If you saw a weird light in the sky this evening...it's a high-altitude #balloon!
(The weird orientation is due to my camera & telescope on the sky)
Seen through my 9.25" reflector telescope, but you could see it with binoculars. I saw it pop too! SW, 20 deg up in the sky from Albuquerque.

It's time to sign up for the American Association of Variable Star Observers meeting on Nov 1-2!
You can use amateur astronomy to contribute to real scientific discovery.

The annual meeting is in Portland, OR this year at OMSI. Come join us!
www.aavso.org/114

M8 Lagoon #Nebula! 28 hrs from my Albuquerque backyard. Huge stellar nursery in the summertime constellation Sagittarius, right along the main part of the Milky Way. More: app.astrobin.com/u/mollycule?...

M57 Ring #Nebula! From my rig at Starfront Observatories in Texas. Planetary nebula ~2500 ly away, near Vega. 25.5 hrs total exposure. More: app.astrobin.com/u/mollycule?...
#space #astronomy #astrophotography

The Rho Ophiuchi Complex! Just west of the Milky Way. Captured at the Texas Star Party with a #Nikon D7000 (mod) and Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8. Colorful region of emission & reflection nebulae and dark dust. More: app.astrobin.com/i/dwns3z
#space #astronomy #astrophotography

M51 Whirlpool #Galaxy! From the Texas Star Party. 23 million ly away in Canes Venatici. It's interacting with neighboring NGC 5195 on the right there - they've passed through each other a few times. Huge tidal plume! 4.5 hrs total exposure. #space #astronomy #astrophotography

#Galaxy NGC 3521 in Leo! From the Texas Star Party. 11h40m total exposure with an 8" reflector telescope. 37 million lightyears away! More: app.astrobin.com/u/mollycule?...

The Medusa #Nebula! A dying star shrugging off its outer layers of gas, 1500 ly away in Gemini. 30h total exposure from my backyard in Albuquerque. More: app.astrobin.com/i/dwns3z
#space #astronomy#astrophotography

After 5-1/2 years (note: I already had a master's!), the last year of which was spent at a full-time job, I finally got the last signature today on my dissertation. 🎓🎉🍻

The Rosette #Nebula!! In the "Hubble" palette, where glowing sulfur gas is red, hydrogen is green, and oxygen is blue. 5k ly away in winter constellation Monoceros. 23h total exposure from my backyard 😁 More: www.astrobin.com/pejiwv/
#space #astronomy #astrophotography

The Needle #Galaxy is 40 million ish lightyears behind the galaxy-rich constellation Coma Berenices. There are several other galaxies in the scene if you look closely. More: astrobin.com/5fvh5n/
#space #astronomy #astrophotography

Jones-Emberson 1, or the Headphone Nebula, is a dim planetary nebula 1600 ly away in the constellation Lynx. The two lobes on each side are unusual for a PN. PNe are dying main-sequence stars - our sun will eventually look something like this! More: astrobin.com/xhd9xn/
#space #astrophotography

The Cave Nebula is an emission, reflection, & dark nebula complex 2,400 ly away in the constellation Cepheus. Color is the "Hubble palette;" red = sulfur, green = hydrogen, blue = oxygen gas, energized & emitting light. More: www.astrobin.com/4rpnht/
#space #astronomy #astrophotography #nebula

NGC 891! Edge-on spiral galaxy 30 million lightyears behind the Andromeda constellation. 20h total exposure (237x5-min) from my 9.25" backyard reflector. See more here: www.astrobin.com/spdvap/

#space #astronomy #astrophotography #galaxy