❄️🌲❄️ Snow covered pines, icy clear air, the micro & the macro in medicine, astronomy & other lifelong passions.💫🩺🚀 Generally educational posts on Sundays!
Joined June 2019
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StarsAndScopes retweeted
DAVINCI proves it can stand the heat 🔥
To prepare for its descent through Venus’ scorching atmosphere, a model of the DAVINCI probe was heated to 869 degrees Fahrenheit (465 degrees Celsius) six different times. It passed every test unscathed.
ALT An engineering model of the DAVINCI descent probe. The probe is a smooth, metallic sphere with a band of nozzles wrapping around its circumference. It is sitting next to a furnace-like testing apparatus.
StarsAndScopes retweeted
This morning I had to go to the Subaru dealer in the east end to pick up a few things, so thought I would go back to #MerBleue as it wasn't far away. I would like to have been there early enough for the sunrise but am quite happy with these two shots.#NatureSunrise
StarsAndScopes retweeted
M31, the Andromeda Galaxy. Mosaic image captured with an IR-cut filter using the Seestar S50 in EQ mode on October 4, 2026. Total integration time: 3 hours 5 minutes (370 × 30s), live-stacked and subsequently processed in AstroWizard.
#SeestarS50 #Astrophotography #Astronomy
ALT Image (c) @RafStargazer
StarsAndScopes retweeted
Waning Gibbous Moon. October 1, 2026, 12:51 AM. This image was created from a one-minute video. The frames were stacked using the Seestar S50’s built-in app. #Moonphase #astrophotography
ALT Image (c) @RafStargazer
StarsAndScopes retweeted
We are now in the Virgo cluster of galaxies:
An incredible chain of galaxies, the Markarian’s Chain with… how many galaxies?
Image taken using the second setup of the Anysllum Observatory, a telescope R80 with 11 hours of LRGB exposure. @AstroSabadell.
StarsAndScopes retweeted
Hello Everyone, here is my latest capture - a large dark nebula (LDN 772), also referred to as the Loch Ness Monster Nebula. It sits in the constellation Vulpecula. I used my Celestron RASA telescope and ZWO ASI533MC color camera.
StarsAndScopes retweeted
Saturn in near perfect seeing on September 22nd
A spell of near perfect seeing on the 22nd allowed for the best session of the apparition. A small dark spot is seen in the northern hemisphere just right of centre, while some faint spokes are seen in the rings. Some of Saturn's moons are at right, while a background star is at right.
The highlight was undoubtedly the view visually. I took the camera off near meridian and its probably the best view i've had of Saturn since i was last on Barbados in 2022. Remarkable stuff!
StarsAndScopes retweeted
Full Moon – simply a moment in time frozen in the photo. September 26, 2026, around 22:45. The photo is a composite stacked from a 45-second video file, captured with a Seestar S50 telescope. #FullMoon #HarvestMoon
ALT Image (c) @RafStargazer
StarsAndScopes retweeted
Crazy auroras from Alaska. Check out the incredible colors and real-time motion.
StarsAndScopes retweeted
Walking on green snow in Fairbanks, Alaska... why is it green? Wait and see!
StarsAndScopes retweeted
One of the most active auroral displays I have seen in Alaska. This is a REAL-TIME video, not sped up. How beautiful is this! Are you planning to see the aurora in Fairbanks, Alaska this season? It's going to be a great winter...
StarsAndScopes retweeted
M33 in the constellation of Triangulum. Data were collected over several September nights with a Seestar S50, for a total integration time of 2.06 h (372 × 20 s) in alt-azimuth mode. Stacking and denoising were carried out in the telescope’s internal app, while GraXpert was used for background extraction and histogram stretching. The result is promising enough that – weather permitting – I plan to gather additional data in the coming weeks. #SeestarS50 #Astrophotography #Astronomy
ALT Image (c) @RafStargazer