s Ghost. The nickname comes from its nearly planet-sized apparent disk and vivid blue‑green glow, which early astronomers likened to the appearance of Jupiter through small telescopes. In reality, this object has nothing to do with the planet—it marks the final visible breath of a Sun‑like star that shed its outer layers near the end of its life, leaving behind a hot, dense white dwarf at its core.

NGC 3242 (HOO) - March and April, 2026
EdgeHD11/ASI2600mm
1hr 50min total integration time (Ha and Oiii)

Jupiter’s Ghost reveals beautifully layered structure: a bright elliptical inner shell, delicate outer halos, and subtle knots and jets sculpted by fast stellar winds and intense ultraviolet radiation. The characteristic turquoise color is dominated by doubly ionized oxygen glowing at specific wavelengths, giving the nebula its ethereal, eye‑like appearance. Though this cosmic shell spans roughly a couple of light‑years, it is fleeting on astronomical timescales—destined to fade as the central star cools and the nebula disperses into interstellar space.

HDR processing was used to highlight the inner structure. This is a cropped version of the original stacked image.

Arp 104

Arp 104, also known as Keenan’s System, is a striking example of an interacting galaxy pair captured in Halton Arp’s Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies. It consists of two galaxies—NGC 5216, an elliptical galaxy, and NGC 5218, a highly disturbed disk galaxy—locked in a close gravitational encounter in the constellation Ursa Major. The most eye‑catching feature of the system is the faint but distinct bridge of stars and tidal material connecting the two galaxies, a structure formed as their mutual gravity pulls stars out of NGC 5218 and stretches them across intergalactic space.

Arp 104 (LRGB) - April 2026
EdgeHD11/ASI2600mm
5hr 24min total integration time

This stellar bridge, spanning roughly 22,000 light‑years, offers a vivid snapshot of galactic interaction and evolution in progress. The encounter has triggered structural distortions and star formation, particularly within the dusty central regions of NGC 5218, while NGC 5216 appears comparatively calm and evolved.

NGC 4561 - Umbrella Galaxy

NGC 4651, often called the Umbrella Galaxy, is a striking spiral galaxy in Coma Berenices, roughly tens of millions of light‑years from Earth, whose serene appearance hides a dramatic past. At first glance it shows a beautifully structured, nearly face‑on disk with sweeping spiral arms and a bright, compact core. But deep exposures reveal the real showpiece: a long, delicate tidal stream arcing outward like the handle of an umbrella. This faint stellar plume is the remnant of a smaller galaxy that NGC 4651 tore apart and absorbed, leaving behind a graceful ribbon of stars that wraps around the system.

NGC 4561 (LRGB) - April 2026
EdgeHD11/ASI2600mm
5hr 2min total integration time

Once again, I’ve had some issues with my flats not completely correcting my lights. So, I’ve cropped this image slightly to exclude the artifacts. And yes, once again PixInsight failed to register all the subs complaining about 3 red, 16 green and 8 blue. So, I used APP to do the calibration and registration (although I could have just supplied the PI calibrated subs). All lights were successfully registered.

The 'Need' for Infinity

Ultrafinitism, a philosophy that rejects the infinite, has long been dismissed as mathematical heresy. But it is also producing new insights in math and beyond.

This is a bit outside the usual scope of the blog, but it popped up in my email and caught my attention. I’m not planning to dive into it myself, but I’m sharing it to see what everyone else makes of it. An interesting read at Quanta Magazine. Comment below if you like.

Building Permit Received - Construction Starts on Night Sky Observatory

It's been a long time waiting (almost a month to the date) for my building permit to get approved and issued prior to starting the construction of the free-standing deck and pier for the Night Sky Observatory. But now with the permit in hand, it's time to start the first phase of the construction - the measurements and dig.

I was notified today that my SkyShed Pier will be shipped out either Wednesday or Thursday and should arrive sometime next week. I'll probably spend some time early next week taking measurements of the area where the deck will sit for getting grade angle and then start the digging of the 40" deep by 18" diameter hole for the concrete pier footing. The location is pretty flat, and initial 'quick' measures showed the incline to be only about 3 degrees, which would make the height difference of about 8".

Soldiers Delight Star Party - April 18, 2026 - 8:30pm EDT

Soldiers Delight Star Party - April 18, 2026

Don't miss the next SD Star Party - this Saturday evening!

"Crisis in Cosmology - aka, The Hubble Tension"

Tonight's lecture is on one of the most intriguing puzzles in modern cosmology: The Hubble Tension. This phenomenon refers to the discrepancy between the rate of expansion of the universe as measured by different methods. On one hand, we have measurements from the early universe, such as those from the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB), and on the other, we have measurements from the local universe, such as those using Cepheid variables and Type Ia supernovae. Despite the precision of these methods, they yield different values for the Hubble constant, leading to a tension that challenges our understanding of the cosmos. Today, we will delve into the methods used to measure the Hubble constant, explore the possible reasons for this discrepancy, and discuss the implications for our understanding of the universe.

All ages welcome.

All programs rain or shine. Time machines will be provided by the Westminster Astronomy Club.

You can find out about special local events by contacting us at https://www.westminsterastro.org/

Date: Saturday, March 18, 2026

Note time change for the Summer Months:
Time: 8:30 p.m. - 10:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)

Location: Soldiers Delight Environmental Area - Visitor Center

5100 Deer Park Rd.

Owings Mills, MD 21117

 

New Images

A string of clear, cool evenings in Maryland can only mean one thing - Mikey is imaging again!

Here are my latest deep space objects.

First up, the Eyes Galaxies (NGC 4438 and 4435)

NGC 4438 is a striking, highly distorted galaxy in the Virgo Cluster, located about 52 million light‑years from Earth and forming the larger half of the interacting pair known as The Eyes. Once likely a spiral galaxy, NGC 4438 has been dramatically reshaped by gravitational encounters with nearby galaxies, including its close companion NGC 4435. These interactions have stretched its disk into long tidal tails, disrupted its structure, and stripped much of its gas, leaving behind a chaotic yet beautiful form that vividly illustrates the powerful effects of galactic collisions in a dense cluster environment.

The Eyes Galaxies
EdgeHD11/ASI2600 - April 8-10, 2026
LRGB - 6hr 21m integration time

This is a slightly cropped version of the original FOV. I had some issues with my Lum flats not correcting the large donut rings along the bottom and left edges. Cropping the image eliminated them (mostly). This is the third time I’ve had issues with the Lum flats. Need to investigate.

Next, M64 (the Black Eye Galaxy)

Messier 64, better known as the Black Eye Galaxy, is a striking spiral galaxy located about 17 million light‑years away in the constellation Coma Berenices. Its nickname comes from the dramatic, dark band of interstellar dust that cuts across its bright central bulge, giving the appearance of a shadowed or “bruised” eye. This dense dust lane absorbs starlight from the core, creating one of the most distinctive faces in the nearby universe.

M64 - the Black Eye Galaxy
EdgeHD11/ASI2600 - April 12, 2026
LRGB - 6hr 24m integration time

The galaxy contains counter‑rotating inner and outer regions, where gas in the outskirt's spins in the opposite direction from the stars and gas near the core—likely the aftermath of a past merger with a smaller galaxy. Where these opposing flows interact, gas clouds are compressed, triggering new bursts of star formation that add subtle color and texture to long‑exposure images.

Zooming in on the image you can see many more distant galaxies scattered throughout the field.