{"id":28074,"date":"2022-01-20T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-20T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=28074"},"modified":"2022-02-02T15:12:37","modified_gmt":"2022-02-02T15:12:37","slug":"gallery-your-pictures-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/2022\/01\/20\/gallery-your-pictures-5\/","title":{"rendered":"Gallery: Your pictures"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Your best photos submitted to the magazine this month<\/p>\n\n

PHOTO OF THE MONTH<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

The Orion Nebula<\/h4>\n\n

Danny Lee, Folkestone, Kent, 7 November 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Danny says: <\/strong>\u201cThis was my first attempt at imaging the Orion Nebula. At this time of year, it skims the neighbouring rooftops from my back garden, so I was happy I was able to capture it. I tried to show some of the dust around the nebula and I removed the stars in post-processing to help achieve that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Equipment:<\/strong> ZWO ASI2600MC Pro camera, William Optics RedCat 51 APO refractor, Sky-Watcher EQ5 Pro mount <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure:<\/strong> 36x 300\u201d, 3h total <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software:<\/strong> DeepSkyStacker, PixInsight, Lightroom<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Danny\u2019s top tips: <\/strong>\u201cThe Orion Nebula\u2019s core is bright, so add in some shorter exposures to <\/span>retain detail in the brightest areas. I try not to be too aggressive in photo-editing software when I set the \u2018black point\u2019 \u2013 the darkest area of the image on the left of a histogram. I set the arrow about 10\u201320 per cent in from the left to get a more natural look and to avoid losing detail in the darkest regions. Taking regular breaks helps too: fresh eyes help to identify things to improve on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

Northern Lights<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Tom\u00e1\u0161 Slovinsk\u00fd, Troms\u00f8, Norway, 27 October 2021<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Tom\u00e1\u0161 says: <\/strong>\u201cDuring a journey with friends to Troms\u00f8 we enjoyed a great time on the beach watching the Northern Lights. Suddenly, a sky full of aurora exploded.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

Equipment: <\/strong>Canon 6D DSLR, Sigma 28mm Art lens, tripod <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure: <\/strong>ISO 4000 f\/1.8, 2.5\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software: <\/strong>Lightroom<\/span><\/p>\n\n

The Pleiades<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Basudeb Chakrabarti and Goutam Dey, Darjeeling, India, 6 November 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Basudeb says: <\/strong>\u201cOn a clear night, we imaged the Pleiades, rising and setting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Equipment:<\/strong> Nikon D5300 DSLR, William Optics RedCat 51 refractor, iOptron SkyGuider Pro mount; Nikon D5600 DSLR, William Optics RedCat 51 refractor, iOptron SmartEQ Pro mount <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure:<\/strong> 60x 60\u201d, 100x 30\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software:<\/strong> DeepSkyStacker, PixInsight, Photoshop<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Polar-ring galaxy NGC 660<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Martina McGovern, near Cambridge, 3 September\u20131 November 2021<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Martina says: <\/strong>\u201cThis is my most challenging project so far, requiring over 20 hours of data over six nights.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Equipment:<\/strong> ZWO ASI294MC Pro camera, Celestron 8-inch EdgeHD Schmidt Cassegrain, Sky-Watcher HEQ5 Pro mount <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure: <\/strong>20h total <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software: <\/strong>DeepSkyStacker, PixInsight, Photoshop<\/span><\/p>\n\n

The Elephant\u2019s Trunk Nebula<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Martin Cohen, Fareham, Hampshire, October\u2013November 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Martin says: <\/strong>\u201cGoing for both detail and a wide field of view demanded a 3×3 mosaic. To achieve this I had to acquire 27 hours of data over four nights.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Equipment:<\/strong> ZWO ASI2600MM Pro camera, Sky-Watcher Quattro 8CF Newtonian, Sky-Watcher HEQ5 mount<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure<\/strong>: 9 panels, 15\u201320x 180\u201d per channel<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software:<\/strong> DeepSkyStacker, Photoshop, Starnet++<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Mineral Moon and Moon<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Fernando Oliveira de Menezes, S\u00e3o Paulo, Brazil, 7 November 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Fernando says: <\/strong>\u201cI recorded the mineral Moon (left) in RAW format and the other in mono, adjusting the saturation of the RAW image to bring out the mineral details.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Equipment: <\/strong>ZWO ASI6200MC camera, Sky-Watcher Esprit 150ED refractor, iOptron CEM70 mount <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure:<\/strong> 900x 0.15\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software: <\/strong>AutoStakkert!, RegiStax, Photoshop<\/span><\/p>\n\n

The Phantom Galaxy<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Rob Johnson, Liverpool, 26 September, 30 October and 3 November 2021<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Rob says: <\/strong>\u201cM74 is a difficult target to observe from my Bortle 7\u20138 skies due to its low surface brightness, but I can\u2019t resist face-on spiral galaxies so I gave it a go.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Equipment: <\/strong>Atik 383L+ camera, TS-Optics ONTC 12-inch Newtonian, Sky-Watcher EQ8 mount<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure: <\/strong>7.8h total <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software: <\/strong>PixInsight<\/span><\/p>\n\n

The Lobster Claw Nebula<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Ron Brecher, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, 25 November 2021<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Ron says:<\/strong> \u201cUsing the Hubble Palette reveals some of the chemistry of this dynamic region of space.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Equipment: <\/strong>QHYCCD QHY600M camera, Sky-Watcher Esprit 150ED refractor, Paramount MX mount <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure:<\/strong> Ha 22x 20\u2019, OIII 22x 20\u2019, SII 22x 20\u2019 <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software: <\/strong>PixInsight<\/span><\/p>\n\n

Comet Leonard<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Tom Masterson and Terry Hancock, Grand Mesa Observatory, Colorado, USA, 25 November 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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Tom and Terry say: <\/strong>\u201cThis captures Comet C\/2021 A1 Leonard as it passes the Whale and the Hockey Stick Galaxies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

Equipment: <\/strong>QHYCCD QHY367C camera, Takahashi E-180 astrograph, Paramount GT1100S mount <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Exposure: <\/strong>116x 60\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n\n

Software:<\/strong> DeepSkyStacker, PixInsight, Photoshop<\/span><\/p>\n\n

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